ROSE RAMBLER …3.6.2016 …

Hello dear rose friends and welcome to winter and a whole new year of beautiful roses!  We’ll be contacting you shortly to advise that your roses are ready for posting so we hope you’ve done the necessary preparations which our magnificent quality roses deserve to ensure they flourish for many years in your garden … here are a few tips for planting bare-rooted roses …

GRA’S GARBLE …

As soon as you can, after receiving your parcel of roses in the post, remove them from the box and soak them in a trough/bucket to which you have added a proportional amount of seaweed powder or solution – the roses are good in this soak for 24 hours but if you’re planting immediately, just give them a dip – pour the remaining solution over the roses after you’ve soaked them to a slurry with the hose!

NEVER OVERWATER NEWLY PLANTED ROSES – let them settle in gently – most gardens will have had some rain and the garden won’t need watering for a while but fortnightly light applications of seaweed over all plants will ensure frost tolerance to between 3-5 degrees and even if you don’t experience frost in your area, you’ll encourage good root development and healthy foliage through coming months!

Add liquid fertilizer such as ECO-AMINOGRO to the seaweed for balanced, gentle feeding while the roses are settling in and starting to form roots which will, in turn, produce healthy foliage – I know I harp on this, but the more healthy foliage on your roses, the more beautiful, colourful and long-lasting flowers your roses will produce – it’s ALL ABOUT HEALTHY FOLIAGE which is produced from microbe/humus rich soil where the roots are feeding – give them the best possible start WHEN YOU PLANT YOUR NEW ROSES!

Q.  What do you call a horse that lives next door? A.  Your neigh-bour …

We’re always asked “what’s your favourite rose?” … the one which looks sensational today is usually my response and here are a few that have been superb in recent weeks while we’ve had cold nights and rain on the flowers …

MEMOIRE
Probably my most favourite white rose for its resilience in ALL WEATHER – it produces beautifully formed huge pure white blooms which last well in a vase on a magnificently shaped bush of medium height with darkest-green, most healthy foliage

MAURICE UTRILLO
The stripes on these blooms are sensational with every single flower unique and perfectly beautiful – slashes of crimson red with yellow/cream – voluptuous and exotic, extraordinarily healthy and very free flowering – awesome rose!

FRAGRANT PLUM
Deep lilac with rich purple tips on each petal, perfectly formed blooms ideal for flowering arranging on an upright, medium height bush which tolerates hot weather conditions.

Q.  What do you call a box of ducks?  A.  A box of quackers …

Next week, I’ll be sharing information about digging holes for your new roses … Gra

See you soon at Clonbinane … Diana, Graham and Mooi 
Remember, rose pruning demonstrations on
SATURDAY, 11^TH JUNE 10.30 AND 1.30!

ROSE RAMBLER …

Hello dear rose friends as we here at Clonbinane say goodbye to another magnificent season of beautiful flowering roses … some of the last flowers in our gardens are stunning.

HONEY PERFUME
is putting on a delightful display – lovely floribunda rose with near-thornless stems produces bunches of blooms which are perfect for a vase on a medium sized, well-rounded, very healthy shrub.  I love it that this rose is always different throughout the season – both in colour and flower shape – see all the pics at www.rosesalesonline.com.au

Now we’re dealing with sticks but oh, my word, those sticks are such amazing quality after such a long, hot, dry summer – it was a perfect season for establishing roses, especially since our grower has a plentiful supply of ground water and magnificent soil which he nurtures with organic fertilizer, crop-rotation and good management!

Not ALL the roses come in the first consignment – if your order contains standard roses, they are the last to be dug later in June so we will notify you then.  Some varieties of roses need to be left in the ground that little bit longer … please be patient about your order arriving – we promise to notify you prior to posting your roses so you know to expect them.

If you have any particular queries about your rose order, please email Diana at info@rosesalesonline.com.au and I will contact you within 24 hours of your enquiry.

A few beautiful testimonials which we would like to share:

Please know that we do our absolute best when it comes to supplying the most beautiful quality roses along with great customer service and patience is a virtue when you’re excited to get your roses in the ground!

GRA’S GARBLE …

CREATE A NATURALLY HEALTHY SPACE FOR YOUR ROSES …

When preparing the soil for planting roses I suggest you use ‘humus compost’ and add ‘rockdust’ at the planting hole.

Q.  What do you get if you cross a spider with an elephant?  A.  I’m not sure, but if you see one walking across the ceiling then run before it falls down!

Any good nursery/garden centre which supplies ‘GROW BETTER’ products will have quality compost and Munash Rockdust and Renew (sea minerals) which is the activator for the microbes in Rockdust.  We are convinced of the value of adding these vital minerals to our soil and scattered over our potted roses as it increases their immunity to fungus diseases and keeps their foliage healthy – here is a testimonial from somebody we don’t know but understand his experiences:

We urge you to use these products when planting your roses this winter – we especially recommend you apply Rockdust and Renew on your veggie garden as our food is grown in soils which lack vital minerals – ensure supreme quality, mineral rich veggies from your own garden!

Here’s a bit of a story … Mrs. Kranky:  “Doctor, I’m extremely worried about my husband.  He keeps thinking he’s turned into a chicken.”  Doctor:  “Why didn’t you tell me this before?”  Mrs. Kranky:  “Well, we’ve needed the eggs.”

My Langshan chooks are still laying because they get a daily ration of ‘greens’ – silverbeet, kale, weeds and herbs which have gone to seed.  What you put in, you will get out – applies to a lot of things in life, most definitely!  Enjoy the last flowers of this season … Gra

ROSE PRUNING …

There’s no rush but for those who like to prune early, come along to:

Here’s a beautiful picture of one of the last blooms on FIRESTAR which is a most exceptional rose in all climates – lasting blooms on a very free-flowering, stunningly healthy bush for a blast of dynamic colour.

ROSE RAMBLER 19.5.2016 …

Hello dear rose friends – we’ve had a beautiful time away from the nursery.  After three days lolling around the Sunshine Coast hinterland, we moved on and had the pleasure of visiting dear friends and viewing gardens to see how you Queenslander’s grow such magnificent roses in such an extraordinary climate – glad so many of you are ‘switched on’ to our organic rose management program which is obviously necessary in such conditions!

You know what though?  Wherever we travel in Australia, the roses adapt and flower according to the local environment – they are amazing plants and we’re so, so lucky to have such a versatile plant as roses in our gardens.

Thank you Queensland rose friends for hosting us and showing us how you grow such magnificent roses – we are inspired!

GRA’S GARBLE …

Hope you enjoyed viewing the new ‘Rosarian’ Catalogue which Diana spent quite a bit of time putting together!  It’s not easy to select which roses to feature when there are so many beautiful roses for us to enjoy – here are a few of my absolute favourites …

MY RECOMMENDED ROSES – ALL TRIED AND TRUE …

They’ve been around for a while but I seriously recommend them for planting this winter if you don’t already grow them …

TROPICAL SUNSET
Such a glorious surprise of yellow/orange/pink stripes on a most robust,
sturdy bush to around 1.2m tall – lovely light fragrant and perfect to vase:

VALENCIA
Largest blooms of old-gold (peony-sized blooms) on long,
strong stems with a delicious fragrance – again, perfect to vase:

PEACE
Still popular, forever gorgeous rose with
HUGE fragrance and simply, one of the best:

Here at Clonbinane we’ve already had quite a few decent frosts so the end of the flowering season is now apparent … if your roses start to show signs of blackspot, don’t be too concerned, they’ll start to shed foliage once the cooler weather sets in and their method of de-foliating generally means the foliage will ‘spot’ and fall.

Q.  What do you call an Eskimo that asks questions?  A.  An Askimo.

Don’t bother going around to remove spent foliage – the soil / mulch will deal with all the fungus spores.  By the time you prune roses and start the organic rose management spray program, taking particular note to spray over the mulch, those fungal spores will have rotted down and become part of the ecological/microbial environment of your garden!
Besides, would you really bother removing all that foliage at the base of your rose plants?  No, of course not … it’s natural!

Q.  What did the constipated mathematician do?  A.  Worked it out with a pencil.

I sure hope you’re adding all the autumn leaves to your compost heap – they are such a valuable aerator and source of nutrients for use when planting roses in coming months!  Keep applying seaweed solution over the roses in readiness for the cold – your roses will enjoy 3-5 degrees of cold-tolerance with fortnightly applications and the foliage will remain healthy until it falls for winter – enjoy the last beautiful flowers of autumn … Gra

BARE-ROOTED ROSES …

They’re almost here – the heel-in beds are ready and waiting so get your orders in NOW at www.rosesalesonline.com.au

If you need advice about designing your garden and selecting the very best, most suitable varieties for your location, please email us:  info@rosesalesonline.com.au with dimensions, a selection of which roses you would like to plant and we can assist you to create the rose garden of your dreams ..

ROSE RAMBLER … 12.5.2016

Hello dear rose friends … let’s move right into the promised advice for building the BEST rose garden to accommodate your new roses this winter!

GRA’S GARBLE …

Because rose bushes are so productive with their flowering it’s important to remember as “RULE NO. 1” the more healthy foliage on the bushes, the more flowers you can expect throughout their potential 8-9 months of flowering.  Your roses will produce healthy foliage with good soil preparation prior to planting and using the organic management spray program throughout the season will be a bonus.

Prepare each planting hole in your garden beds as follows:

1. With a fork (a shovel will cut through worms … ouch!) dig a really rough hole about 400 x 400 x 450 deep and fork the walls and base of hole;
2. Place the soil / clay in a wheelbarrow and blend in about 50% organic compost or animal manure (not raw chook poo or mushroom compost!) a scattering of rock dust and a half-handful of organic fertilizer.
3. Put all of the above back in the hole – yes, it will create a mound but when well-watered, this will settle – water over with seaweed solution weekly.

Q.  What do you call a man without a shovel?  A.  Douglas

That’s the ‘bones’ of soil preparation for planting something new in your garden and now I’d like to take it a step further by explaining what more you can do to make your soil highly productive and full of life-giving energy so planting ANYTHING in your garden is vibrant and retains vitality which means you grow a garden to love and continually enjoy …

• Every garden has its own type of soil – good bugs which allow earthworms to breed and flourish, good fungus to balance the soil which in turn permits organic fertilizer, minerals and microbes to be taken up by plants;
• When you add a bit of leaf litter to the new planting hole from anywhere in your garden – under trees, from the veggie garden, the compost heap, etc. that litter will contain microbes which are already present in YOUR garden and they’ll readily proliferate in the new space!
• Because our Australian soils are so depleted of minerals, Munash Rock Dust along with Renew (sea mineral microbe activator) and seaweed solution are highly recommended additions to garden preparation and ongoing maintenance.

Q.  Patient:  what do the x-rays of my brain show?  A.  Doctor:  NOTHING! 

NEW CATALOGUE – AUSTRALIAN ROSARIAN

It’s been a few years since we produced a new catalogue and we’re excited to present it to you here …

www.rosesalesonline.com.au/the-australian-rosarian-catalogue

We hope to inspire you to plant more beautiful roses in your garden this winter … if you need assistance with planning, please email your ideas and Diana will be able to guide you into selecting the most appropriate varieties of roses to make your garden an absolute pleasure for you and all who visit!

 

 

SPOIL MUM EVERYDAY!
Due to the appalling weather last weekend,
we’re extending our Mother’s Day special
to this weekend!THIS FRIDAY, SATURDAY, SUNDAY & MONDAY
bring your Mum to the Rose Farm at Clonbinane and
BUY ONE ROSE, GET ONE FREE!*

*Terms & Conditions apply.

Cheers from us here at Clonbinane … Graham, Diana & Mooi

ROSE RAMBLER … 5.5.2016 …

Hello dear rose friends … following is an extract from Ludwig Teschner’s newsletter ‘Talking Roses’ in South Africa:

SCALE INSECTS ON ROSES …

The one problem that really became evident this season was infestation by scale insects. No doubt this was due to the hot and dry summer. Scale insects, just like spider mites bide their time on the lower part of the bushes, puncturing into the phloem tubes for food. Female scales can live up to a year.

These phloem tubes carry sugar, amino acids, hormones and other organic nutrients made by the leaves to the rest of the plant and for storage to roots or bulbs.

During periods of drought, when there is not enough water being transported by the xylem to the leaves, the sap becomes much more concentrated in sugar and is sweeter which is just what the pests like. To them, that is a signal to multiply by laying eggs.

Whereas red spider starts off on the lower leaves, scale insects are on the bark of the stem. The mother provides a protective scale for the little ones that hatch from the eggs within days and crawl out to do their own puncturing, scale building and egg laying. They will even lay over the scale of the mother as can be seen on the image. Eventually, with no more space available and little food they move up the stem.

The same principle applies to the Australian bug also known as cottony cushion or fluted scale. The female has a large fluted white egg sac attached which contains many bright red eggs. The young are extremely active, tiny crawlers. They can be seen on the image below.

How to control them? Heavily infected stems that seem to be dying anyway are best cut out of the bush and removed. Insecticide sprays are only effective on the crawlers before they have made their scale or wooly sac. The protected mothers are able to carry on laying eggs.

GRA’S GARBLE …

This is what you do to control scale which can infest ALL plants – most especially potted plants after a few seasons in the same potting medium!

Spraying with ECO-OIL has a suffocating action and should be applied every 5-7 days – at least three applications should stop the scale from breeding. Adding ECO-NEEM to the spray if there is a significant infestation will hasten the process of control – insects ingest the ECO-NEEM and it basically tells them to stop eating!  The unprotected crawlers will die as well.

During winter when we repot roses into new potting mix we usually see scale and we have used a toothbrush and ECO-OIL to remove them; I frequently use this method to keep the chooks legs clean of lice!

HOWEVER, for roses in the ground which show signs of scale infestation, it will not stop the next invasion if the sap flow in the phloem is not improved. This can only happen by getting more water to the roots of the roses and to provide a well aerated environment for the roots to become more active.  Regular applications of seaweed solution will improve the general health of affected roses too!

Since winter pruning is almost around the corner, many infected stems will be cut off – these should be burned, definitely NOT composted!

All this has been rather lengthy, but once you know what insect you’re dealing with it is easier to do something about it and since you’ll be gearing up to repot anytime soon, this advice is timely.

Q.  What comes from the desert and shouts “BUM”?  A.  Crude oil.

PERFUME AND ROSES …

“THE SWEET PERFUME REMAINS IN THE HAND OF THE ONE WHO GIVES A ROSE”
Roses are really a whole lot about their PERFUME which is surely the unique quality which makes them the most popular flower in the world.  Highly sought after MYRHH fragrance is harvested from roses grown in Bulgaria most especially for the cosmetic industry and you will find that exact fragrance in many modern roses where, if you trace their breeding history, you will find their parents amongst the oldest roses on the earth … here are a few of my most favourite, highly fragrant roses:

ST. CECILIA
Plump buds open a cup of richly fragrant petals – pale pink with just a hint of apricot blooms constantly on a tall healthy shrub …

GOLDEN CELEBRATION
Very deeply cupped blooms of rich golden yellow with fragrance combination of tea, sauterne wine and strawberries – yes, fruity – on a large shrub / climber which flowers from season start to end and all the way between – awesome rose!

FATHER’S LOVE
A swirling mass of sensationally fragrant cerise/crimson blooms are produced continually on a healthy, rounded shrub and stand up well in a vase …

ALL the above roses MUST NOW BE ORDERED as BARE-ROOTED ROSES for WINTER – Get your orders in NOW at www.rosesalesonline.com.au

Q.  Why was the Egyptian girl worried?  A.  Because her Daddy was a Mummy

We’ve had magnificent rain here at Clonbinane and hope it was shared evenly around the country so that you can start preparing your garden beds for new winter roses – I’ll be talking about that next week … Gra

MOTHER’S DAY THIS SUNDAY …

If you want to gift your Mum roses on this special day, can I suggest you place a GIFT VOUCHER ORDER to whatever value so Mum can order her own selection of roses for planting soon …

ROSE RAMBLER … 28.4.2016 …

Hello dear rose friends … almost the end of another month of glorious autumn so be sure to enjoy and care for the roses which are still budding!  Here’s GRA’S GARBLE with tips for…

ROSE CARE IN LATE AUTUMN …

The conditions of the roses in your garden will be influenced, primarily, by the local climate.  Bushes with lots of foliage will carry on flowering but might show signs of fungal disease which is particularly prevalent where cool dewy nights are experienced.

To avoid premature leaf drop which is caused by these conditions, I recommend you continue spraying the organic rose management program every 7-10 days to prolong flowering through the last weeks of autumn and possibly into winter.

To a 10 litre bucket add:

• ¼ cup Eco-rose / fungicide
• Seaweed solution as per directions on your preferred brand
• ¼ cup Eco-oil (insecticide which also acts as spreader/sticker)

Mix products well and apply to foliage – yes, over the entire plant as this will strengthen and protect foliage against fungus and insects.

Remember, healthy foliage is the ‘life-force’ of a rose bush which will, in turn, provide blooms until each rose decides to go into winter dormancy.  Some rose varieties will go dormant earlier than others and the healthier the foliage, the more likely the bush is to continue setting blooms!

Potted roses should continue to be fertilized until mid-May.  Garden beds can be topped with compost and a light covering of mulch to retain moisture and warmth as long as possible which will also enhance late flowering of some varieties.

Q.  What is a cat’s favourite colour?  A.  Purr–ple!

PEONIES …

No, they’re not roses at all but regularly referred to as PEONY ROSES and lots of gardeners long to grow them for their spectacular blooms however, peonies require extreme cold/frosty winter conditions to flower well.

As I walk around our autumn garden, I see so many rose varieties which replicate the glory of peonies and they are:

JUDE THE OBSCURE
A David Austin rose with immense fragrance and huge cupped,
apricot/cream blooms on a shrub which grows around
1.5 – 1.2 metres with lovely healthy foliage

QUEEN ADELAIDE
Plump buds open to display a mass of deep pink,
highly fragrant petals and so very, very like a peony – flowers all season!

SOEUR EMMANUELLE
A most spectacular Delbard rose which produces masses
of densely petalled, highly fragrant blooms continually
on a stunningly healthy robust bush

These are just a few examples of rose varieties which will quell your thirst for the spectacular beauty of peonies – we have peonies in the gardens here and despite our freezing winter conditions, by the time they flower, the warm weather spoils their display so we’ve decided to plant more ‘peony-like’ roses and recommend you do too!

Q.  Why did the golfer wear two pairs of socks?  A.  In case he got a hole in one!

Take my advice and liberally pour seaweed solution OVER THE FOLIAGE of your roses to maintain the healthiest possible foliage right up to pruning later on – the worms will love you too!  Talk to you next week … Gra

ORDERING ROSES FOR WINTER …

When ordering online at www.rosesalesonline.com.au we urge you to select BARE-ROOTED roses as so many varieties are now sold-out as potted specimens.  We still have a moderate number of GIFT ROSES available to see us up to Mother’s Day so get your orders in NOW or give your Mum a great pair of secateurs to make rose pruning a pleasure for her this winter …

ROSE RAMBLER … 21.4.2016

Hello dear rose friends – this is really great to share – we are just a small business and we strive to offer the most personable customer service so if you like what we do, you may like to add your testimonial to WORD OF MOUTH ONLINE so that more people choose www.rosesalesonline.com.au when considering purchasing roses … thank you to all who submitted their testimonial to support our business!

GRA’S GARBLE …

WELCOME MAT FOR FOXES TO ENTER A CHOOK PEN … When Diana planted VIELCHENBLAU rambling rose 15 years ago, it was designed to offer protection from hot westerly sun on the DINGO enclosure which it did for many years.

When our last dingo, Bonnie died, the pen was idle for a few years so I decided to make it a chook-run … perfect idea and the chooks love it!

However, this rambling rose is now a perfect stepping-stone for foxes to scramble upwards through those thick canes, get onto the roof and jump down into where the chooks roam freely so I will now be removing the rose just in case a sly fox catches us unawares!

Since we get lots of requests for recommendations of roses suitable to scramble over aviaries, chook-pens and other animal enclosures, it is worth sharing this valuable piece of warning – predators likes foxes are definitely around during the day and we would like you to protect your precious pets so be wary about where/how you plant climbing roses/ramblers over areas where your pets are housed!!!

Q.  What disease was the horse scared of getting?  A.  Hay-fever!

MY WIFE THE GARDENER
She dug the plot on Monday, the soil was rich and fine.
She forgot to thaw out dinner, so we went out to dine.
She planted roses Tuesday, she says they are a must.
They really are quite lovely, but she quite forgot to dust.
On Wednesday it was daisies, they opened up with sun.
All whites and pinks and yellows, but the laundry wasn’t done.
The poppies came on Thursday, a bright and cheery red.
I guess she really was engrossed, she never made the bed.
It was violets on Friday, in colours she adores.
It never bothered her at all, all crumbs upon the floors.
I hired a maid on Saturday, my week is now complete.
My wife can garden all she wants, the house will still be neat.
It’s nearly lunchtime Sunday, and I cannot find the maid.
Oh no! I don‘t believe it, she’s out there WITH THE SPADE!

DON’T FORGET THE WORMS …

ALL ABOUT ROSES