Friday, May 20, 2011

Flowers on Friday ... Full Bloom in a Friend's Garden

My friend Robert, my dearest garden buddy, fellow rose addict, and all-around partner in crime, lives only 10 minutes away from the place where I picked up my fabulous dental cabinet earlier this week.  I made sure to take my camera along with me, so I could make a stop in his garden to take a peek ... and snap a few photos if the light was good.  (It was!)

My, my, my.  His garden is certainly a place of wonder!  Unlike my garden, Robert's garden isn't all about roses ... but the roses are definitely the star of the show right now.

This is the view I saw to my left as I pulled into his driveway. 

The large roses on the arch are Alberic Barbier (white) and an unknown red climber. 


Here is the view of this arch from the other side.



Robert and I have tried for years to identify the red rose ... and we have been unsuccessful so far.  It was given to Sherando Roses as cuttings of 'Jaune Desprez' by the folks at the Lynchburg City Cemetery.  ('Jaune Desprez' is an apricot Noisette, so that's not it.)  This rose is fragrant and healthy, and it blooms like crazy.  One day, we'll figure out what it is.




There are beautiful views everywhere you look in Robert's garden!  This is what you see looking toward the barn from his back terrace.



Look a little to the left, and you get this view.

1.  Climbing Clotilde Soupert
2.  Paul Transon
3.  The Alexandra Rose


Speaking of the barn .... that's where Robert keeps his alpacas!  I want some of these so badly!!  (Later.)  The Husband assures me that I can have my own alpacas once we clear a few things off our To Do list.  I can hardly wait!



Russelliana, a beautiful purple rambler, grows on the fence in front of the alpaca yard.

(wide shot)

(close up)


To the right of the barn is this circular garden. 



The concrete table, with umbrella, is surrounded by raised beds with rebar arches that contain alternating purple and white climbing roses.  'Violette', a purple rambler, was particularly photogenic!





This vignette is beside Robert's chicken house.  He bought this rooster sculpture when he and I went to the Maymont Flower and Garden Show in February, and I love how he is displaying it on top of an old rusty axle from a piece of farm equipment.



'A Shropshire Lass' is a David Austin English rose Robert grows that I have never seen before.



One of my favorite roses is 'Banshee'.  Robert's was blooming when I was there.  I'm still waiting for the first flower of the year on mine.



Beside Robert's greenhouse is a great example of growing roses into trees.

1.  Veilchenblau
2.  Darlow's Enigma
3.  Tess of the D'urberbilles

Darlow's Enigma is planted on a rebar tripod beside Tess of the D'urbervilles.  Darlow is trying to swallow poor Tess, and looks to be determined to escape up into the holly tree, which already contains Rosa fortuniana (not visible in this photo) and the lovely purple 'Veilchenblau'.



My favorite view of the afternoon was this one I saw on 'Ghislaine de Feligonde'  I love how the soft apricot yellow of the roses perfectly contrasts with the brilliant purple of the clematis.



I have to stop now, so I can get ready for a very special visitor.  Kat from Low Tide High Style is coming over this afternoon!!  She and I are going to eat, and visit, and spend time with our cameras in the garden.  Speaking of cameras ... I have to go pop my camera battery into the charger.

Bye for now!

21 comments:

  1. Sounds like a fantastic day ahead!
    Lots of photos, please :)

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  2. I'd really love to wander around this garden for a few hours! Wonderful!

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  3. That first picture, Connie, answers a question I've had for a long time; every garden center I visit has concrete gargoyles for sale, yet I'd never seen them actually in a garden....until now.

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  4. Beautiful no matter which way you turn!

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  5. Wow! That shot of the Violette with the spiderweb behind it is magnificent.

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  6. Thank you so much for this post! I loved the visit :)
    Around every corner was a cute surprise!
    I enjoyed the post from yesterday so much I forgot to comment!! I made a few notes and then clicked off. Oy!
    Thanks for sharing so much of your wonderful knowledge!
    xo, misha

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  7. So wonderful to see all the roses. The first flush is over here. Love the metal rooster! Funny! Oh, and that arch in the second photo is amazing

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  8. I adore that rooster! I might actually be able to keep that (the rooster) from dying. Love the spider web on the Violette, too. Everything is lovely.

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  9. Nice garden tour. I hope alpaca are not like llamas. We had them on the farm when I was young. Mean and nasty.

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  10. You two girls have fun! Thanks for the garden tour today. It lifted my spirits!

    Di

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  11. I remember seeing pics of roberts garden when he first started. It is so nice to see everything full and in bloom. Just lovely.

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  12. What a beautiful garden! And speaking of beautiful gardens, today was a real treat for me on so many different levels...thank you!

    xo Kat :)

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  13. Heavens to Betsy. What a gorgeous garden! I think I'd be friends with Robert too if I didn't live so many miles away! Both of your gardens are truly a feast for the eyes.

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  14. Beautiful. :) Could the red one on the arbor be climbing Cramoisi Superieur (Sp?)? It reminds me of mine.

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  15. Your friend has a beautiful flower garden!

    I love alpacas, too. While we were away in France in April, a neighbor with 200 alpacas moved away! I miss seeing them everyday. They always made me smile.

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  16. Robert has a garden to die for! Such beauty not matter where you turn. Wow!

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  17. What a gorgeous garden! Thanks so much for the tour! The alpacas were a surprise - I bet they would 'prune' the roses if allowed to!

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  18. Oh My Gosh!! I have been seeing several posts that are so out of this would, I am dying with the pleasure. I can only imagine being there. I would be in a Rose Trance!!

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  19. Stunning photos! I'll be new to gardening in VA.... how do you keep the deer away?? They make our Louisiana deer look like miniatures!
    Grace

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  20. @Laura, if you see this, the red climbing rose doesn't look at all like my Climbing Cramoisi Superior in person. The color and bloom form is totally different, and this rose doesn't put up the profuse number of basal canes that CCS does for me. The Mystery Red Climber (as we call it) is mannerly and fragrant and we love it ... Climbing Cramoisi Superior is a thicket with beautiful blood-red flowers, that ate the arch I was naively trying to train it to.

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  21. Wow, what an amazing garden. I hope one day you find out what his red climber is, as it's gorgeous!!

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