Its all coming up Roses!
I adore Roses, especially old fashioned roses such as Albertine and all the David Austin roses. Next month is the Parnell Rose Festival and I will be heading off with my camera to share their roses with you. I am also excited about showcasing two private Auckland cottage gardens that have previously featured in NZ Magazines. These gardens are crammed in every corner with beautiful old fashioned roses and English flowers such as Hollyhocks, delphiniums, foxgloves and many other English delights. My new house unfortunately has the tiniest garden imaginable, hardly bigger than a postage stamp and so the only claim to roses are two standard icebergs that flank my rear patio. I've been watching my roses closely for their first buds but not close enough it seems. I noticed that one rose was glossy and healthy with lots of new shoots whereas the other seemed to be sparse and straggly. On closer inspection I discovered all the new shoots had and were being munched on...