Tis the Last Rose of Autumn...

 Tis the last rose of "Autumn"
Left blooming alone;

All her lovely companions
Are faded and gone;

No flower of her kindred,
No rosebud is nigh,

To reflect back her blushes,
To give sigh for sigh.
                                   ~Thomas Moore Irish poet

Tuscan Sunset in Golden Autumn

The morning air has been crisp and cold 

for some time now.

Not many blooms 

from my window view.

Aromatherapy Rose Dancin' with the Burning Bush

But a brisk walk in the chilly air 

revealed these sweet survivors 

down my Rose Garden Path.

Hmm... must be a pocket of warm there 

to entice these beauties to dance 

in this Autumn glow.

Cherry Parfait Rose in Golden Autumn

Gather ye rose-buds while ye may, 

Old time is still a-flying. 
And this same flower that smiles today, 
Tomorrow will be dying.

                          ~Henry David Thoreau

All content created by Carolyn Bush | Copyright © 2010 - 2013
All Rights Reserved | This Grandmother's Garden
Highland, Utah, USA

It's an Absolute KNOCKOUT...

Don't you agree?

Any angle you view it from...

        


 in bud or in bloom...

It's simply delicious to look at.

Introducing... the newest stars of my garden...

 The Pink Double Knock Out® Rose

  

 Knockouts are my "go to" rose to brighten my landscape...

 perfect for my hot summers and cold winters.

William Radler's motivation for developing The Knock Out® Family of Roses was old age. 
He didn't want to give up his roses when he got old 
 so he bred a rose that would be low maintenance!

Listen to William's own tips on growing Knockouts here.


♥ ♥ ♥

Just bought 16 of these beauties... 

We're sprucing up the landscape for a sweet celebration. 

More details to follow... stay tuned!

Read more about Pink Double Knockout Rose here. 

Bloomin' HOT! August GBBD

Burning HOT blooms in my August gardens:

Hot Papaya Echinacea

A new favorite this year!

Pink Profusion Zinnia

Always a place in my gardens for this cheery annual.

Tangerine Orange Begonia

 The star of my shade garden.

'Voluptuous' Rose

Still bloomin' in the heat!

Zinnia Zahara

 First time in my gardens, this medium height Zinnia is a real pleaser.

Butterfly Weed Asclepias

A Butterfly magnet... I have great expectations for this bloom! 
(if I plant it will they come?)

Purple Coneflower

 An old stand-by that will always be welcome.

'Easy Livin' '  Rose

 Another Rose that's lovin' the HEAT!

Many thanks to Carol at May Dreams Garden for hosting 

Garden Bloggers Bloom Day on the 15th of each month.

A Voluptuous Valentine ♥♥♥

Voluptuous!  

 And doesn't this rose live up to its name?

Jackson and Perkins 2005 Rose of the Year® winner.

"Exceptionally high-centered, fully petaled, cupped blooms 

and satiny, deep fuchsia-pink petals. 

Tall, upright, full-branched, disease-resistant plant."

 My Honeyman gave this rose to me many years ago, 

a favorite in my rose garden...

and it always brings joy when it blooms.  

Lovin' my Sweetheart today and forever...

 You still put the skip in my step!

Happy Valentines!

Daily Blessings... November 14th

Tis the last rose of Summer... 

 ~Thomas Moore

The Little Rose that Could

Truth be told, 

it is the last rose of Autumn

the last rose of 2011

and the very last blooming flower within my gardens 

until next Spring 

when the sun again will warm the earth below.

Tucked up close to a window reflecting the sun,

I couldn't help but smile 

as I contemplated it's desire to bloom...

no matter what.

Neither swirling snowflakes nor morning temps in the 20's

could dissuade this little rose 

from fulfilling the measure of it's creation ...

 

Hmm... there must be something 

I should learn from this rose.

Grateful today for life lessons learned in my gardens.

Daily Blessings... November 9th

In my gardens I can see more clearly...

that there is beauty in every stage of life.

Beauty in the Dying Rose

That puts a skip in my step 

as I grow older day by day♥

At My Mother's Knee

A Rose For My Dear Mother...
April 1928 ~ July 2011

                  Mother loved her flower gardens... 

4 o’clock’s and petunias, 
lilies of the valley and iris, 
bridal veil and lilac bushes, 
snapdragons and delphiniums 
and of course, her beloved roses. 

I don’t think there is a flower on this earth that wasn’t my Mother’s favorite. 
The vegetable garden was Dad’s, but the flowers, oh, the flowers… they were my Mother’s.

♥   ♥   ♥

My earliest memories of Mother are in the garden. I remember as a  small child waking up sleepy eyed and wandering the house looking for her.  I walked from room to room... not finding her... and then, just before my anxiety could erupt into tears, I looked through the window to see her in the flower gardens. Tapping on the window, she looked up to see me and with a beautiful smile, came to open the door and lead me out to the flower gardens. How glorious it was in the gardens, and how I loved being with my Mother. I'm sure it wasn't long before I was purposefully waking up early... just to join her and to be amidst those beautiful flowers. I truly learned to garden at my mother's knee.

Sunrise In My Gardens

At some point in my Mother's lifetime she must have discovered 
the magic of morning in the garden... 

surely the most beautiful time of the day 
when all the world is hushed 

except for the song of the birds and the buzzing of the bees.  

In our family, we call it the magic hour. 

Indescribable as to why – you just have to experience it for yourself.

Sun about to Crest over My Mountain

 My heart is now heavy at her passing and yet I know she lives, 

with all my soul I know she lives.

Our physical death isn’t the end, Our physical death isn't the end,

but rather is a step forward in Heavenly Father’s plan 

and a time of indescribable joy for the person making the transition.

What comfort this knowledge brings to me. 

Our life does not begin at birth and it doesn't end at death.

Our life on earth is only a portion of God's eternal plan for his children.

Of this I know.

As my thoughts now wander from room to room within my memories

I do not find my sweet mother...

but I know that she is not far away.

I am so thankful for the gospel of Jesus Christ in my life 

and the sweet peace it brings to me. 

(To understand more, click on the blue links above.) 

Oh My Heart...

Delicate ROSE petals form the shape of a HEART...

on a rose growing in a corner of my gardens.

In your Sweetest Dreams could you ever imagine 

such a beautiful bloom as this?

Oh My Heart Rose

Actually a bloom from a "no name" Rose Tree 
I fell in love with several Summers ago at Costco.
I just had to bring it home!

And its blooms are ENCHANTING!

I guess my garden is just giving a little love back!

Oh my heart! 

Such tender mercies growing in my gardens.

Have YOU ever discovered an OH MY HEART ROSE in your gardens?

A Red Rose for Valentines

Rosa 'Don Juan' is the absolute favorite red rose of my gardens.

"Love is like a rose. When pressed between two lifetimes, it will last forever."

Climbing a trellis in the hottest spot of my landscape, this rose seems to thrive in the heat and blooms profusely throughout the season. It's fragrance is divine.


Jackson and Perkins describes this rose as "Dramatic, crimson flowers with velvety, ruffled petals and an intoxicating damask scent are a standout in the garden, like a flamenco dancer on stage. The blossoms are set on long stems, just perfect for cutting! One of the only fragrant red climbers in the world, a seductive presence in any garden."

A red rose is a symbol of love and romance.

May your Valentines Day be filled with love!

My Crazy Little Rosebud

I discovered this little rosebud growing in my garden on the first of November. "Crazy little rosebud" I thought out loud. "Don't you know it's almost Winter?"  Never has a rose tried to bloom in my zone 5 garden so late in the year. How this little bud escaped my discovery for so long puzzles me.

 November 1st

I thought I might clip the stem and bring her into the house to get warm. Then perhaps she might fulfill the measure of her creation and bloom.  Just five days earlier my gardens were under an eight inch blanket of snow... our first snowstorm of the season. 

November 7th

But the weather warmed up quickly and within a day the snow had melted. "Crazy little bud, she must think it's Spring." With the snow melted and the weather warm again, it felt like Spring! My crazy little rosebud had won a tender place within my heart and I just couldn't set the pruners to her stem. 

November 14

And so my crazy little bud began to open... one petal at a time.

November 21

I soon noticed an interesting little anomaly within her petals. See how they fold inward to form little cheeks? An enchanting little moniker that tells the world "I'm unique!"

I was intrigued with the wide open petals... was this a result of the stiff winds that whipped through gardens the night before? Or some inner defense to capture all the sunlight she could muster to survive.

The winds brought lower temps. Low, low single digit temps... for several days.  And the winds were ferocious!  And more snow fell upon my gardens.

November 28

  And somehow my crazy little rose survived.

This time the snow did not melt... and the freezing cold... yup, it's still here, too.

 December 2

and my crazy little rose....

gathers ice crystals from the dry winter air.

Frozen in Time

Light From Within

      True beauty can only be seen 

                        when there is light from within...

"Cultivate the light you have within you,

and it will shine through 

as a radiant expression 
that will be seen by others."

~ Gordon B. Hinckley~



Happy Monday! 

Encore! Encore!

An Encore of Bright Summer Blooms...

in November! 

 An early morning November walk through my gardens reveal

that amidst the reds, bronze and golds of Fall 

there are plenty of pockets of vibrant summer blossoms

still hanging on.

They've survived the First Snow

and the flirtatious visits of Jack Frost.

 

 But this may surely be their swan song. 

Never do I remember such vibrant blooms 

in my garden in November. 

Clematis Jackmanii!
Dancing on the gate again...

in November?

Roses!

Basking in the warmth 
of the unseasonable Autumn sun.

Bloomin' Daisys!

Never before in November.

 I spied this bud several days ago...

 and voila!

She blooms!

 A single Poppy blossom...
peaking out from the red Plumbago leaves.

Apricot Verbena!

Stopped blooming in the hot summer sun, 

now the cool of Autumn has enticed them to join the fun. 

Sea Thrift!

Pink pom poms frosted by Jack...

they love the attention!

 Scabiosa!

A lone blossom blooming.

♦♦♦

These enduring blooms 
have escaped the chill of Jack Frost:

Limelight and Mums!

My Fall favorite!

Pink Coral Bells!
Still ringing.

Ballerina Rose Guara!

I call them Dancing Pink Butterflies.

Apple Blossom Knockout Rose!
Still blooming strong.

♦♦♦

Today our high temp will be 68°
so unusual for this time of year.


We're enjoying the delightful back and forth 
of the changing of our seasons.


What will next week bring to 

This Grandmother's Garden?

STAY TUNED!