When the World Wearies
And Society ceases to Please
There is always
The Garden.
"I wonder what it would be like to live in a world where it was always June." - L. M. Montgomery 23:58

 I wonder what it would be like to live in a world where it was always June - a quote from Lucy Maud Montgomery who wrote Anne of Green Gables, and I think my heaven would be eternal June, smelling the roses with my mum.

Sunny corner where my summerhouse sits
It has been extremely hot here in my little corner of Kent, a bit too hot and humid, but next week is going to be a little cooler in the early 20 degrees with a little rain towards the end. June means roses, and old roses which are my love.


Rose of the week in my garden must be Souvenir du Docteur Jamain a climbing hybrid perpetual bred by Lacharme in 1865, parentage Charles Lefebvre x unknown. The roses are a delicious velvety plummy claret(best colour rose for a West Ham fan!), much darker than the photos suggest, and the scent is gorgeous. I moved it last year to an open position over an arch in full sun which should not be the best position for a dark red rose, but it is doing beautifully and climbing upwards with speed. You can just see it climbing up the arch in front of my summerhouse in the first photo.
This photo on the left shows the colour better, it really is a dark rose.




















Another lovely rose, although not open yet, is Common Pink Moss with her amazing mossy buds growing fatter by the day.  
Old Pink Moss is a sport of Centifolia and has been around for at least 300 years. The moss is quite brown in colour and when rubbed smells of balsam. The scent of this moss rose is the same as the orignal rosa Centifolia. Daughter Kate took some amazing close ups of the garden this week for me.
Royal Wedding Oriental Poppy and in bud 



 close up of Constance Spry bud

 One of Max, our German Shepherds, tennis balls lying in the grass - which reminds me, Andy Murray is defending his Queens Title this week and is also playing doubles with his brother Jamie, so good luck boys!

Another lovely Oriental poppy in bloom this week is Pattys Plum, a shade which is difficult to describe, a sort of washed out grey/plum, the blooms look like wrinkled tissue paper. It has grown rather tall this year and I may have to move it back slightly for next year. I have grown a lot of Patty seedlings from last year and it will be interesting to see what colour flowers the seedlings turn out to be.

Another lovely poppy in bloom this week is Coral Reef below. I do love my Oriental Poppies, especially as the snails dont! They have been devastating my favourite annual poppy Swansdown, and other forms of annual poppies-they obviously dont like the hairy leaves of the orientals

In bloom this week in my garden, Roses Constance Spry, Mme Gregoire Stachelin,Reine des Violettes, Masquerade, Goldfinch,Iceberg,Excelsior,Fantin Latour, Rose de Rescht,Souvenir du Docteur Jamain,Zephrine Drouhin,The New Dawn,Queen Elizabeth,Gertrude Jekyll,Arthur Bell,Desprez au Fleur Jaune,Pink Perpete,Rosa Rugosa White.Blue moon,
Other flowers, various oriental poppies, hesperis matronalis, jacobs ladder, various geraniums including my favourite Ann folkard, love in a most,osteospermums,aqueligas,calendular,wisteria,clematis,oxalis,helanthiums,convolvulus,alliums,bleeding heart,peonies,foxgloves,feverfew,rosemary,french lavender,californian poppies.
June  also means Wimbledon, good luck again to both the Murray boys. Hmmm, eternal June, yes my heaven! 



18 comments:

Diane at My Cottage Garden said...

Oh, your flowers are beautiful! I'm so happy to have a garden from England on contact list. I was near Kent just last spring...at Leed's Castle...amazingly beautiful countryside that we went through.

That crinkly tissue paper poppy is beautiful. I have two orange-red ones and two pink ones. I've decided to plant several more around my beds, as they look so lovely with the irises and they are really the main things blooming right now.

And I just love the quote from LM Montgomery!

Cheers from Canada,
Diane

country rose corner said...

Leeds Castle is in incredibly beautiful settings Diane - we went there the morning of hearing of Princess Dianas death (already planned and decided not to cancel to upset girls)Princess Diana, if you look at earlier posts, is my cousin, albeit very distant,we share grandad in 1400s! Bought some plants there to remember her by. I have quite a few oriental poppies, and although they are fleeting, they are very beautiful when in flower. I only found the quote from Lucy Montgomery tonight, and i think it will be my favourite from now on! Betty xx

Anonymous said...

Hi Betty - I love your garden posts. As you know my garden is very short on flowers so I look at your photos and dream of having a garden like yours. xx

Rosie@leavesnbloom said...

Betty I think June must be your favourite month of the year. Its such a great month for roses though I don't think I'll have a single rose in bloom this June - but as I try to visualise the list of plants that are in bloom in your garden just now the vision in my head is so beautiful.

country rose corner said...

Thanks for your lovely comments girls! xx My favourite rose that blooms in June is my daughter Katie Blossom as her grandad calls her, she is 21 on the 29th June, she is the most beautiful of all xx

Diane at My Cottage Garden said...

Betty, I adored Princess Diana. I think she was beautiful on the inside as well as the outside. I didn't get to stay at Leed's Castle long enough to see the gardens, but I loved the place very much. I did see gorgeous white roses climbing on the walls outside though.

Diane

Anonymous said...

Dear Betty, I am delighted to have discovered your weblog, immediately attracted by your old fashioned roses [surely the best] and your love of interesting and unusual, and very beautiful, plants.

Living in Kent you are, of course, surrounded with not only lovely countryside but also have many, many remarkable gardens to visit within a shortish distance [Sissinghurst, of course, is an all time favourite].

I have signed myself as a 'Follower' and will look forward to reading more of your activities.

Pam's English Garden said...

Your 'Souvenir du Docteur Jamain' rose is to die for. Your garden is so beautiful and an inspiration to someone trying to create something similar. I love your summerhouse ... and the lace curtain at its window. I put lace curtains at the windows of my husband's tractor shed (he thinks I'm mad). Your daughter's photography is brilliant. Enjoy this beautiful June! Pam x

country rose corner said...

Thanks Pam,best year yet for Dr Jamaim, I have moved him a few times and he definitely likes the spot he is in now. The summerhouse was an ordinary 7x7 shed which i prettied up, and my son Damon put some perspex doors on for me. The rose colour and rose pattern lace at the window, was a piece I bought 21 years ago when I had my daughter Kate, but have never used it until now - it was just waiting for a nice little window! The inside is very pretty, will have to take some interior shots. Best wishes Betty

Catherine@AGardenerinProgress said...

Your garden is just beautiful!! I love all of the flowers growing around your summerhouse. The Oriental poppies are getting close to blooming here. I've heard of 'Patty's Plum', but had never seen it. The moss rose bud is beautiful! Hope we get some of your heat.

Booklinks said...

I love to read your garen post
and look at your beautiful photos

You know I have this great love for roses,wow yours are wonderful!!! Thanks for sharing Betty.
Have a wonderfulful weekend in your beautiful garden,
Suzanne

country rose corner said...

Thanks Catherine and Suzanne -its lovely to have gardening friends all over the world, betty xxx

Autumn Belle said...

June is indeed a lovely month. I enjoyed your pictures of the lovely roses and poppies. Your blog is full of beautiful flowers too.

Anonymous said...

loved reading of your garden this morning, it seems a good year so far for climbers over here in dorset, albertine doing well, zepherine exceptional and madame alfred a delight...look forward to reading more of your posts...

Bella's Rose Cottage said...

Hello, what a gorgeous garden you have! I have never seen anything like the mossy rose bud before... how fun:-)
Bella

Ann Flowers said...

That is just an incredible combination of textures and elements. So softly feminine, and intricate. Beautiful!

country rose corner said...

Thank you for your lovely words Ann, nicest comment ever made about anything I have been involved with!

Booklinks said...

Hi Betty, Is everything oke with you and Kate?
Miss you!
xxx
Suzanne