I put ZDs out front on espaliers late last May, just after I'd moved in. Only got a couple of blooms, but was astounded by the way they grew! I think this is the right picture:
Fragrance in the Cottage Garden - Yes, a MUST!
No, it wasn't. That was when I first put them in. Let me try again:
Not very bushy (yet) but you can see how they climbed. I have a little gardenia now, in that little bed in front of the window. That's my favorite for fragrance. Or citrus. Or wisteria.
Gemini, I too have a ZD. Put her in almost 2yrs ago bare root. It's showing new growth and hope to have blooms this year. As you can see I'm hoping to cover that trellis with it.
To the left of ZD is a Success Story Floribunda and a Crimson Pillar Climber. To the right is a mini that I'm not too thrilled with and will probably yank....Apricot something. Great scent, but too much trouble.
brigidlily, those have grown fast! Where did you get them?
azrobin, yours looks to be doing well in shade, as they advertise ZD does, but seeing them in a garden is the real proof. Looks like you should certainly see blooms this year :)
Thanks, Gemini. Yes, shade was a huge factor in choosing that rose - along with the intense fragrance. Good luck with yours!
gemini, I got mine from Park's, and mainly because they were to go on a north wall. When I moved, I brought them with me and two are on a NW wall and one on a NE wall. The NW ones are growing better, but that may be because the soil is better there.
azro, I love the way you're weaving them in there. That's going to be gorgeous.
I think my first one came from Wayside, and last spring I got three of them from the Park & Wayside wholesale site, http://www.parkwholesalegrowers.com, which I see still has nothing new on it. I kept one of the three and gave the others to my mom and my MIL... all were sizeable, vigorous bare root plants, and if memory serves I paid something like $5 each for them. :-)
I guess I'll have to be on the lookout for a Zephirine Drouhin Rose now. Can they usually be found locally?
Several years ago I traded for a New Dawn Rose. It is beautiful and bloomed longer than I ever thought possible, but is not fragrant. Everyone that sees it, tries to smell it and is always so disappointed. Maybe I will have to break down and get another climber with fragrance. :o)
If I do find it, it will probably go on the east side of my home near the front door .... do you think it would do well with just morning sun ... not exactly shade, but at least not getting full sun from the South or the West.
I'm in love with the O.T. lilies and the Orientals, they just cannot be beat for fragrance. Last year I planted several in planters by the back door and when they bloomed, it was just heaven. I have lots more coming from co-ops this spring.
I have never noticed a fragrance from my Dianthus or nicotinia. I did grown stocks and 4 o'clocks one year, never noticed any scent. And I do have a good sniffer .... I must be growing the wrong varieties.
I do have a Lilac and honeysuckle, great scent.
I love the smell of some crushed leaves:
One year I planted Lime Basil , I loved it. I saved the seeds to trade and ended up trading them all away, even my own packet. LOL Anyone have any seeds to share?
Tomato leaves smell great.
How about the Salvia leaves .... is it just me, but I love the smell of them.
And Lantana, sometimes the leaves smell good to me, other times a little like cat urine.
toofew~
Anyone mention Hyacinths yet?
Right after Christmas, I was at Targets and got a great deal on their 'Christmas gifts' of Hyacinth bulbs in pots. They are just now popping out of the soil ... sure took them a long time. But soon I will have Hyacinth blooms inside ... something I've never done before.
toofew~
I buy from Parks and Wayside, also. I can't remember which of the two I got my ZD from. They package well and ship promptly. Oh, I just remembered my last perennial order was from Springhill and they're doing great.
Brigid, thanks! The arching canes pretty much let you grow them in any direction. I'm thinking about doing it on the adjacent south wall that gets afternoon shade, too. That entire "L" section of my yard is my rose bed.
Toofew, I tried Hyacinths for the first time last year. I planted them too deep but they bloomed. I dug them up and replanted them this year. Our weather of course is warmer they yours and mine started popping up weeks ago. No blooms yet but we're to hit 90 degrees this week. They'll be coming soon! :-)
Toofew, head over to the herbs forum and post on my basil seed offer there... I've got Lime basil and some others for SASBE... posting on that thread will help me keep track of how many packs I've got. Or Dmail me, and we'll work something out (I've got some flowers you might like also).
Speaking of seeds, Neal please Dmail me if you'd like seeds from me... your little daffs are popping up under the mimosa tree, and I can't wait to see them bloom! It sounds like you might have your hands full moving plants this spring without messing with seeds, but I didn't want to assume I should wait and just offer you seeds later on... :-)
toofew, with dianthus it does depend on the variety when it comes to fragrance. Bath's Pink is one that has a nice, strong clove fragrance and when you have a nice sized clump of them (which does'nt take long) the scent wafts all around the garden.
http://www.bluestoneperennials.com/b/bp/DIBPS.html
Dianthus 'Fire Witch' has a good fragrance, and is really bright!
http://www.bluestoneperennials.com/b/bp/DIFWS.html
critter, Thank you, you're such a sweetie! Believe it or not, I'm doing seeds this spring; I'm a glutton for punishment, lol. Since I'm gardening "full time" now, I figure I can push it. And once I'm moved I know I'd be kicking myself if I did'nt get some sun lovers going ,especially those I've been missing growing.
Critter, looking up Rainbow's description on scent, it's light, sweet, Juniper on the buds. Now figure that one out! Piney? I will definately have to describe it when it buds out. ZD is gorgeous. I've always liked it. It's just too large for my space.
Toofew, I love hyacinths! Unfortunately, something chewed the stalks off right before they were to bloom and I never replanted them after they died.
I got on a dianthus kick and planted the scented ones beside the roses. I couldn't smell them unless I got down. Oh well, that's where the weeds are, right?
LOL, Billy. I have a tuft of Dianthus 'Fire Witch' also but never thought to smell them. They're so close to the ground! Maybe if I planted one in a pot and put it on a table. Oh, my petunias have been heavenly at dusk.
Dianthus propagate very easy, so it did'nt take long for me to have a big enough patch to smell without bending over. All I did was pull off pieces that are partially horizontal and replanted them. I've done it at various times of year when they are not blooming and they always take. If you plant them down wind of where you sit outside, it helps. I've noticed I usually catch the scent a distance from them rather than when I'm standing above the clump.
Dianthus propagate very easy, so it did'nt take long for me to have a big enough patch to smell without bending over. All I did was pull off pieces that are partially horizontal and replanted them. I've done it at various times of year when they are not blooming and they always take. If you plant them down wind of where you sit outside, it helps. I've noticed I usually catch the scent a distance from them rather than when I'm standing above the clump. They also make nice little bouquets; on a bed side table or end table they scent a room nicely :)
Okay Gemini.. how exactly do you make more plants here? You separate them how? Cut them through the roots? Thanks!
:)
Susan
I think Dianthus "layers" itself... horizontal growing pieces will get roots where they touch the ground, and you can just cut the rooted pieces away from the mother plant. If there are only a few tiny roots, it can help to stick the piece into a 2 inch pot until you get a more substantial rootball... you can also cut the connection to the mother plant and leave the piece in place for a couple more weeks so it can grow more roots before you move it.
So no cutting the plant right down the middle here?
Susan
No need to cut your mother plant up. As critter said, they root where they lay, and usually I find tons of stems laying on the ground with tiny roots that have'nt taken hold yet. I just pull them off and plant them; by next year they each are a nice, fluffy mound. I've even stuck pieces with no roots in the ground and they took off right away. I LOVE plants like that!
My Mom had one that reseeded every year. It's stems were upright. It was a pretty patch. I'll have to see if there are any left this spring. I have to dig up the Asiatic Lilies too. They were a gift to her to remember her Mom by, and now mine to remember Mom and Grandma.
BillyP, how lovely!!!
Thank you.
Anyone grow statice? I look at it every year, but never ordered seeds. It seems very cottagy. I like the tall purple one.
Okay, anyone wanna tackle a mostly shady spot that needs some height, color and scent??? Right up against a red-brick garage wall with a few liriope there already.
billyporter, the dianthus you describe sounds like Sweet William. I love those too; you just can't go wrong with any dianthus!
Pagancat, would a trellis against the house with a vine work for the spot you describe? There are some Jasmines that may be hardy for you, especially in a protected spot against the house. Some Clematis are also fragrant.
billyporter, I grew statice last year. Not a very pretty flower in the garden IMHO. But I wanted to try and make some everlasting bouquets ... and so I did. Hubby and the kids thought it was pretty cool.
I wish I had a big plot of land, then I would have several types of gardens. One of them would be a cutting garden and I would definetly have statice in my cutting garden! I had 3 plants last year, 2 white, one purple.
Now that you brought it up, I think I will plant a few seeds of statice today. :o)
toofew~
Toofew, smiling, the pictures of the deep blue, or maybe they're blue-purple, always look pretty. I think I'll order some. I want to get from Thompson Morgan to keep the catalogue coming. I also think I need new Lions Ear. I love those orange tarantulas!
Gemini, I'm going to bring small bouquets of the dianthus/ williams in this summer and see how long the scent lasts. Then I can lift the flowers to my nose and sniff!
Pagancat, may I suggest a Zephirine Drouhin rose? I meant to take a picture of mine this morning to post when I got here but didn't make the time (I spent too long picking "volunteers" out of the herb bed). Mine have done amazingly well, and are on NW and NE walls at the front of the house. I'll take a picture this evening and post it tomorrow if I don't forget. I have a LOVELY spray of deep pink roses nodding over the front bedroom window, and buds everywhere.
Of course you have to like dark pink roses. I got mine from Park's.
Thanks Brigid - I know the Zephs can take a fair amount of shade, but this place only gets about 3-4 hours of sunlight - do you think that would work?
And yes, I love dark pink roses!!! >smile< ...
Two of mine are on a NW wall and do get a few hours of sun. There is one on the NE wall and I don't think it's gotten much suna at all yet and it has a few buds. It's not flourishing the way the NW ones are, but it's going to do all right there. I'll post pictures so you can compare. (Next week -- I don't have the net at home.)
scroll up for some photos of the ZD rose.... :-)
Brigid, I'd like to see the one on the NE wall for comparison when you get a chance... I planted one at my MIL's that isn't going to get much sun at all, but I'm hopign it'll give her a few blooms anyhow!
Maybe this has already been mentioned above, but, what about the good old fashioned purple Heliotrope? It was Emily Dickinson's favorite flower.
Heliotrope is a favorite of mine - and a tradition as well. I discovered it maybe 25 years ago and it brought back some sort of memory to me so I am guessing my grandma may have grown it. So I began doing a pot for my mother and my aunt every Mother's Day that included Heliotrope, plus one for myself. My aunt eventually moved in with her daughter who definitely didn't need any more containers as she gardens as excessively as I, so I stopped doing one for her (and she passed away last year), but I still do one for my mom although she has long forgotten what the plant is (she does still realize what Mother's Day is, though, so loves the container). And I generally have half a dozen or so for myself - has anyone tried the white variety? The smell is even stronger - a little more "licoracey," absolutely divine!
Looks like I need some seeds of Heliotrope now :)
I was just thinking the same thing, SoulGarden.
Can someone please post the botanical name for "old fashioned heliotrope?" There are too many different types in Plant Files.
Try this :)
http://davesgarden.com/pf/go/224.html#bar
Hooray! Thank you, SGL. The comments and pic's for that entry were really helpful and based on the following quote, "'Hybrid Blue Wonder' I find this is one of the most fragrant & you can smell it all over the yard," can you guess what I'm going to be looking for this spring?
I've already found it! :) I wont buy until I clear out all the tons of roses in the garage waiting to be planted.. but it is on my list now and I'm so glad I know about it :)
Seeds:
http://www.swallowtailgardenseeds.com/annuals/heliotrope.html
Okay.. I thing I'm tempted to get them even though I already have millions of other seeds :) It's just so hard to say no..
Plants are available online as well.
Susan
This message was edited Mar 18, 2007 8:54 AM