When I choose a new rose, I select a cultivar known to be resistant to blackspot disease and then integrate it with other perennials and shrubs. Growing many roses together in a traditional rose bed sets up a monoculture that invites disease — if one gets sick, there’s good opportunity for the pathogen to spread quickly to vulnerable neighbours. Some of my favourites include … [Read more...] about Healthy roses in bloom
Knock Out rose
Japanese maples on a budget
Apart from fall-blooming perennials, the big show this season is colourful autumn foliage. Leaving out enormous trees like sugar maple (Acer saccharum, Zone 5), nothing approaches the vivid tones of Japanese maples (Acer palmatum, Zone 6). These are small trees and shrubs, suitable for almost any garden where there is half a day of sun and moist, organic well-drained soil. In … [Read more...] about Japanese maples on a budget
