Sentimental Musings

Years ago.....I gave my mom an antique rose garden. It provided so much joy and visual pleasure for her. She loved to take bouquets to the bank teller or a friend, they were a unique gift ~ it brought her pleasure to give away something that she treasured so much.

 Running across this little bundle of dried rose petals that she gave me in 1992, I reminisced about her lovely little garden, how she loved growing things, really a talent I suspect she garnered from her father who even in Iowa's uneven climate, grew beautiful roses and just about everything else. One never knows what we write about or save from generation to generation, our diaries, our handmade creations cherished by our family and friends, sentimental notes and words of wisdom that wind their way into our hearts. It prompts us to live in the moment to write about our thoughts and pass on our knowledge to our children and grandchildren. I don't think she could have possibly known that in 1992 the dried rose petals she sent off in the mail one day to me would be a treasured possession in 2011. Here are some of the roses that I gave her to grow. They came from Roses of Yesterday and Forever. They are now the dried rose petals that I prize.

 Michele Meilland, pale translucent pink...they look like porcelain China..so delicate and lovely. Mom really cherished this rose in particular. She could view it right from her kitchen window as she prepared meals or did dishes. 

Honorine de Brabant..a lovely Bourban antique rose. Violet, mauve and creamy pink striped. Very unique!

La Reine, found in France in the early 1900's...a deep silvery plumish rose.

Rosa Gallica Officinalis, Red Rose of Lancaster. One of the oldest roses on record. This rose sports pink and crimson colors with showy yellow stamen and intense perfume scent.

Charles de Mills, a Gallica rose dating from the early 1800's. It's colors range from deep purple to lavender. It has a very strong perfumed scent, lush, ruffly, showy. Quite the beauty! Sort of the center of attention. 

Felicite Parmentier dating back to 1834. This is the palest, delicate pink Alba Rose. The stamen has an apple green hue. 

Marie Antoniette was a great lover of old world roses. So many paintings depict this fact, and some roses are named after her.


There is something to be said for the love of growing beautiful things. It transcends time, enriches our lives with beauty and is an art that continues with a life of its own. Once you get the rose bug, especially the antique rose bug...you will be smitten with multitudes of choices...and there are never enough roses to be had. All of us girls in our family grew up in this environment and we all love growing plants for beauty and also those that sustain life. 


Pictures were found on various sites by googling the names of each rose. 

It's all in the detail

Click on the pictures to enlarge them.

3 abundant pots of boxwood to charm a driveway.

Fairy-tale home. Exquisite paint and woodwork on the exterior.

Distinctive fencing.

Creating a time-worn look.

The hinges take this garage door to a whole new level.

The name of this home is "Promises Kept". The landscaping just grabbed our attention. This is just a corner snippet. There are layers and layers of detail. No matter how simple we live or how bountiful, detail matters. It enhances the mundane and it's possibilities are endless.

Kind Hearts Are Gardens

Kind hearts are gardens,

Kind thoughts are roots,

Kind words are blossoms,

Kind deeds are fruit.

~Henry Wadsworth Longfellow~

Gardening nourishes both the body and the soul!

Gertrude Jekyll's Garden

Thomas Keller's Garden across from the "French Laundry"

Our Sweet Garden! It's growing every day!

We had a bumper crop of lemons this year!

We've run our fingers through the soil clearing the way for an array of vegetables and fruits. There's our "ever-faithful" Valencia oranges, lemons (Meyer and Eureka), Santa Rosa plums and apricots, but this year we have ventured out with a substantial garden. The seedlings are sprouting and poking their way towards the sunlight. Cabbages, lettuces, tomatoes of every variety, carrots, herbs, cucumbers, bell peppers, broccoli, corn, scallions, garlic, bulb onions, potatoes, pumpkins, watermelon, green beans and strawberries. Soon our kitchen will be buzzing with activity. We have itchy fingers to begin making jam and canning a bit too! So every day we come out and stand over our sprouts like proud parents and rejoice when a nubbin of green appears. We are plant gawkers! We are smitten with our garden!

Are any of you planting this year? Please tell us!

~~~Jan and Kristen

The love of gardening is a seed once sown that never dies~Gertrude Jekyll

Our Love Affair with Gardens...

It is factual that a garden is never finished. It daily beckons us to walk in it, groom it and fill it with visual splendor. It doesn't matter if it's full of greenery, flora or just plain food-on-the-table plantings; our orafactory senses are assaulted with the smells of floral notes, earthy mulch and herbaceous greens. For years and years we have collected garden books, planted local and antique plants, piled in good earth to compensate for clay soil and water, weeded, nourished, and beheld the work-of-our-hands. It's additive! We're not alone, we know there are lots of kindred spirits out there that understand our fascination. The beauty of a well-cared-for garden is a thing to behold!

Here are a couple of our favorite sources:

Roger's Gardens (the most eye-popping nursery, makes my heart go pitter-patter)

2301 San Joaquin Hills Road

Corona del Mar, California

Rolling Green Nursery

9528 Jefferson Boulevard

Culver City, California