One of the best reasons to have roses on your property is the huge impact they make in the spring when they burst from hibernation. To me, it is as if they are announcing to the neighborhood the beginning of the spring season. Whether you’re an avid gardener like myself, or a novice just starting out, roses capture a unique place in a gardener’s heart.
My home, Rosebrook Gardens, offers some of the most amazing specimens – all personally selected for color, fragrance, size, resistance to both disease and cold, and of course ability to re-bloom throughout the season. In my first book, LIFE ON MAR’S, A Four Season Garden, I dedicated a whole chapter to the subject of roses, highlighting the best choices by region as well as my tips and tricks for developing a rewarding, long-lasting relationship with these amazing plants. I share everything from how to order bare-root roses, to dealing with brown spots and mold.
As the summer season continues, there are few things more gratifying to a gardener than a second massive wave of roses gracing one’s property. This year, thanks to plenty of sunshine and dry weather here in the Northeast, the blooms have returned to Rosebrook Gardens with a vengeance. Tons of new flowers grace the arbors and trellises.
If I am encouraging you to envy my superb rose collection, then great – but I won’t hide the fact that it comes with a yearly maintenance program, including the daunting task of deadheading. Deadheading promotes new flowers, so once a flower is spent I remove it, thus encouraging a splendid new display of flowers within the season. The results are worth the efforts.
My MARtians, my love for my garden and roses is just one example of my connection to my home; infusing Mother Nature into one’s décor is important, as it blurs the lines between the inside rooms and outdoor spaces. It’s one of my core design principles, and in a few months, anyone will be able to learn how to do it when my next book launches. LIFE ON MAR’S, Creating Casual Luxury reveals all six of my core design principles – and much more. I cannot wait to share it with you all.
So when someone asks “How are you?” I confidently say “Everything is coming up roses.”
