Skip to main content

Featured

Waterwise Gardening - a book review

Waterwise Gardening: Everything You Need To Know About Efficient Watering to Grow a Healthy Yard by Richard Restuccia Published by Rizzoli, 2025 I would guess that watering is the major issue that most gardeners grapple with, especially novice gardeners. I know from working at the nursery that the majority of questions and issues we get stem from either watering too much or not watering enough.  Many people in our area have sprinkler systems and I'm sure that can be a good thing if used properly but I feel that they primarily keep the lawns green but fall short for landscape plants. Especially when it comes to trees and larger plants, the timing and amounts are not satisfactory for many plants. I often hear people say that their sprinklers are set to come on every day - yikes! And there are those who did not water because it "rained" when it actually drizzled.  The best thing to do in this situation is to have a xeric garden but that would mean sacrificing favorite plant...
Post a Comment
Read more
Labels

Rose 'Swany'



'Swany' is a rose that you don't hear much about. It was introduced by Meilland in 1977 and advertised as a groundcover rose. When I purchased it from Joy Creek Nursery in 2018, I envisioned it as a good choice to go in a concrete trough that borders the driveway. It has succeeded for that purpose although it now wants to climb the fence behind it and continues to reach skyward.


The small double blooms appear in heavy clusters and are snow-white, turning to pink as they age. In the past, this pink shift has been slight but this year, much more dramatic. Cooler weather? Probably. 

Disease resistance is quite good. I don't spray harsh chemicals on my roses. I have used Neem oil for powdery mildew and aphids. Safer Garden Fungicide is also a good product and has worked against blackspot when it rears its ugly head. That said, I've not seen any mildew or blackspot on 'Swany'.

This rose has a long bloom period, almost non-stop. It is very thorny.


Text and photos by Phillip Oliver, Dirt Therapy
Email Post
Labels:

Comments

  1. tz_gardenAugust 2, 2023 at 9:23 AM

    Such a beauty, and so dependable with blooms. I'm tempted to replace one of my fussier David Austin roses with a more reliable gal like yours.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Kris PetersonAugust 2, 2023 at 9:53 AM

    I don't think I'd mind the ample thorns if I could get a robust display like that!

    ReplyDelete
  3. Hoover BooAugust 3, 2023 at 11:26 AM

    Very nice--looks like a great bloomer. 'Groundcover' roses can make good small climbers; I've got one grown on a short trellis that functions quite well. Not as good as yours, though!

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Popular Posts