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Roses In The Garden - a book review

Roses In The Garden by Ngoc Minh Ngo Photographer Ngoc Minh Ngo celebrates rose gardens throughout the world in this beautifully produced book.  The author photographed a total of 11 gardens across the globe (Italy, Morocco, Spain, USA, UK, and Japan). Beginning with the Italian garden Ninfa (often referred to as the most romantic garden in the world), her photographs have a dreamy quality that transports the reader to these exotic locales. Closer to home, Floret Farm in Mount Vernon, Washington, is included in one of the chapters. All types of roses are included in the gardens but the majority feature old rose varieties. Many of the gardens have roses growing in wild abandon, intermingled in hedge rows, spilling over walls and fences and surrounded by pastures and rolling hills. A pictorial index lists all the roses and the gardens where they reside. This stunning book was published by Rizzoli Books and is available on Amazon and in bookstores. Text and photos by Phillip Oliver, ...
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Out of Hibernation



Michael came out from his sewing room hibernation today! It was a beautiful day - a bit chilly with temperatures in the 50s, partly cloudy with a few sun breaks and just a few very minor sprinkles. The garden is waking up fast. I love this time of year. The trees are just leafing out,  so when the sun does appear, there is a dappled scattering of sunrays dancing throughout the garden. The birds are singing and busy flitting about building their nests. In these crazy times, this is the only place where I feel totally calm and at ease and can filter out life's unpleasantries.

We got a lot done today. Yesterday was even nicer with warmer temps and more sun. I got the tarps off the decks, statues and water features. Today was spent mostly cleaning up, more planting and moving pots around.





Veronica 'Georgia Blue'


Blue-eyed Mary (Omphaloides verna) with Daphne tangutica)


Japanese Maple (Acer palmatum 'Beni Hime')

Beesia

Red Currant (Ribes sanguineum 'King Edward VII')

Twinberry Honeysuckle
(Lonicera involuncrata var. Iedebourii)

Rhododendron 'Loderi King George'


The big pink dogwood is beginning to bloom. The purple flowers on the left are from Rhododendron 'Blue Baron' which is really nice this year.


Text and photos by Phillip Oliver, Dirt Therapy
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Comments

  1. Kris PetersonApril 13, 2025 at 1:14 PM

    The sunshine makes your garden look even more lovely! Enjoy the weather and puttering in the garden.

    ReplyDelete
  2. tz_gardenApril 13, 2025 at 4:09 PM

    Your garden looks fantastic, I love the dappled light. I'm glad it's warming up!

    ReplyDelete
  3. AnonymousApril 14, 2025 at 8:04 AM

    It is fantastic when the garden comes alive in spring, full of hope of things to come. I love that first photo of Michael; it could have been of me, fully protected with hat, gloves, and knee padding. I notice a structure in the back of the photo, against the house: stacked decorative bricks... painted black. I wonder where you got those bricks. I love that look.
    Chavli

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Phillip OliverApril 14, 2025 at 8:49 PM

      Those came from a local rock place called Mutual Materials. I wanted a pedestal there and could never find one so we came up with that idea.

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