Garden Treasures - Heirloom Roses .. AT MY ROSE GARDEN

Sometimes it's fun to go on a treasure hunt in the garden.  Of course, a treasure hunt with children in the garden is fun, where you hide chocolates or other treats and watch the fun and excitement. This treasure hunt is different ..

If you look at the right time, you might find gossamer-fine lace, exquisitely wrought by a master artist, and in-laid with crystals.

Buff Beauty - Hybrid Musk

Or an abundance of Buff Beauty's quilled petals, delicately folded upon each other and clustered together to create gorgeous pompoms deliciously perfumed.

Triomphe de Luxembourg - Tea

Here is pink perfection with Triomphe de Luxembourg's large silky petals, placed with precision around a high centre.

Windermere - English rose

Perhaps the treasure is a lovely scent caught in the breeze, as in the rich rose perfume of Windermere, overflowing from its falling petals.  

Francis Dubreuil - Tea

And sometimes the treasure surprises, with the strong rose fragrance of the Tea rose, Francis Dubreuil catching you unawares as you admire it's velvety, dark red blooms.

And after finding these heirloom treasures, what could be lovelier than gathering them into a lush, deliciously perfumed bouquet.  Add a few sprigs of fragrant herbs and you have treasure to share.  

Treasures that can be enjoyed often .. 

A Frosty Morning - Heirloom Roses .. AT MY ROSE GARDEN

The first frost of the season for 2015 has arrived, brushing the lawns and roses with a faint touch of ice.  As soon as the sun rose, the gossamer-fine frost quickly melted ..  

All that was left, were droplets of moisture on the roses and leaves, glistening in the crisp early morning light. 

Devoniensis blooms are weighed down with their burden of melted ice drops, pretty as a picture.

Crepuscule, named for the colours of a sunset, is blooming brightly,glinting in the sun.

The exquisite, tiny blooms of the Tea, Marie Lambert, peep out under leaves covered in droplets.

And Mrs B R Cant's extravagantly layered blooms glisten in the early light of the day.

Is there anything prettier than a crisp, clear Autumn morning glistening in the early morning sun after the frost has left it's light touch?   Perhaps not ..

Heirlooms for Mother's Day - Vintage Memories .. AT MY ROSE GARDEN

Mother's Day is a day of spoiling mum, breakfast in bed and home-made gifts.  I am blessed to have many treasured memories of whispers and giggles coming from the kitchen early on Mother's Day.  This was followed by a joyous presentation of cold toast and spilled tea on a tray.  Alongside the tray were little gifts that had been carefully crafted and wrapped.  No expensive gift or sumptuous lunch can surpass these hilarious memories of small children working together to present a special Mother's Day surprise.

And those of us still fortunate to have our mums; what joy to be able to surprise her with beautiful heirlooms selected specially for her.  Vintage pottery vases and delicate china tea cups from the 1940's and 1950's are in vogue now, possibly as a reminder of an era where war had left its mark and the beauty of simple things was treasured. 

Vases that have survived the post-war years are varied in colour, shape and glaze.  Some of the prettiest are lustre vases, with shiny glazes that reflect soft rainbow colours. 

There are vintage vases in the shape of shells, cleverly designed to hold a small posy.  And milk glass vases too, often embellished with raised designs that add a lovely effect.

Whichever vintage vase or china you choose, be sure to fill it with an heirloom posy of flowers to match the era of the vase.  This is where heirloom roses come into their own. A gorgeous posy of fragrant, old-fashioned roses and a pretty vintage vase .. a very special gift for your special mum or grandma.  

And if you know of a mum near you who needs a little encouragement - a pretty posy filled with fragrant flowers will add to her treasure trove of memories too ..


Happy Mother's Day!!