Gardens and Emotional Well-being .. AT MY ROSE GARDEN

In this week of mental health awareness in Australia, the link between the natural environment and human health is worth perusing.  Our culture's broadening disconnect between green spaces in its many forms and our lifestyles is, in my opinion, a cause for concern.

Previously, certainly in my living memory, gardens were every-day spaces in which children played on sometimes green lawns, climbed trees and hid among shrubs, peeping out at the world beyond.  And time stood still for many a child transfixed by the sights, smells and sounds of the garden; a butterfly landing on a brightly coloured flower, burying a curious nose in the centre of a flower to sniff its perfume and strip petals one at a time from its calyx.  

How is it that we've lost the joy of interacting with the natural world as part of our every-day ordinariness? Gardens, if they are noticed at all, are now places to be rushed past on our busy way to somewhere else, glimpsed briefly through partitions of glass as we whiz by in our mechanised worlds.  

Or perhaps a garden is only seen as a place for structured learning; growing vegetables and learning about the importance of preserving our environment.  Important as these are, a garden as a place for serendipitous discovery or 'just being' is too often relegated to the time-zones of the retired, or the ill and infirm. 

Could it be that what science is now telling us about the benefits of gardens for human well-being is just now catching up with wisdom of old?  In 1918, the Melbournian E.W.Cole ponders in the 'Happifying Gardening Hobby' that "when lonely we find solace and almost a species of companionship in our flowers ..".  

Research has shown us that having a connection with the natural world facilitates a sense of peace and helps to regulate emotional cognition (as in Attention Restoration Theory by Kaplan and Kaplan et al).  And beneficial biological responses to various perfumes of the garden in aromatherapy and the like are  more readily recognised, supporting  the long-held notion of taking time to 'stop and smell the roses'.  

Gardens are not proposed here as  a stand-alone cure, but as part of the mix of therapies that may support human well-being.  And if gardens were viewed as an every-day part of our 'doing and being' lives, places for play and reflection, perhaps we'd build resilience against times of mental ill-health.  

Again, in the words of E.W. Cole, "A child who likes flowers and is brought up in a home with a flower-garden .. will always remember it as long as he or she lives (as) .. a pleasant home."  Simplistic maybe, but certainly something to reflect upon ..





 

Creating a country garden .. AT MY ROSE GARDEN

Our aim in creating a country garden is to develop a green space that is practical as well as beautiful; a place where people can rest and recuperate.  And a place that inspires creativity and an appreciation for the beauty of nature.  

The garden is only young and still very much in the early stages of development.   We started our garden with a small semi-circular bed cut into the lawn.  And from there we expanded one bed at a time.

This required some planning, of course, but the overall design evolved to include a central axis, or central focus, with matching garden beds on either side.  The building of the rose allee allowed for further extension of the central axis, with climbing roses planted on either side to soften the structure, in time.   

The garden design is simple and Edwardian in style to match the age of our Queenslander house, circa 1916. Edwardian designed gardens were formal, often with a small central bed and framed with semi-circular or rectangular beds.  

Over-time the design has been expanded and revised.  Drought in the early establishment phase meant we needed to re-think our use of plants.  Research and trial and error have shown us that some of the old-fashioned roses  recovered well after periods of stress. Tea roses, have proven to be the most resilient, provided they are well watered in the first year or two after planting.    

So our garden continues to be a work in progress, tweaking the initial design so that even more heirloom roses can be planted.  A garden is an ever evolving work, never to be completed, but always to be enjoyed.    

Roses are Restorative - Spring Rose-craft Workshops .. AT MY ROSE GARDEN

Our Spring Rose-craft Workshops, are scheduled for 9 October and 20 October.  See Facebook: Edgeworth Lley, Heirloom Roses, for details.

The background for our workshops is based in scientific research that identifies the benefits of engaging with natural environments.

Did you know that spending time in a garden, park or other 'green space' can help your brain to improve its function?  And working with beautiful flowers is one way we can help our minds to relax.

In other words, engaging with the natural environment is beneficial to our health and well-being.  

As our brain focuses on plants and flowers, our mind finds space to relax.  And our mood improves, which in turn helps our physical well-being.

Environmental psychologists refer to this as Attention Restoration Theory, where natural environments such as gardens, parks and even views of nature, helps the mind to rest from a constant churning of negative or anxious thoughts.  

That's why when we walk through a park our attention is effortlessly drawn to the sights, sounds and smells of the natural world around us.  And this in turn helps us to turn off the constant cycling of busy thoughts.

And that's why we feel refreshed and re-invigorated after spending time in nature.

So there you have it, a short (and very simplified) background to our workshops; workshops designed on purpose to be therapeutic and restorative.  

So often, people of all ages and backgrounds who participate in our workshops suddenly 'discover' they can be creative, when they previously thought they weren't.  

And they feel an unexpected sense of peace and well-being after spending an hour or two making 'something beautiful' with our heirloom roses.  

And that's why we do what we do!!!

 

Spring amid the Heirloom Roses .. AT MY ROSE GARDEN

Winter has finally given way to Spring, with all its promise of more glorious blooms and surprises in the rose gardens.   

The bird baths are filled with precious rain and will send the established roses off to a good start for the expected dry period over the next few months.   

In fact, the sense of joy in the garden is palpable, with glimpses of rosie kisses among the beautiful blooms of the Tea rose, Comtesse de la Barthe!  

She has flowered through all of winter with her gloriously perfumed bell-shaped blooms!

And the 'Cherokee rose', R. Laevigata, is opening up to the warmth of the morning sun with beautiful golden bosses at centre-stage of large pure white blooms.

A small bunch of snipped blooms from the late pruning (we prune in late August to avoid the last of the frosts) promise many bunches of roses to come.  

The last of the bare-rooted roses has been planted just in time for the early Spring rain, with Climbing Tea roses, Noisettes and Chinas added to the gardens this winter. 

So now the bare arches will soon be covered by the likes of the climbing Tea roses, Lady Hillingdon and Comtesse de la Barthe, sports of their namesakes already established in the garden.  

While the winter-flowering Tea roses have a little rest, the rest of the garden is beginning to wake up!  

An exciting time among the heirloom roses at 'Edgeworth LLey'.

Beauty for Ashes - Workshop .. AT MY ROSE GARDEN

Our Beauty for Ashes workshop is based on the Biblical wisdom (Isaiah 61:3) of exchanging beauty for sorrow, grief or pain.  Working with flowers and natural plants can bring a sense of well-being, particularly for those experiencing emotional pain.   Life can throw up unexpected challenges, so having an opportunity to focus on creating 'something beautiful' using plants from the natural world allows our minds space to heal.  Studies show that engaging with the natural world allows emotional cognition (that churning of negative thoughts) to enter a state of stillness that brings a sense of peace.  

 And underpinning the Beauty for Ashes concept for this workshop was the inspiration of Julia Clements, a post World War II English floral artist.  Despite great personal loss which she briefly details in her autobiography, My Life with Flowers, Julia devoted her life to bringing artistic inspiration using flowers to women all over the world.  She was the impetus behind the establishment of flower arranging clubs world-wide that brought a sense of purpose and joy to women devastated by the effects of two world wars.  

So we gathered a group of eight women together (this workshop works best in groups of less than 10) for the sole purpose of spending a couple of hours creating beautiful garden posies.  Our aim was nothing more than to relax and learn some simple posy tying skills while enjoying the colours, shapes and perfumes of a range of foraged flowers and foliage.  

To these we added sumptuous winter-flowering heirloom roses, mainly Teas, with perfumes ranging from sweet tea through to fuller fruity fragrances.

And once the foraged plants were partnered with the heirloom roses, there were lots of proud 'oohs' and 'aaahs' as creations were finally tied with ribbon.  

Then, of course, each creation was held up and posed for it's own special photo ... 

The posies were all beautiful and each reflected the creativity and artistry of the lovely woman who had crafted it.  


At the end of the workshop, a new skill had been developed, or an old skill honed, with every woman taking home the knowledge that they too can create 'something beautiful'.

Healing Workshop - Hand-Tied Garden Posy .. AT MY ROSE GARDEN

One of the special joys of growing a country garden filled with heirloom roses is sharing the beauty of these lovely flowers. 

We do this regularly through our flower-craft workshops.  A lovely aspect of our workshops is the sense of peace and healing that handling lovely flowers and foliage brings to the participants.

So our main focus and purpose for the workshops is to develop flower-craft workshops that bring healing for participants who are experiencing a difficult season in their lives.    

Or perhaps they are going through a very busy time where there is little opportunity for self-nurturing.  For this reason our workshops are suited to young mums who feel as though they are constantly giving out and looking after others, with no time for themselves.  

A recent workshop was popular with a group of young mums where we provided childcare for their toddlers.  Then our young mums were able to spend two hours focusing on doing nothing more than putting together their own creations using foraged foliage and flowers and of course, our heirloom roses.

And after the posies had been created there were proud displays and photo sessions of their lovely and very individual creations.

Our next flower-craft workshop is our Healing Workshop - Beauty for Ashes which is fully booked.  Our inspiration for this Healing Workshop is Julia Clements, the post WWII florist who devoted her life to bringing joy to women all over the world who had suffered loss and grief.  More on that in the next post. 

Until then, take a little time to notice the sights and smells of the natural world, maybe even smell a flower or two every day!! 

Vintage Treasures - Heirloom Roses .. AT MY ROSE GARDEN

With the growth in all things 'vintage' these days it is easy to lose sight of the reasons we treasure old-fashioned things.  Perhaps it's a reminder of slower, less complicated times, when simple implements were used as part of the rhythm of everyday life.  At Edgeworth Lley, our love of old garden implements and heirloom roses arises out of our love for reliable tools and tough yet beautiful plants.  

We discovered the need to grow plants that would cope with our  tough conditions out of necessity.   In an area with high summer rainfall and cool dry winters, we planted familiar cultivars of roses.  Then came some of the driest summers with no rainfall known for many years.  Some old-time locals said this was the driest it had been for 60 years!!  We were desperate to keep our garden growing but watched in dismay as rose plants struggled through the heat and dry of yet another drought summer.  

But we noticed that a number of old-fashioned plants, some of which were regarded as weeds locally, coped  with the hot dry summers and continued to do well.  These include the perennial Ageratum sp. that flowers with lovely blue flowers every year.  This is also a lovely cut flower and lasts well in a bouquet or posy.  

And we noticed the reeds around the dam continued to thrive, even as the water levels dropped in the severe drought.  In fact, even after a long period of dry the reeds bounced back quickly after much needed rains eventually came.  Our dam is a valuable source of water for the gardens in dry weather, and reeds act as a ground cover that prevents the dam walls from drying out and cracking.   The dam is also lovely with surrounding trees and even sunrise, reflected in its smooth waters.  The water lilies also look beautiful, adding another source of cut flowers to our collection.  

So now we have learnt that investing in heirloom plants will stand the test of tough unexpected climate changes.  These tiny antique daffodils are a recent addition to the winter garden.  We are very excited each time a new one pops its tiny head up because we know these will multiply and cope with our tough conditions.  

Which is why we have chosen to grow heirloom varieties of roses that cope with tough conditions.  And even if they endure a little frost now and then they continue to grow and bloom, like this Bourbon rose, Mme Isaac Perierre.  Her blooms are burnt a little from the frost, but they are still lovely.  And her perfume is to die for, strong and full bodied.  

The other type of heirloom rose we grow now are the Alistair Clark roses, bred especially for Australian conditions.  This lovely climbing rose, Cicely Lascelles has beautiful, clear pink semi-double blooms that open with the morning sun and close in the evening.  Alistair Clark was an important Australian rose breeder, with international recognition. Yet his roses languished lost in Australian gardens until the rosarian Susan Irvine began collecting these tough beautiful roses.  Because of her efforts in the 1990's we are now able to purchase these tough Australian bred roses that suit our conditions so well.

And of course, another heirloom rose that suits our Australian climate is the old-fashioned Tea rose, like this exquisite Mrs B R Cant.   Ancestors of modern roses, these roses were ignored in the early part of the 20th Century, until Heritage Roses in Australia (HRiA) began to  educate Australian rose growers about the benefits of growing old-fashioned roses. Heather and Roy Rumsey, Sydney rosarians, were instrumental in re-introducing some of the Tea roses to Australian rose growers.   Many more of these old garden roses were found still growing near crumbling cottages and in grave-yards in memorium for a deceased family member.   Diligent and knowledgeable  HRiA rosarians collected cuttings and bud stock so that these tough, resilient roses could be enjoyed once again.   

So every time I see a bud of a Tea rose (Mrs B R Cant bud pictured) begin to unfurl, I am thankful for their hardiness and ability to thrive in our garden.  Sometimes, it seems as if they too are saying a prayer of thankfulness for being rescued out of obscurity.