Yes, indeed…
That's the song I am singing these days…
Setting up daily mixers in the front garden.
But why you ask?
Because the roses, the roses…
The roses have exploded over the rose arbor.
And so, I am doing everything outside.
I am more than obsessed with the rose magic.
I stand and stare…
I water and swoon, and peek around.
I hide out right inside, dreaming up this and that.
I am always in awe of nature.
In love with climbing tufts of white.
Just in love I tell ya.
Front garden love!
All that toiling and hard work for years has paid off.
I can't believe it?
This will be the first year that I don't break my back in the front garden.
I only have to plant the veggie garden for the season, out back, which is almost done.
The front is all planted and there is little garden real estate left.
Now I can watch everyone continue to grow and thrive.
I hide inside the arbor several times a day…
Where, when you are inside, you see two tiny vintage birdhouses tucked in the roses.
Then, I wait.
I wait for that afternoon sun to cast a hazy glow.
I am probably spending too much time out there.
But but…
But.
I have to absorb them as much as I can, as those climbers only bloom once a year.
(is there any way to get them to bloom more than once?)
I light candles, and make events out of things, just to be out there with the arbor.
How I LOVE this glorious time of year.
Oh my!
Sprouts are cage covered here and there, as the rabbits are naughty.
It's all happening, hooray!
If you have a rose arbor, then you know how enchanting it is to just hop inside and hide out.
And, if you don't have one…
Well then, you can.
I planted my two climbing roses on the east side of the arbor (and one pink on the west side) in 2011.
And you know what they say.
First year they sleep, second year they creep, third year??
They leap!
And my oh my, they do.
You can see the year I planted the the climbing roses here in 2011, and how well zinnias, marigolds, cosmos and dahlias do in this desert garden. I highly recommend those seeds if you want flowers that do not disappoint, and last through fall. And remember, the more you prune, the more flowers you get.
As for now…
Sooooo many more new roses every day.
So, what else is there to do?
But sing a little….
"You put the lime in the coconut…"
And have a perpetual spring cocktail hour.
Well into the evening.
Yep, that is where you shall find us.
Dancing around.
Singing.
Enjoying.
Trying to drink in the magic of early spring.
Isn't this time of year just so welcome and glorious???
I love seeing all the little sprouts breaking through the ground.
Self seeders coming back year after year.
Wildflower seeds I tossed about in November are mid-size plants now.
I wait for poppies and sweet williams, as they are about to bloom.
I can't wait.
I can't wait.
Little inspires me like flowers and warmth in the garden.
I am in love.
It's soooo nice to be in the sun and breeze and petals on the wind.
What's happenining in your spring world?
Happy April by the way 😉
Love, V
See ya sooooon!
What a beautiful tablecloth…..your oasis looks like an estate in Hawaii
Sweet Girl-How nice to be able to have so much fun and celebrate beauty-just the two of You-so romantic!I want to be more like You and I will try hard -Denise
Your garden looks beautiful, Vanessa! Your roses are stunning on that arbor. It looks like a great place to sit in the evening, thinking about your day and enjoying some good food and wine. I can’t wait until things start blooming around here. Hoping the rose bush I planted last year comes back strong. I really miss the rose bushes I left behind in New York.
I say; Doctor, is there nothing I can take? 🙂
Your garden always looks heavenly. This is the time to enjoy Arizona gardens, as I understand it. Anything over 28 degrees is torture to me.
Yay, so pretty! I wish my yard looked like that, but it is mostly dusty dirt.
My garden is not as lush since we just moved in and I haven’t had years to work on it, but all my little seeds are sprouting! I planted watermelon, tomatoes, peas, pumpkins, and cucumber, and they are all coming up already! Hooray! Also the Fanciful Twist seed mixture that I had bit left of this year is growing strong of course.
So pretty. Just. So. Pretty. *sigh*
Hahaha, only the parts I water 😉 The rest is undoubtedly desert. It’s like Return to Oz, all a dry cracked desert, then a green grassy oasis out of the blue. It stops that abruptly, it’s quite hilarious and amusing, you’d get a kick out of it Jill 🙂
Awwwwe, thank you Miss Denise. Sometimes, often – I play alone since Mister may be at work, but also it’s nice to have my sis visiting because then we are partners in crime 😉
One reason I always hesitate to tear my love shack houseling down and start from scratch is because of the giant 30+ year old rose bushes around the front porch. I can’t bear to lose them. They do get into your heart don’t they?
“If you call me in the morning I’ll tell you what to do….” 😉
Yes indeed, from not to early June it is happy happy joy joy in the desert. Then it switches to baking in the over temps.
The secret about Arizona is that it is dry. No humidity whatsoever in the least, until it rains during monsoon season in late summer.
Other than that, the heat is dry. And yes, it can be very unbearable – like when I am setting up mad tea parties it is oven hot.
But it isn’t as bad as a very humid place I suppose 😉
Oh yay!!! You did just move, but the beauty is, cosmos and zinnias and marigolds and dahlias come up so fast and abundantly, in one season you can have the garden of your dreams <3
OMG that is an absolutely stunning rose!
What an amazing garden you have 🙂
You’ve left me with an intense need to watch Practical Magic, and daydream about certain gorgeous house…
It’s so gorgeous and so magical! I’m starting from scratch, because this place was neglected, mostly barren except for the very old cactus, mature palms, and lot’s of bushes that bloom yellow. I hope I can grow some roses in beds, but I’m at a lower elevation. I have two to start with, so we’ll see.
Oh how very beautiful your gardens are. Can’t wait to see the poppies bloom.
Ahhhhhhh, that’s so amazing! White roses are my absolute favorites. I can’t believe they are so lush and full only after three years. My Don Juan roses have been in the ground about six months and it’s aaaaaaaagonizingly painful to watch them creep and grow so slowly. I am the worst and have little patience. Hahaha. Like Veruca Salt, “I want it now!” I want huge blossoms and an arbor full of green vines and fragrant roses. ‘;)
In the meantime, last weekend I planted a huge garden bed of wildflower seeds and already they are sprouting through the earth…which makes me insanely happy. So yeah, in less than a month there will be an explosion of color. Woot!
http://dawaioser.livejournal.com/847161.html
Oh yay!! i cant wait to see your wildflowers!! (and,
dont worry when the roses take off you will be soooo please!! did you
prune them for spring?)
Blog: http://www.aFancifulTwist.com
Website: http://www.VanessaValencia.com
In a message dated 4/1/2014 6:07:42 P.M. US Mountain Standard Time,
Wow! What a paradise of flowers this year for you! It is all so glorious!
Thank you for sharing these fairy land photos!
😉
Miss Teresa
“You’re such a silly woman, Put a lime in the coconut…” 🙂 I had Practical Magic running nonstop yesterday !
No pressure 😉 but please never stop sharing your beautiful garden with us…stunning.
Lovely Dixie, Thanks for asking, because I was starting to think I was
borderline beyond anoying with my garden posts, hahahaha 😉
KINDRED you!! Woooo hoooo, to erase this belly ache!!
Hey, maybe i need a lime in the coconut for real, right about now??
xoxo
Simply Delightfull!!! Are these roses in bloom now? or is this from another time later in the season? I still have snow and ice in the gardens, I think I need a lime and coconut tooo! take care, Celeste
Our arbor has three different roses on it, so once it starts blooming it lasts quite awhile. It is most like a lovely rose hat at the top with only a few tendrils hanging down. This year should be quite spectacular I do believe. It is right out my office window, so I can see it each day right from my desk or sit under it for a cups of tea. I love your exuberance. Gardens has always been where I danced, but there were a few times I was on the roof and many times up in a tree dreaming of flying.
Oh Dear Miss Vanessa,
I am so in love with your masses of white roses! So beautiful! My mother grew roses of all sorts and I loved them (even after clumsy little me who grew up to be clumsy big me, fell over the tiny fence bordering the rose garden and got myself all scratched up on rose thorns!).
YAY for the water to make them grow!
Our big nature news this week is that some our snow mountains have melted and you can see some small patches of bare ground after several days warm enough to melt snow’! Hooray for the 45 degree heatwave here!!
Wishing you lots of sunny days ahead!
Betty
Oh my!! What a cold winter you have had indeeeedy! That will
make spring all the more incredibly wonderful, and summer too 😉
Blog: http://www.aFancifulTwist.com
Website: http://www.VanessaValencia.com
In a message dated 4/2/2014 11:41:20 P.M. US Mountain Standard Time,
Midnight margaritas maybe? No tequila, I haven’t got the tolerance for liquor lol! The roses, that must mean the heat is coming?!
Miss Jenn, we never had winter this year, weirdness galore. Its
about 68 – 78 F up and down. Its very sunny all the time though, so
like yesterday it was sunny with a cool breeze, but the tomatoes still sprouted
😉
Blog: http://www.aFancifulTwist.com
Website: http://www.VanessaValencia.com
In a message dated 4/3/2014 10:49:15 A.M. US Mountain Standard Time,
ps: I serve drinks but dont partake myself 😉 I am too
weakling for it, and I get all ill and awful.
Blog: http://www.aFancifulTwist.com
Website: http://www.VanessaValencia.com
In a message dated 4/3/2014 10:49:15 A.M. US Mountain Standard Time,
so beautiful…love the tablecloth! xo!