Roses, Roses, Riotously.......

I was looking for a quote about Roses for my headline and found again the following by Ernest Dowson which is a favourite of mine and I had forgotten it. So romantic, wistful, nay a little sad, and I can read it again and again.

I have forgot much, Cynara! Gone with the wind, Flung roses, roses, riotously with the throng, Dancing, to put thy pale, lost lilies out of mind; But I was desolate and sick of an old passion, Yea, all the time, because the dance was long: I have been faithful to thee, Cynara! in my fashion.

At this stage I believe that two different quotations have been combined in the quote above, but that is how it came from the Internet as a result of my search. Perhaps someone can put me right?

                                               ROSE: ORANGEADE                                         

                                             ROSE:    FERDINAND PICHARD


So, I want to share with you some photos of glorious roses grown by a good friend of mine, Roy Larking, in England, who has inspirationally green fingers.  I think I would describe his garden as a picture post card cottage garden. Here he creates his magic with a riot of colour in Spring and Summer - a wide variety of blooms of every kind, all looking so enviably healthy!  In particular, I am entranced by his roses and secondly his clematis. Would that I could grow them here in Queensland, but neither are happy in a damp, hot sub tropical climate. The trouble is, I do not have their names, with one exception, so I will ask Roy and add them later.
                 ROSE: HANDEL                                                      ROSE: PEACE

Now the exquisite new rose RAPHSODY IN BLUE

                                However, I cannot overlook this glorious clematis, DR ROUPEL

and no English garden is complete without the delphiniums (so wrongly previously described by me as hollyhocks!).

Finally, here is where they are all to be found, in ravishing array.

In my next blog I am going to introduce you to Roy's other unique talents and I am sure you will learn something new and be entranced.  So watch this space!