The last rose of summer...

So many of us northeasterners are enjoying the last breaths of our gardens. I'm noticing so many knitters' posts dedicated to the beauty of their gardens as the season comes to a close. The hydrangea flower has concentrated its colors in paper like petals, some almost lace like.

Each year, I have a personal debate with some plants over whether I should let them go to seed or not. This 'conversation' is usually with my herbs. While oregano produces beautiful tiny flowers, mint becomes wooden and their leaves too small to harvest.

Rose season is over for most of us. Especially those of us who fight to keep them healthy all summer, it is usually late august that we lose the battle. I don't have much luck with roses. I used to plant a new bush each year but it became a depressing affair. After their initial profusion in June, it was down hill from there. I don't like using pesticides in my garden. If you grow roses, you almost always have to use fungicides and so much more. Three years ago, I planted my first climbing yellow rose. The first year it was nearly defoliated by aphids. Its second year the summer was very wet - black spot nearly killed it. This summer it was neglect - I nearly killed it by not feeding it or spraying it with my kitchen made soapy wash.

Today, however, she gifted me with these beautiful last sun washed flowers, it will be her last before she goes off to sleep for the winter -





I also have a lot of Russian sage and this is when she is most vibrant and prolific -