All that gardening must have been very satisfying, but so frustrating to do the work and miss the results.
Your orchid is an Early Purple Orchid (English) Orchis mascula (scientific) Orchis mâle (French). Very nice 🙂 It will have strong purply pink flowers in April.
Your Pierre de Ronsard rose looks very strongly coloured — do they come in two colourways as well as two habits (shrub and climber)? Normally they are creamy white with baby pink tips. Or is that just what they fade to?
I always prune my lilac in late spring, just after flowering. They flower on the season before’s growth, so you need to give them the summer to grow flowering material for the next spring, like forsythia.
Rosemary Kneipp
March 12th, 2013 at 10:42 am
Ah, thank you for the orchid information. So far we have two sorts.
The Pierre de Ronsard (I’ve noted the “de”) is like hydrangeas – it depends on the type of soil. We have three altogether. The one at the back of the house is about the same colour and we’re waiting to see what the new one we planted last year outside the front fence will produce this year.
Thank you for the information on the lilac and forsythia which we didn’t prune after flowering and had not bloomed before we left yesterday.
Gigi
March 12th, 2013 at 11:22 pm
These roses are to die for … The color is glorious … Oh you guys put me to shame. My poor garden has been totally ignored. I have lost the gardening inclination after weeks of continual rain here. Mind you the sun is shining away at the moment …..but I know….I KNOW …give it half an hour or so and down it will come again. Is still muggy to boot. Oh to be in snowy Paris ….ahhhhhh
Rosemary Kneipp
March 12th, 2013 at 11:24 pm
I quite agree about the roses – but not about snowy Paris! We really do need some spring.
ParisReally
March 13th, 2013 at 11:09 am
Oh to have a garden! I’ll just have to live vicariously through your wonderful posts. Your roses are beautiful!
Rosemary Kneipp
March 13th, 2013 at 4:08 pm
I’ve longed for one for so long! Great to meet up yesterday but didn’t chat enough. I shall have to organise another bloggers’ breakfast!
[…] I woke up and saw the snow yesterday, I was not happy. I was already in spring mode and the idea of temperatures below zero AGAIN was not appealing in the least. As it was, we were […]
[…] quite a large animal sprint past the medlar tree and out of sight. By the time we tried to pick our medlars last year, there were none left on the tree, but I certainly don’t mind. I’d much rather the […]
My Easter Sunday afternoon has really come alive since finding your blog when researching all things French travel for 2017. I love flowers and gardens so was looking at Pierre de Ronsard especially. Part of our time will be in the Loire Valley mid to end of May. I am trusting that roses will be blooming then. If not, all will be beautiful anyway.
Happy Easter
Rosemary Kneipp
March 27th, 2016 at 10:14 pm
Hello Shirley. Yes, you can definitely count on roses from mid to end of May in the Loire Valley. I hope you enjoy your stay!
Making the Most of Spring in Blois http://t.co/2j1Fht61Oj
We fly out of Brisbane on Friday and arrive in Paris on Saturday. I think I’d better pack some more warm clothes.
Yes, the weather report does not look too promising …
All that gardening must have been very satisfying, but so frustrating to do the work and miss the results.
Your orchid is an Early Purple Orchid (English) Orchis mascula (scientific) Orchis mâle (French). Very nice 🙂 It will have strong purply pink flowers in April.
Your Pierre de Ronsard rose looks very strongly coloured — do they come in two colourways as well as two habits (shrub and climber)? Normally they are creamy white with baby pink tips. Or is that just what they fade to?
I always prune my lilac in late spring, just after flowering. They flower on the season before’s growth, so you need to give them the summer to grow flowering material for the next spring, like forsythia.
Ah, thank you for the orchid information. So far we have two sorts.
The Pierre de Ronsard (I’ve noted the “de”) is like hydrangeas – it depends on the type of soil. We have three altogether. The one at the back of the house is about the same colour and we’re waiting to see what the new one we planted last year outside the front fence will produce this year.
Thank you for the information on the lilac and forsythia which we didn’t prune after flowering and had not bloomed before we left yesterday.
These roses are to die for … The color is glorious … Oh you guys put me to shame. My poor garden has been totally ignored. I have lost the gardening inclination after weeks of continual rain here. Mind you the sun is shining away at the moment …..but I know….I KNOW …give it half an hour or so and down it will come again. Is still muggy to boot. Oh to be in snowy Paris ….ahhhhhh
I quite agree about the roses – but not about snowy Paris! We really do need some spring.
Oh to have a garden! I’ll just have to live vicariously through your wonderful posts. Your roses are beautiful!
I’ve longed for one for so long! Great to meet up yesterday but didn’t chat enough. I shall have to organise another bloggers’ breakfast!
[…] I woke up and saw the snow yesterday, I was not happy. I was already in spring mode and the idea of temperatures below zero AGAIN was not appealing in the least. As it was, we were […]
[…] quite a large animal sprint past the medlar tree and out of sight. By the time we tried to pick our medlars last year, there were none left on the tree, but I certainly don’t mind. I’d much rather the […]
My Easter Sunday afternoon has really come alive since finding your blog when researching all things French travel for 2017. I love flowers and gardens so was looking at Pierre de Ronsard especially. Part of our time will be in the Loire Valley mid to end of May. I am trusting that roses will be blooming then. If not, all will be beautiful anyway.
Happy Easter
Hello Shirley. Yes, you can definitely count on roses from mid to end of May in the Loire Valley. I hope you enjoy your stay!