Favorite Rose Varieties
I fell in love with roses this year and added about 50 bushes to our landscaping and cutflower production. I judge roses on four criteria: vase life, stem length, performance in full sun on 100 ° F + days, and fragrance.
Some varieties check almost every box: Rouge Royale, Earth Angel Parfuma, and Ballgown Romantica are gorgeous but wilt in serious heat, while Honey Dijon, Koko Loko, and Mint Julep have color, beauty, and long-lasting, long-stemmed blooms, minus the fragrance.
Only one rose has swept every category so far: Princess Charlene de Monaco. She was slow to establish, but now that she’ s moving and grooving, she sends up nearly continuous 2 '+ stems with ruffly, soft pink flowers that last over a week in a vase,. As they open and release their fragrance, I ' ll invent excuses to walk by and smell them. One note: online photos often show more saturated pink petals than you ' ll get in full South County sun, so expect a paler, softer bloom.
If roses aren ' t your jam( question your life decisions), check out …
Best Performing Dahlia
Dahlias have been part of my life since I was a kid growing up near Seattle ' s Skagit Valley, a major hub of the dahlia world, where summer has always meant dahlia season. Here in South Santa Clara County, dahlias do generally well too: they( mostly) love the heat, and as long as they ' re sufficiently watered and staked, the sky( more realistically about 6 ') is the limit. When I started Full Circle Farm, my mom( an incredible green-thumb master gardener) gave me my first three Camano Buz tubers, and it ' s been a beast ever since, exploding into a 4 ' x 5 ' flower machine. I plant tubers in early April, once serious rain stops, and pinch them( removing the top growing tip) once they hit 6-8 " of growth to encourage low branching for a sturdier plant and more blooms. Not that you ' ll need the encouragement. This variety pumps out huge quantities of perfect, fractal orange balls from June through October. The only variety I ' ve seen come close to Camano Buz is Cornel Bronze, though it still produces about a third fewer blooms per plant. Mom-approved and South County tested, I can ' t recommend it enough.
TOP and ABOVE: Princess Charlene de Monaco rose bunched and vased.
LEFT and BELOW: the prolific and sturdy Camano Buz dahlia is South County and mom approved.
Lightning Round
Best seed supplier: Johnny ' s Select Seeds | Favorite melon: Sugar cube cantaloupe Favorite slicer tomato: Early Girl | Best raspberry variety: Joan J Best pest investigative tool: WiFi camera connected to a mobile battery Best all-purpose garden tool: CobraHead weeder and cultivator Best value garden hose supplier: Harbor Freight Best up-front time investment: UV-resistant plant labels
Microbiologist Zoe Davis traded lab benches for garden beds, moving to Gilroy to found Full Circle Farm. Her regenerative operation uses minimal tillage, cover crops, and mulch to build healthy, nutrient-rich soil. The farm offers a seasonal CSA with produce, eggs, and flowers, plus year-round pickups. Learn more at: fullcirclefarm. eco or on Instagram @ FullCircleFarm _ CA.
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