Tea at Trianon: Caring for Roses

John Wilson Croker on Marie-Antoinette

"We have followed the history of Marie Antoinette with the greatest diligence and scrupulosity. We have lived in those times. We have talked with some of her friends and some of her enemies; we have read, certainly not all, but hundreds of the libels written against her; and we have, in short, examined her life with– if we may be allowed to say so of ourselves– something of the accuracy of contemporaries, the diligence of inquirers, and the impartiality of historians, all combined; and we feel it our duty to declare, in as a solemn a manner as literature admits of, our well-matured opinion that every reproach against the morals of the queen was a gross calumny– that she was, as we have said, one of the purest of human beings."

~from History of the Guillotine by John Wilson Croker, 1844

Edmund Burke on Marie-Antoinette

"It is now sixteen or seventeen years since I saw the queen of France, then dauphiness, at Versailles; and surely there never lighted on this orb, which she hardly seemed to touch, a more delightful vision. I saw her just above the horizon, decorating and cheering the elevated sphere she had just begun to move in, glittering like a morning star full of life and splendor and joy. Oh, what a revolution....Little did I dream that I should have lived to see such disasters fall upon her, in a nation of gallant men, in a nation of men of honor and of cavaliers! I thought ten thousand swords must have leaped from their scabbards, to avenge even a look which threatened her with insult. But the age of chivalry is gone; that of sophisters, economists, and calculators has succeeded...."

~Edmund Burke, October 1790

Saturday, April 2, 2016

Caring for Roses

From Victoria:

Choose sturdy, proven rose varieties. You’ll find plenty of versatile and resilient shrubs appropriate for your climate, as well as for the conditions in your garden.
When adding a rosebush to your garden, give it plenty of room to grow and reach mature size.
Plant roses where they will receive at least six hours of direct sunlight daily. All-day sun is best.
Dig a planting hole twice as wide and just as deep as the nursery pot or root mass of your new plant.
Roses thrive in enriched soil. Improve soil before and after planting with several shovelfuls of composted manure worked into the area around the plant.
Feed plants monthly with rose fertilizer during the growing season. Stop feeding by late summer to avoid promoting tender new growth that could be damaged by freezing weather.
Water roses weekly if nature doesn’t provide soaking rains. Always water after fertilizing. Preserve soil moisture by spreading a 2-inch layer of mulch (compost, shredded leaves, and chopped bark) on the ground around the base of the plant. (Read more.)