The miniature rose bush that I planted earlier this year is trying to continue as though there were no such thing as winter!
I have done my best to help it harden off for the season. I stopped all feeding and deadheading in September, but it still thinks it can keep on sending up new growth. We have had our first big snow of the year, a good month earlier than is normal here. Temperatures dropped into the single digits (Fahrentheit). It caught the buds of the small rose, but it doesn't seem to have dampened its enthusiasm very much! Hopefully it will manage to survive the season despite its mistimed jollity.
So yesterday I wrote a poem for it...
Request to a Very Small Rose Bush
You teacup tufts that greet the day,
Enthusiastic bits of bloom,
The snow and ice have said their say;
You don't approve of winter's gloom,
No more do I, but still I know -
Whatever you may think, my dear -
You'll have to sleep through winter's snow,
And winter is upon us here.
So please be good and fall asleep
And let your leaves turn brown and go
To join the autumn's drifting heap;
At least you must not grow and grow!
I have your blanket ready, Rose;
It's waiting here with shovel, rake,
To keep you safe when winter blows.
Just now you're much too wide awake!
I have been writing a good deal of poetry lately, publishing it here on Medium.com. It is something that I can do during this strange and somewhat difficult period of recovery and regrouping. And it is allowing me to do more writing, which was after all my first love. So that is all to the good!
Wishing all of you a lovely week!
Write a comment
Kris P (Monday, 18 November 2019 19:34)
I love your poem, Amy. It's so apt. I'm also glad to see that you're continuing to cultivate your miraculous mini-roses even after your move.
Amy@small sunny garden (Monday, 18 November 2019 21:30)
Kris - I'm so hoping this one will slow down long enough to survive the winter! It's been so full of flower and so healthy. I enjoyed writing about it. ;-) Thanks so much!
Annette (Tuesday, 19 November 2019 02:50)
Hi Amy, yes, nature is amazing and I love your little poem. It always amazes and thrills me how much talent there is out there. Funnily enough the hazels are producing catkins...weather's a bit crazy but what the heck, let's make the most of it :)
Cathy (Tuesday, 19 November 2019 14:50)
Roses are tough little plants aren't they! Love your poem Amy. I have a hyacinth trying to flower... only a few months early! LOL! Whenever I see miniature roses I think of you Amy. Hope all is going well. xx
Amy@small sunny garden (Wednesday, 20 November 2019 09:17)
Annette - Seems like the plants really have their own opinions about the weather this year! I hope they are right... ;-) Thanks so much!
Amy@small sunny garden (Wednesday, 20 November 2019 09:27)
Cathy - Oh my, a hyacinth in November! It's amazing how sturdy plants can be, though I could wish this little rose would let me coddle it a bit! ;-) Things are going fairly well; recovery and readjustment are taking most of my energy, but I realize now that was to be expected. Hope you are having a pleasant start to winter! Xxx
Diana Studer (Tuesday, 10 December 2019 14:53)
I have one poet in my blogroll. She follows various memes to prompt her poems
https://poetrypix.com/blog/