It started flowering. Lacey flower first time blooming in my garden.
Shao’s Garden · No. 07
May
3 moments · 2 days · 0 of 0 in bloom
Two moments
It started flowering. Lacey flower first time blooming in my garden.
Started to bloom. Soft pink. It's very top heavy & branching a lot. I plan to add support and prune it in late season.
One moment
Acquired from Phoenixie Nursery; repotted into a self-watering pot
Self-watering reservoir keeps moisture consistent for a container standard rose
Shao’s Garden · No. 06
June
2 moments · 2 days · 0 of 0 in bloom
One moment
First time planting a tree and it turns out much more requirement and consideration. The tree is just as tall as me, with dark green wavy leaves and pointed creamy-white bracts around the central flower heads. I thought Scarlet Fire dogwood has pink flowers, so fingers crossed it is just temporary. Feeling accomplished today.
Shao’s Garden · No. 05
April
2 moments · 2 days · 0 of 0 in bloom
One moment
Shao’s Garden · No. 04
August
1 moment · 1 day · 0 of 0 in bloom
One moment
About a month later—around late August—I went for a walk around the garden center just to browse, and I learned about adding winter interest and pops of color to the garden. I came across this really striking plant with white flowers. It blooms for quite a long time and stays evergreen over the winter without dying back completely, so when everything else dies back to the ground, these start blooming with tight erect spikes of tiny flowers. (I'm talking about the Heather / Calluna, by the way!). I picked up four or five of them to add along the front border, and even now, a few of them are still hanging on here and there looking good with their bright white blooms. I did notice that they really benefit from heavy pruning—it keeps the base from getting leggy and woody, helping them come back much more lush, dense, and full of flowers.
One moment
After 3 garden store visits and countless back and forth on the type of dogwood tree I want in the garden, I finally picked up this Scarlet Fire Dogwood. It barely fit in my car with its single trunk and canopy of green leaves pressed right against the roof, but I am so happy I found one that has good structure and shape!
I started getting into roses—specifically, David Austin roses. I went out to pick up 'Boscobel' for the garden. They were so hard to find; I couldn't find them anywhere except for one garden center that carried them, so I ended up buying three. They were definitely on the pricier end, costing around $69 or $79 per plant—very expensive for roses! But they were David Austin, so I decided to give them a try. I actually got inspired by a YouTube channel called Garden Answer. The host has a massive garden in the U.S. (I think she lives in Oregon or somewhere around there). In one of her videos, she planted three 'Boscobel' roses together to create this massive, impact-filled effect with tons of deeply cupped, coral-pink blooms, and that’s what really got me hooked. So when I found three of them at the garden center, I loaded up a trolley with bags of container mix, garden booster, and bark, and brought them home. I planted two in the southwest garden—you can see in the photos and videos where I dug the holes, planted them, and brought in fresh soil. They looked great in the garden, with their upright red-tinged stems and lush green foliage already carrying tight round flower buds at the tips! I left the third one in a pot on the patio so I could enjoy its blooms while hanging out outside. I really love 'Boscobel', and it has become one of my absolute favorites—especially looking ahead into 2026, as they’ve been blooming amazingly well and making me want even more David Austin roses. Funny story: my lovely neighbor actually gave me a David Austin rose when I first moved in! Back then, I didn't know much about roses, so I actually removed it from the pot she gave me to plant hydrangeas instead. To this day, I can't remember which variety it was—just that it was a lovely yellowish color. Looking back now, it feels like everything has come full circle.
One moment
Picked up 3 Boscobel and planned to plant in the south garden bed in ground.