It looks wonderful. I love the tree's and urn's too. What climbers do you have planted on the wires behind the bushes? Soon you will have a wall of roses beside your path. My back hurts just looking at all the work you did.

Carol

So beautiful! I want to have gravel paths similar to yours in my very small garden. Alas, my husband is a typical American male who worships his lawn and the necessary Lawnboy mower and weedeater! He thinks the gravel could not be contained and would interfere with his lawn-mowing. Buff

This is beautiful and just what I would expect from you. Bravo!

i have been looking forward to this update, thank-you! The cardoons are beautiful with the roses even if they didn't get to stay. Can you talk about the spacing you used, in the second photo the roses appear quite close?

How beautiful...
I never allow enough space for walks..yours is lovely

patricia

Very nice! To have a rose walk and in Italy to boot! You are living a charmed life, my good Sir.

Chance

Carol, you're always so sweet and kind :o)
In the last picture, the trees to the left are the Olive Trees I've pruned hard just after Christmas. Their branches and leaves have been chipped to "mulch" all the bare earth of pats.
I've planted only few climbers. To the left side, there are 'Céline Forestier','Paul Noel', and 'Ley's Perpetual'.

To the right, beside the rose bed, I've planted 'Sénégal', 'Souv. de Mme Léonie Viennot'(...crazy boy...), 'Garisenda' (...definitely crazy...), then 'Maréchal Niel', 'Chromatella', and 'Marie Nabonnand' near 'Susan Louise' at the far end.
This reflects also the overall colour scheme, wich is more apricot-yellow in the center ('Miss Atwood', 'Mme Berkeley', 'Souv. de Pierre Notting'...) and pink/blush to each end. Crimsons ('Cramoisi Supérieur', 'Emmie Gray', 'Fabvier'...) are scattered all long the bed to give the required contrast.

Buff, I love gravel in the garden, but here there's no gravel ;o), just leaves!

Pam, :o) I can't wait to see what will appen in a few months!

Mauirose, those cardoons are beautiful, but HUGE, more than 2,50 meters wide, average 3 meters high in flower! I've moved them to another corner of the garden.
In the second picture, there are not only Roses ;o) but also little plants of green chrysanthemums. The roses are spaced 1 meter, average. I know that many of Teas I've planted should be very big bushes, so I'll be forced to keep them pruned: this is not the best way for Teas, but this was the available space... :oP

Patricia, I've never thought to have the space for a walk in my garden, and now... I have one!

Thank you too, Knight! I'm in Sardinia, not only in Italy... double charm! :oD

Ciao!
Maurizio

Maurizio, I've been wondering for quite some time how your project was coming along and when we'd hear from you about it. In the last few pictures it already shows the promise of what it will become. It's going to be so exciting to see how your roses look in the spring. Of course it will take a few years for them to reach full maturity but that's all right, we'll still be here to enjoy your pictures. Thank you for sharing the beginnings of this beautiful project. By the way I ordered Marie van Houtte since you recommended her highly. That also gives me something to look forward to this spring!

Ingrid

Maurizio-
It is a beautiful transformation and will be even more spectacular as the roses mature.
I'm glad that you recognize your craziness in planting Garisenda and Souv. de Mme Leonie Viennot :). They are both gorgeous roses and spectacular in bloom, but vigorous growers.
In the Sacramento cemetery HRG Garisenda is allowed to grow as a graceful arching shrub in a plot by itself and is a profusion of blooms like SDLM in the spring. It must be at least 4x8 feet; and what a pain to prune. I tackled it last year. Hopefully this year it won't need much attention. Hope you have a structure for Souv. de Mme. Leonie Viennot. She gets quite big.
Janelle

marvellous pictures of your garden, morrisnoor..

not only souv de mme léonie viennot,but also maréchal niel will become a real monster.
i've planted mine last autumn and hope him growing well in mine (european) 8b climate - last week, we had a wintertale of -10 degree celsius.....

kai-eric

Genius! I have always loved overgrown paths but as some have mentioned to me, it is very difficult to get by that rose without losing my dress...ahem! You have the perfect solution--wider paths, just never thought of it--slooooow.
I also love those shapely urns and am sure the whole effect will match the rest of that elegant garden of yours.Lovely!
la

I took some photos of Garisenda and Souv de Mme Leonie Viennot today to ensure you realize how large they get.
Here they are in the HRG at the Sacramento City Cemetery (it is mid January, but it was a gorgeous day with the sun out and about 66F).

Garisenda (at least 8x12, I underestimated it)
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Souv de Mme Leonie Viennot in a mound. Note the car in the background for scale:
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Souv de Mme Leonie Viennot on an arbor. It starts on the left side of the arbor, spans the width of the path (> 6 feet), then continues to the ground on the other side.
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Maurizio, these are really nice views. Thank you for sharing them.
My daughter's boyfriend is an Italian-American, and will going to Italy soon to visit his grandmother. I'll have to find out where in Italy she lives.

Randy

morrisnoor
thank you for the beautiful photographs. your garden is like a dream, especially #5 the north side.

I have heard how beautiful Sardinia is from a Czech friend who has played tennis there in the summer. Your garden makes me want to travel and I hate travelling :-)

I am just starting my rose garden with heirlooms in South Florida but can never expect to achieve the atmosphere of Sardinia with mountains and olive trees as background, must make do with palm trees and bamboo.

Thank you again for the beauty.

imagardener2
Denise

Maurizio,

I love the pictures you posted. That walk way is beyond gorgeous....I can just see the roses in bloom!!! I love the olive trees! How I wish I could grow them here in Florida!

Deb

Maurizio, your gardens are sooooo lovely, and your idea that struck like lightening is a wonderful addition. Your vision has transformed a wild, unused area into an exciting, restful, beautiful place. I like everything about it. Do your shredded olive leaves add fragrance to the area? Or maybe the whole garden is scented with the nearby olive trees. Next year's photos will knock our socks off, I'm sure.

It looks like you have some big roses there, similar - only in layout - to my sideyard which is 8 ft (2.4m) wide. My intent is that Chromatella and Reve d'Or will be trained to grow up and spread across the top of the wood fence - possibly with an extension added on top (wires on metal posts like yours) - probably billowing down toward the path with smaller roses planted in between underneath. Is that what you envision for yours? I've seen photos of these roses (and the photos previously posted above) which show them to be huge and imposing plants, not conducive to walking by on a narrow path. I'm hoping that by "pushing" their growth upwards they can coexist happily with passersby - namely, me!

Since I am geography-challenged and not well traveled, I had to Google Sardinia. Wow, Maurizio! What a fantastically beautiful place to live and grow roses! Your gardens are only outdone by your location. Bella, bella!! Can't wait for a very, very long post from you filled with many photos!! And don't wait for this new part of the garden to mature. Do it now!!

Sherry

Here is a link that might be useful: Sardinia

Well, I have to admit I couldn't quite put my finger on Sardinia from a map either, Sherry.
Thank you for the Google map.
This will make it more meaningful viewing Maurizio's garden.

Randy

Hello to everyone :o)

Janelle, are you trying to scare me?? :o)) I have to remember to you that I already have in my garden 'Mermaid' trained horizontally as a low hedge, carefully (!) pruned and tied each year (one day of sweath and BLOOD...!!)to contain her size to one meter high - seven meters long! :oP
But you're right, those Roses would be grown very large. I hope that my poor soil and my "prune&tie" will help. SDMLV will would also climb on the almond tree on the North end of the walk.
'Garisenda' had already proven to be a very vigorous grower. I've took a cutting past winter, and forgot her in a small pot in the pot ghetto. Planted in early October, when she was no more than 2" high, with only one thin stem. She immediately started to grow, with 5 new basal shoots which are already 4" long... AHEM! The branches appear to be much more slender (an thin) than in you picture, I don't think she would never grow as freestanding shrub here. Maybe as a huge ground cover :oD

Sherry, the climbing roses will be espaliered only on wires, no billowing allowed! I know that they can become quite large plants, but I forgot to say that they will be left with minimum water supply during summer, to promote a stronger autumn bloom flush. As I've said about 'Mermaid', I don't fear to prune hard, if it's possible, to achieve the effect I'm looking for.
Summer -late August) will also become the main pruning time for Roses here in the walk, (as well for almost all my Teas, Chinas and Noisettes everywhere in the garden).

I see that you have found "Solanas" on the map! Look for "Solanas, Località Mrugana" and you'll find also the garden :o)

Coming back to the Rose Walk, I would like to post a few pictures of some Roses which are already delightin' me

'Susan Louise'
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'Lady Plymouth' (ex Sangherhausen, it's probably wrongly named, and should be a smaller clone of 'Lady Hillingdon')
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'Souvenir de la Malmaison' (bush)
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"Bryan Freidel's Pink Tea"
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Ciao!
Maurizio

I have no words for your extremely elaborate work, but the spectacular results speak for themselves. Congratulaions for the design that inspires the envy of your friends. It is breathtaking and when I saw what roses you have chosen to plant, my heart stopped. I have a question about Garisenda. Is it a beautiful rose or only vigorous. Thanks. Again good job, Maurizion. I am in awe.

Hello guys :o)
I was lookin' to past season pictures and wondered that I have to update this post with some photos.

My little walk has started to fill out, in spite of my experiments in cultivation. In the main garden, the Roses are constantly feeded and watered. Otherwise, here I'm trying to be less generous with feed, and watering only twice a week in summer, with a thick mulch: I don't mind if there's no flowers and if leaves drop in summer, having such beautiful blooms in early Spring and in late Fall.

Here's some pic of the past spring.

Early April, with purple new growth of Roses, and lime green spurges (Euphorbia characias wulfenii) in bloom
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Native bulbs, Gladiolus italicus, and annual grasses, graceful Briza maxima fill the path edges
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'Souvenir de Mme Léonie Viennot'
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The walk in early May (this year I definitely have to weed out most of the Briza seedlings!)
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Another picture, from the opposite corner
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A few weeks later, early June. The second flush of Roses, with straw coloured Briza, young shoots of the grapevines, and sweet peas
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Sweet Peas cultivar for this spot in the garden are 'Chatsworth' and 'Midnight'
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Here's "the start" of the walk, under the pergola covered with 'Follette' and 'Treasure Trove'...
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Before the end of June, the walk go dormant for summer heat. I cut to the ground all the dried annuals, spreading their seeds in the beds (except for sweet peas, to avoid a mix up with colours), and mulch heavily the Roses.

With the first rain in late summer (usually, by mid September), the walk come to life, and the autumn flowering of Roses is heralded by pale pink Amaryllis belladonna - I've planted approximately 100 bulbs in small groups, scattered among the Roses (and raised from seed another 100! :oD ... they will reach their flowering size in just 7 years LOL).
Only few bulbs have flowered by now, but I hope to see the path lined with those beautiful scented trumpets one day.
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Hope you enjoy! :o)

Ciao,
Maurizio

Thank you so much for posting this update. It is lovely to see,

Positively stunning! Thank you so much Sheila for reviving this thread! What a great example of scale in terms of the main walkway—it’s amazing how much of is eaten up by the mature plants. Duly noted! It’s like a dream garden, with lots of wonderful surprises along the way. :-)

Ahh, if only I can walk down that path. Absolutely stunning how it all got transform into so lavish and colourful path. I absolutely love those Morrocan Jars . Brilliant idea !

This project is big and back breaking at least it is for me. I will be so sore. Yeah, would live to see how it looks since everything grows huge. I hope Maurizio will see this and update :)

Jin

2 Those unfamiliar with this Garden it belongs to maurizzio usai. You can just Google him or visit his website.https://www.lapietrarossastudio.com/home

The thing that I find amazing is that he was just a teenager when he started this Garden! Now he has gone to designing gardens around the world.

That's so very awesome!!

Vap, I just visited his link and he is very young. I saw a few designs on there that I actually like. One of the design reminds me of Daisy's landscape, water features and what not. Absolutely beautiful :)

Vap, thanks for the updates.

Jin

Yes, thank you Vaporvac; I’m really excited to have this amazing designer’s website for my students in the Green Thumbs Club, to show them what they can do with their passion for growing. What an inspiration! :-)

Funny how nobody mentioned how gorgeous he is! Just as beautiful as his garden work, if not more so.

If you Google him you'll find a zillion more pictures ... of both him and his work! He's just a kid in the early ones. Of course, You can also click on his name here to read his prior posts and the thread leading into this one that contains the discussion of which rose to buy Etc.

; )