I have only two types of rose bushes. One is structured but totally devoid of fragrance. Yet it is frequented by predator insects like this semi-transparent tiny spider.
After a shower, this itsy bitsy spider emerged from somewhere and started flexing its eight hairy limbs. The big drop of water at the centre of the flower seemed to be its watering hole.
The progression from young flower bud to full bloom over several days:
Here it is at full bloom and at its most beautiful.
The day after full bloom, the petals curled back further, everting them.
The progression from young flower bud to full bloom over several days:
Here it is at full bloom and at its most beautiful.
The day after full bloom, the petals curled back further, everting them.
This itsy bitsy spider has the run of the rose. On this bloom, it seemed to be possessed of strong territorial traits .
Probably because of its tiny size, it constantly raised its limbs to appear bigger and more threatening.
A single rose can be my garden...a single friend, my world ~ Leo Buscaglia.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~
The other type of rose that I've planted is the old fashioned rose which I've known
from my childhood days. Someone told me it is called the damask rose.
It is bluish-red with unstructured petal
arrangement
and imbued with the most glorious rose scent.
Sometimes when there are numerous blooms on the bush, I would plucked some and freezed them for rose-flavoured ice-cubes.
A single rose and Tristellateia australasiae (Maiden's jealousy) in a coloured glass bowl as centrepiece for the dining table.
These are old silver modesty plates from Sulawesi used by little girls. This were tied from the waist to hide the sex, both to protect the modesty of the child and to ward off evil forces (From my sister's antique silver collection).
Piękna jest pierwsza róża, mam nadzieję, że pająk jej krzywdy nie zrobi. Druga jest urocza, lubię stare róże, bo mają urok. Robiłam kiedyś kostki lodu z fiołkami. Pozdrawiam.
ReplyDeleteBeautiful is the first rose, I hope that the spider will not hurt her. The second is lovely, I like old roses, because they have a charm. I did once ice cubes with violets. Yours.
Hi Giga, the spider is so itsy bitsy (smaller than a rose petal or water drop)it will not do any harm to the rose. It is actually waiting for insects like ants for a non-vegetarian meal :)
DeleteYou have given me the idea to do ice cubes with blue flowers like Ternatea clitorea. They would enhance the presentation of the drink.
Cieszę się, że podsunęłam Ci pomysł :)
DeleteI am glad that I suggested you an idea :)
Such beautiful pictures and roses. You don't have any slugs which eat your rosebuds, do you?
ReplyDeleteThanks Satu. Snails or slugs are all over my garden but surprisingly none have ever bothered with my roses. Once in a while I see the leaves being chomped on and I suspect the grasshoppers were the culprits.
DeleteBeautiful roses, I really like roses but history is no longer a spider, I hate ich.Zdjęcie with a drop of water is wonderful. nice and warm greetings
ReplyDeleteI took that photo right after the rain. It must be refreshing all round. I saw this big fat water drop on the rose and brought out my camera when out of the blue this spider came out to stretch its many limbs and bask in the fresh air. Best regards to you.
DeleteMagnificent shots of both roses, but why must we choose between beauty and perfume? I've never understood why some roses have no odour, do some people actually prefer a scentless rose? In your largest closeup, the spider might be guarding the water drop which I suspect is a portal to another dimension, a whole new world (hehe)!
ReplyDeleteIn my case I bought the scentless one as its flowers last longer than others. The flowers were smaller than a shilling. Initially I thought they were miniature roses. In time the whole plant became much bigger including the roses. Btw I love your wild imaginations :) It let us dream on.
DeleteWow..nice shots..you brought out their beauties.. i could not get them here to plant. other than for rose flavoured ice cube, have u ever try mandi bunga?..heheh
ReplyDeleteI like the smell of rose...hmmm very fresh..and
Thanks Ummu. This variety is easy to plant in the tropics. There is no need for fungicide or pesticide usage. Sometimes, when some of the leaves wrinkled up due to fungal attack, I simply pinch them off. You are even more imaginative than Rosemary with your suggestion of rose-petal bath, 'mandi bunga'. Okay, I shall try it out one day in my bath tub or on a grander scale in the swimming pool :)
DeleteI have that spider too but in other flowers, also the unscented rose but different flower look, but i don't have your modesty pendants! Kidding aside these accessories are so interesting, wonder which country used it in the past!
ReplyDeleteOh in addition, that flower arrangement is so beautiful, i am sure the food that will go with it is surely wonderful too!
DeleteI wish someone can tell me the ID of this spider as it is quite common in my garden. The modesty plates are from Sulawesi, Indonesia. In those days, I think the children run around naked, so this was needed for girls. I've thought of using it on my bitch, Tasha as she has a tendency to turn over for belly rubs ;)
DeleteThanks for your appreciation of the floral arrangement.
You are late in posting, haha, i am here and no new post yet. I posted this spider in the Arachnophiles group here, lynx spider, probably Oxyopes lineatipes. https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbihttps://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=4030987407001&set=o.413180112079246&type=1&theater
DeleteWah! didn't know there is a deadline or a race for posting and its only the fourth day. Btw I've just publish a post on the Proboscis monkeys in Sandakan. Thanks fo much for providing the ID of the spider. After some googling I think it is the Striped Lynx spider (Oxyopes salticus). your FB is no longer available?
DeleteI absolutely love roses! Thank you for sharing your beautiful ones :-) Many lovely repeat flowering roses have no scent due to the way they have been propagated over the years, but you can get exquisite, repeat flowering roses that also have a beautiful scent. I have 3 David Austin roses in my collection and they are a good example of such.
ReplyDeleteI do not know the name of my unscented rose as no ID was provided by the nursery. It blooms the whole year round as with all roses in the tropics. including the scented ones. One of the challenges faced with planting roses here is fungal attacks. As I don't use fungicide at all, I'll go for the hardy ones.
DeleteLovely roses.
ReplyDeleteThey look perfect like the ones sold from Cameron Highlands.
Most of the lowland roses seemed to look exploded.
They look so nicely wrapped up because I shot them within the first few days of blooming. IMHO, in the lowlands they look over-bloomed or 'exploded' because of the strong sunlight. I don't plant many roses for this very reason. They don't last like in cool climate countries.
DeleteA lovely series, congratulations!
ReplyDeleteThanks for the compliments.
DeleteYour photos are beautiful! I've heard of modesty plates before but had never seen them. I have several roses in my garden but wish I had more. I have similar spiders in my garden, too. They act fierce to make up for how small they are. :o)
ReplyDeleteThanks CM. Modesty plates are interesting as it reflects the practices of a bygone era in some societies. Looks like the itsy bitsy spiders have make a global presence from Malaysia to Philippines (Andrea @ Kalantikan) and Washington,US.
DeleteVery nice fhotos!!!I like roses!!
ReplyDeleteGoodnight ,Dimitra from Greece!!!!
Thanks Vickie for dropping by. Regards to you from me in Malaysia.
DeleteHi! I love your damask rose! I have one, is similar and called Canadian rose v. 'Martin Frobisher'. Did you see it? Only its color is more pale.Nice photos. I've never heard and seen before 'modesty plates' ---interesting!
ReplyDeleteThanks for additional info. Your 'Martin Frobisher' is probably a more modern rose. The subject of modesty plates usually draw considerable interest simply because it was such an archaic practice. I wonder whether they were effective for the purpose intended.
DeleteI enjoyed your beautiful, rosy post, Stiletto (I can almost smell the roses all the way over here). Your arrangement on the table is beautiful, and the modesty plates are very interesting.
ReplyDeleteThanks Beth for all the sweet words. I'm impressed with your highly honed sense of imagination :) I would like to think that I have the power of suggestion, failing which, it would be nice to have a 'scratch and sniff button' on the blog as suggested by Africanaussie in my post on 'Gardenia Augusta of My Perfumed Garden'.
Delete