This has been a great year for roses! Maybe they liked the cool rainy spring that we had. Our roses have more blooms and look better than they ever have! The Double Delight rose is so beautiful! The eye-catching colors and fantastic fragrance make it immensely popular.

According to Wikipedia, ‘Double Delight ‘ is a hybrid tea rose cultivar bred by Swim & Ellis and introduced in 1977. Its parents were two hybrid tea cultivars – the red and yellow ‘Granada’ (Lindquist, 1963) and the ivory ‘Garden Party’ (Swim, 1959).

As the bud opens up, the rose is mainly a creamy white with just the edges tipped in a dark pink.

Then the petals begin turning a dark pink, almost strawberry red color. Gorgeous two-tone rose.

The blooms are large and most bloom continuously from spring to autumn.

So many different looks from one rose.

So pretty! You may want to add this to your collection. Enjoy!

English roses are so beautiful! They are also called David Austin roses, because they were created by Englishman David Austin. They are the perfect compliment to any garden.

Most of the English roses have soft, cupped blooms with many petals, looking almost like a peony.

These roses feature an heirloom rose fragrance combined with modern disease resistance and a reblooming habit. They come in shrub and climbing varieties to suit any garden space.

When you plan your plantings, consider adding complementing flowers, such as these blue geraniums, to create beautiful contrasts.

English roses come in range of colors – pinks, whites, yellows, apricots and reds. As you look at English roses in the stores, you will probably have trouble deciding which ones you should take home. So many gorgeous colors!

English roses are wonderful cutting flowers. They are delicate, so it is best to cut them while they are still in the late bud stage so you can enjoy them longer in your home.

Most resources recommend fertilizing English roses at the beginning of the season and then once after they begin blooming.

To prune these roses, simply prune them to a shape in early spring. If you want a smaller plant and larger, but fewer, flowers, prune it back farther. If you want a larger plant for landscaping with smaller (but lots more) flowers, just prune off the damaged tips or to shape. Always prune off dead blooms to encourage more blooms, and remove all of the dead blooms at the end of the fall season.

It is best to plant English roses in the fall or early spring, so now is the time to start planning what roses you want to plant this fall to enjoy next spring.

Have fun shopping and planting! Enjoy!

As I was walking through the garden yesterday, I noticed that the rhubarb was ready to cut….which means it is time to bake a rhubarb cake. Rhubarb cake is my absolute favorite cake! If you have never tried rhubarb, this is the recipe for you.

The rhubarb adds a wonderful tart flavor to cake that you will love. The texture and flavor is irresistible. Family, who thought they hated rhubarb (but probably had never actually tried it), were asking for the recipe after tasting it. It is also great in muffins!

To make the cake, start by mixing up the cake batter, cutting up the rhubarb and mixing it with sugar and jello, and making the crumble. I often make a one-half batch, which works with a pie dish or 8 x 8 baking dish.

Fold the rhubarb mixture into the cake batter.

Spread the cake and rhubarb mixture in a prepared baking dish. This is a family recipe that we have been making for years!

Sprinkle the crumble on top. I add a bit of additional sanding sugar – I love the extra sparkle and crunch.

Bake for about 40 minutes….absolute heaven!

Look at that beautiful moist texture – and such a pretty color!

Serve warm, with just a bit of cream poured over it, if desired. You will love it! Enjoy!

Print Recipe

Rhubarb Cake

My most favorite cake!  If you have never tried rhubarb, this recipe is the one to try!

Prep Time10 minutes mins

Cook Time40 minutes mins

Total Time50 minutes mins

Course: Dessert

Cuisine: American

Keyword: Cake

Servings: 18

Author: Mary Beth

Ingredients

Cake

• 1/2 cup butter, softened
• 1 1/2 cups sugar
• 2 eggs, well beaten
• 3 cups flour
• 4 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/8 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup milk
• 1 teaspoon vanilla

Rhubarb Mixture

• 4 cups fresh rhubarb, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
• 1 3 ounce package strawberry jello
• 1/2 cup sugar

Crumble

• 1/4 cup flour
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 3 tablespoons butter
• sanding sugar, optional
• cream to pour on top, optional

Instructions

Cake

• Preheat oven to 375 degrees and lightly spray 9 x 13 pan with vegetable spray.  (You can half the recipe and place in 9 x 9-inch pan or pie dish. Pictures reflect one-half batch.)
• Cream 1/2 cup softened butter with 1 1/2 cup sugar.  Add eggs and beat to combine.
• In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, and salt.  Add 1/4 of dry ingredient mixture to the creamed mixture.  Stir just enough to combine.  Then add 1/3 of the milk, stirring only to combine.  Repeat using, ending with flour mixture.  Add vanilla, stir just to combine.

Rhubarb Mixture

• Mix rhubarb pieces with 1/2 cup sugar and strawberry jello, stir to combine. Fold  gently into cake mixture.
• Smooth into prepared 9 x 13 pan.

Crumble

• Crumble 1/4 cup flour, 1/2 cup sugar and 3 tablespoons butter together with pastry blender or fingers.  Sprinkle over cake.
• Bake at 375 degrees for 35-40 minutes, until toothpick comes out clean.
• Serve warm.  Traditionally, a bit of cream is poured over the  top.  Enjoy!

Notes

This was a favorite recipe of mine growing up – have always loved this cake!