Still want more roses? (Solution No. 3,268)

It was an interesting weekend working on all those Rows Gardens.  At one point, I had three partially-done ones on the clipboard.  I get a decent start and then get stuck.  With these ones it wasn't until the third or fourth look that I got a word to get rolling again, but eventually I found them and finished the puzzles.  

Want some more?  Here are some links--some are mini-puzzles that are somewhat easier to solve since there are fewer blooms of each color and fewer places to put them. That's a good concept for both solvers and constructors.  If small puzzles catch on, maybe more people will give constructing a try.

• MIT Mystery Hunt (two puzzles from 2008 and 2010: probably hard and twisted)
• Say It With Flowers  variant by Jangler: each of the Blooms has one "petal" plucked
• Boston Area Puzzle Hunt (Rows Garden by Joon Pahk and Katherine Bryant)
• Garden Rows (a Geocache) by 2aparrs

And the solution to this week's The Nation cryptic.

Themework: units of money (in green) figure into many of the across clues

Musical content: 5a

Political content: 4d

Solution and annotation to The Nation puzzle No. 3,286 below the fold.

Legend: "*" anagram; "~" sounds like; "<" letters reversed; "( )" letters inserted; "_" or lower case: letters deleted; "†" explicit in the clue, “^” first letter or letters, “{“ relocated letter or letters; “§” heteronym, “¶“ letter bank

Across

1a	B(RAND)ED	RAND (“money”) contained in (“in”) BED (“sack”)
5a	*SPLI | FF	*LIPS (anagram indicated by “smacked”) + FF (“very loudly”) Nice indicator.
10a	FRANC | HIS | E	FRANC (“money”) + HIS (“that man’s”) + ^E^nthusiasm (first letter indicated by “to start”)
11a	YEN | TA	YEN (“money”) following (“going after”) TA (“graduate student” [teaching assistant])
12a	RE | MARK	RE (“about”) + MARK (“money”)
13a	COLLARDS
14a	AX | IO | M	AX (“cut”) + IO (visual representation of “ten”) + M (“meters”)
16a	~NIELS  ~BOHR	~KNEELS (“prepares to pray”) + ~BORE (“someone tiresome,” homonym indicated by “on the radio”)
18a	*EXTENSION	*SIXTEEN NO (anagram indicated by “that’s ridiculous”)
20a	_TRESS	_s_TRESS (“emphasize,” omission of first letter indicated by “missing front”)
21a	N (EURO) | SIS	EURO (“money”) contained in (“separates”) ^N^ephew (first letter indicated by “opening”) + SIS (“sibling”)
22a	RUB(B)LE	RUBLE (“money”) containing (“conceals”) ^B^omb (first letter indicated by “trace of”)
25a	T | RIAL	^T^he (first letter indicated by “originally”) + RIAL (“money”)
26a	SCO(PES O)UT	PESO (“money”) contained in (“carried by”) SCOUT (“one who reconnoiters”)
27a	DR | ESS_Y	DR (“doctor”) + ESS_a_Y (“written report,” omission of A indicated by “missing opening of argument”)
28a	POUN(CE)D	POUND (“money”) containing (“assuming”) ^C^rim^E^ (first and last letters indicated by “extremities”)

Down

1d	*BIFURCATE	*A TRUCE FBI (anagram indicated by “violated”)
2d	AL_ | ARM	AL_l_ (omission of last letter indicated by “nearly”) + ARM (“member”)
3d	DECO | RUM	DECO (“1930s-style”) + RUM (“liquor”)
4d	D | RIP	D (“down”) + RIP (“rest in peace”) Nice political reference.
6d	<PH | YLLIS<	<SILLY (“inane”) + HP (“tech company”)<, reversal of all indicated by “promoted”)
7d	_INNERS | OLE	_w_INNERS (“champions,” omission of first letter indicated by “skipping the onset”) + OLE (“cheer”)
8d	~FRAYS	~PHRASE (“idiom,” homonym indicated by “spoken”)
9d	MEL(ODE)ON	ODE (“poem”) contained in (“cutting into”) MELON (“fruit”)
15d	IN | *TRUSIVE	IN (“fashionable”) + *VIRTUES (anagram indicated by “comic”)
16d	<NOI< | SIEST_	<ION< (“thing that’s charged,” reversal indicated by “up”) + SIEST_a_ (“nap,” omission of last letter indicated by “cut short”)
17d	*RESPECTED	*CREED STEP (anagram indicated by “lively”)
19d	N | OODLES	^N^eill (first letter indicated by “tip o’”) + OODLES (“plentiful quantities”)
20d	T(RUDE)AU	TAU (“Greek character”) containing (“kidnaps”) RUDE (“uncouth”)
21d	<NOTE | D<	<D (“bad grade”) + ETON (“English school”) < (reversal indicated by “raised”)
23d	B(RON)C	RON (“Howard”) contained in (“in”) BC (“British Columbia”)
24d	SO | UP	SO (“very”) + UP (“animated’)