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Rose Selection
As I mentioned, January is a good time of
year to begin selecting and ordering roses, particularly if you purchase them
from a mail order vendor.
There are a great many new
varieties, but I will list a few new ones from David Austin, which look like
they may be good for our area, and mention an entire class of roses which are
often overlooked and yet are extremely hardy and disease resistant.
Rugosa Roses
Rugosa roses are sometimes
referred to as Japanese roses. They
are fragrant and come in a variety of colors and forms from single, 5-petal
flowers to lush double blooms. They
grow well in sandy soil, as well as heavier soils, and do not need
spraying. They have leathery or
crinkly leaves and do not seem to get the diseases other roses in our area
are so prone to catching, including black spot. Of all the roses rated by the American Rose
Society (ARS), the roses in the Rugosa class have more varieties rated over
9.0 than any other class of rose.
For the most part, Rugosa
roses stay relatively short and need little care, including very minimal
pruning. There has been an increase in
interest in Rugosa roses lately since they do require so little care, they
bloom all summer, and are fragrant.
Even Jackson & Perkins has begun selling more Rugosa because of
their easy-care qualities.
Rugosas generally come in
colors ranging from white through pink to deep red.
Here are a few varieties
which are well worth looking for.
v Hansa - very fragrant and repeats from spring through to
frost. Double blooms in
violet-red. Grows to about 6’ tall.
v Purple Pavement - very fragrant and repeats from spring through to
frost. Double blooms in
purplish-red. Grows to about 3’ tall
and makes an excellent hedge.
v Snow Pavement - very fragrant and repeats from spring through to
frost. Double blooms in white touched
with pink. Grows to about 3’ tall and
makes an excellent hedge.
v Thérèse Bugnet - One of the classic Rugosa roses. Double, fragrant blossoms in
medium-pink. Blooms all summer and has
wonderful, attractive red canes with completely healthy foliage. Grows to be about 4’ tall.
v Rugosa
Magnifica -Very fragrant blooms in deep
mauve. Blooms all summer and grows to
be about 5’ tall.
v Rosa rugosa
rubra - Single (5-petals), very fragrant
blossoms in deep mauve. Blooms all
summer. Can grow up to 6’ tall and is
extremely hardy.
v Blanc Double de
Coubert - One of the best white
roses. Large, semi-double blooms in
pure white. Very, very fragrant. Blooms all summer. Great for a hedge. Can grow up to 5’ tall.
v Agnes - Primrose color and very fragrant. Blooms all summer.
v Topaz Jewel - Yellow blossoms with a moderate fragrance. Blooms all summer.
v Robusta - Crimson blossoms with a moderate fragrance. Blooms all summer.
v Jens Munk - Pink blossoms with only a slight fragrance, but a very
healthy and well-mannered rose.
v Dr. Eckener - Pink
and yellow blend rose with a very strong fragrance.
v Wild Spice - A single, white blossom with a wonderful spicy
fragrance. It blooms continually, all
summer. I got this rose from Jackson
& Perkins and couldn’t be more pleased.
It is stays low growing (about 4’) and doesn’t need pruning or
spraying.
These are just a few
varieties. If you have room this year,
I would definitely give Rugosas a try, particularly if you live near the ocean.
David Austin Roses
Of course, as always
with David Austin roses, you may find that many of them grow much, much
taller than advertised, due to our warm climate, so take that under
advisement. I’m mentioning David
Austin roses because they do have a very good record for disease resistance.
The following roses may make
nice additions to your garden.
v Carding Mill - Pink, apricot, yellow
blend, very double roses with a strong myrrh fragrance. Height 4’ x 3.5’.
v Grace - Apricot blossoms with good
fragrance. Height 4’ tall.
v Hyde Hall - Rich, medium pink, very
double flowers with a light fragrance.
This is listed as very healthy, but very large, up to 6’, so I expect
you could grow it as a small climber here in NC.
v
v The Ingenious Mr. Fairchild - Peony-like, very large roses in pinkish lilac. Rose fragrance and a height listed as 5’.
v Wisley - Large blossoms in deep pink
with a strong fragrance. Height 4’.
A Few Smaller Varieties of
Here are a few of the smaller varieties of
v
v Ambridge Rose - Apricot pink with a
good rose and myrrh fragrance.
v Anne Boleyn - Soft, warm pink with a
light fragrance.
v
v Comtes de Champagne - Yellow that fades
to pale yellow; the blossoms open to form an open cup. Good fragrance.
v Cordelia - Medium pink, semi-double
flowers with a very slight fragrance.
v Fair Bianca - Pure white rose with a
rich rose fragrance.
v
v Mary Magdalene - Very soft apricot-pink
coloring with rich fragrance.
v Miss Alice - Very soft pink coloring with a rose fragrance.
v Molineux - Clear yellow coloring; this
rose has won a lot of awards and is a beautiful small bush. Slight Tea Rose fragrance.
v Noble
v Portmeirion - Medium sized flowers in
clear, rich deep pink with a strong rose fragrance.
v Sophy’s Rose - Light red flowers on a
very healthy bush. Light Tea Rose
fragrance.
v
v Tamora - Rich apricot flowers with good
fragrance.
v The Prince - Deep crimson with a rich
fragrance.
v Wildeve - Very healthy rose with soft
pink blossoms. Medium fragrance.
Happy planting!
Amy Corwin is the author of more than six historical romances and mysteries. Her latest contemporary mystery, Whacked! was just released in hardcover and is available wherever books are sold.
As you might expect, she has also written a historical mystery where the clues are roses. A Rose Before Dying is available from Amazon, Barnes and Nobles, as well as for Apple iTunes fans.
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Showing posts with label Roses. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Roses. Show all posts
Saturday, January 19, 2013
January and Roses
Seed and gardening catalogs are showing up in my mailbox and now is definitely the time to consider ordering plants for your spring and summer garden. Most of you know I love roses and this month is order time!
Thursday, October 11, 2012
It may be October but there's still time for roses!
Selecting the Perfect English Rose
For a lot of folks, October is pretty
much the end of the gardening season and there are only a few cleanup tasks
remaining. However, if you’re lucky and live in warmer climes, there’s still
time to plant roses and a few other things like garlic and lettuce (which I
plan to do this evening, in fact).
Fall really is the best time to plant
roses. It gives them the entire winter to settle into their spot in the garden
and prepare for a lovely spring.
David Austin’s English Roses are
becoming more popular every day since they have a reputation for being easy to
care for and bloom fairly freely during the growing season. Unfortunately, many of them don’t always
behave and conform to the growth habits promised in Austin’s literature when
grown in warmer areas. A good number
throw up very, very long canes which
can overwhelm a small or medium-sized garden very quickly.
From my own personal experiences,
I’ve learned to read rose descriptions very carefully and make adjustments for
our warmer climate. My local area falls between U.S. zones 7 and 8, where the
ground never freezes solid, and I can grow lettuce and radishes under floating
row covers during the winter. Roses that grow medium-sized in England are often
large here in North Carolina. The varieties listed in this article are older
ones, but I wanted to stick to roses that I have grown.
The following is a very brief
description of a few Austin roses, classed by size, which may be helpful when
planning fall purchases. These are roses
that I have personal experience with and know can be grown here in coastal
North Carolina. Don’t forget: new roses
don’t necessarily have to go into the ground if your garden is already
full! You can grow beautiful roses in
large pots, as well, so you can always find room for one more specimen.
Special note: we’ve discovered that
large pots of roses do very well around pool areas, particularly pools used by
folks who like to belly-flop or cannonball and splash water
everywhere. The reason? The heavily chlorinated pool water lightly splashing
the roses seems to cut down on powdery mildew and even black spot! I’m not sure
I’d actually spray the roses deliberately with pool water, but the occasional splashing
does seem to help.
Small
Roses
These roses will stay small--no more than three feet in height and perhaps that same in width. They will not throw up large canes, so you generally won’t have to worry about cutting them back except to remove dead or diseased wood.
These roses will stay small--no more than three feet in height and perhaps that same in width. They will not throw up large canes, so you generally won’t have to worry about cutting them back except to remove dead or diseased wood.
v Ambridge
Rose (1990); pale apricot pink; fragrant
v Charlotte
(1993); clear yellow; slightly fragrant
v Charles
Darwin (2001); tawny yellow; slightly fragrant
v Cymbeline
(1983); grayish pink; fragrant
v Dove
(1986); pale pink; fragrant
v Immortal
Juno (1992); medium pink; fragrant
v Mary
Rose (1983); medium pink; fragrant
v Miss
Alice (2001); Light pink; fragrant
v Molineux
(1994); yellow with apricot tinge to some center petals; fragrant
v Noble
Antony (1995); wine red; fragrant
v Pretty
Jessica (1992); medium pink; fragrant
v Prospero
(1982); deep red with mauve undertones; fragrant
v Queen
Nefertiti (1988); apricot blend; fragrant
v Sharifa
Asma (1989); pale pink; richly fragrant
v Wife
of Bath (1969); warm pink; richly fragrant
v Wise
Portia (1983); wine-red; fragrant
Medium Roses
These roses will grow into medium-sized bushes--no more than five feet in height and smaller in width. They will not throw up large canes, so you generally won’t have to worry about cutting them back except to remove dead or diseased wood, although you may want to trim them back to keep them within the constraints of your garden.
These roses will grow into medium-sized bushes--no more than five feet in height and smaller in width. They will not throw up large canes, so you generally won’t have to worry about cutting them back except to remove dead or diseased wood, although you may want to trim them back to keep them within the constraints of your garden.
v Chaucer
(1981); pale pink; fragrant
v Golden
Celebration (1992); deep yellow; slight fragrant
v Hero
(1983); clear pink; semi-double
v Lilian
Austin (1981); salmon-orange; semi-double
v The
Dark Lady (1991); pinkish-red; fragrant
v The
Nun (1987); white; semi-double (tulip-shaped); slight fragrance
Large Roses
These roses will grow into large bushes and can often be used as climbers. They may throw up long canes. Most likely, unless you have a very large garden, you’ll have to train them as a short (8’) climber or trim them back. They make great pillar roses, though, if you want to add height to your garden by placing them in the middle or back.
These roses will grow into large bushes and can often be used as climbers. They may throw up long canes. Most likely, unless you have a very large garden, you’ll have to train them as a short (8’) climber or trim them back. They make great pillar roses, though, if you want to add height to your garden by placing them in the middle or back.
v Abraham
Darby (1990); Apricot blend; fragrant
v Bow
Bells (1994); Medium pink; semi-double (shaped like tulips); slight fragrance
v Graham
Thomas (1983); deep yellow
v Heritage
(1984); light pink; fragrant
v Jude
the Obscure (1995); apricot; fragrant
v L.D.
Braithewaite (1988); Crimson
v Mayor
of Casterbridge (1997); light pink; medium-sized blooms; slight fragrance
v Othello
(1986); dusky crimson
v St.
Swithun (1994); pale pink; very fragrant
v Winchester
Cathedral (1988); white; fragrant
Saturday, August 25, 2012
Portland Roses
This week I wanted to talk about a less well-known class of roses called "Portland". (It's one of those cute factoids that Portland, Oregon, is famous for it's rose gardens and the fantastic Portland Rose Festival .) Anyway, this is about the historic class of Old Garden Roses, dubbed "Portland".
The Portland class of roses was one of the first to combine the European
roses with newly imported, repeat-blooming China roses that were brought to England in the late 18th/early 19th century by English explorers of China. The first member of the Portland class was recognized as such around 1800 in
the gardens of the Duchess of Portland.
Details about the origins of this
first Portland are sketchy, but it does appear
that the Duchess may have originally obtained the rose, Rosa paestana, i.e. ‘Scarlet Four Seasons’ Rose’ from Italy . This rose was eventually sent from England to André Dupont, the Empress Josèphine’s
gardener in France ,
where he named the rose ‘Duchess of Portland”.
The French then raised numerous varieties, crossing them with other
classes such as Chinas.
Theories abound about precisely
which roses were involved in the creation of this class, although most sources
cite some combination of Gallica, Damask, Centifolia and China . David Austin believes he recognizes Damask in
the ancestry as well as China ,
and speculates that ‘Slater’s Crimson China’ may have been thrown into bed with
a French Gallica rose at one point or another.
Although Portlands were only
really popular for a brief period in the early years of the 19th
century before Bourbon and Hybrid Perpetuals overshadowed them, they are still
excellent garden additions.
The Portland class is a small group of roses,
only a few dozen were hybridized during the 19th century and none in
the 20th or 21st.
They are very winter hardy, however, and are very strong rebloomers.
Most Portlands show some of the
same characteristics as the Damasks, except they are generally shorter. And of course, unlike Damasks, Portlands
rebloom.
Characteristics include:
v Moderate size, most are around 4’ tall, making them good
garden additions where there is not a lot of room.
v The flowers have very short stems with leaves growing
around the flower. Graham Thomas
describes this as a rosette or shoulder of leaves.
v Flowers repeat fairly reliably.
v Portlands have a rich, strong Damask rose fragrance.
v Disease resistance is quite good.
Some good varieties include:
v ‘Comte de
Chambord’, introduced 1860 by
Moreau-Robert (France ). An extremely popular rose, even today. The flowers are very full, quartered, in a
clear pink with an extremely powerful Damask rose fragrance. This is a strong grower and forms an upright
shrub around 4’ tall with lots of foliage.
Repeat flowering.
v ‘Indigo’, circa
1830. Forms a compact bush around 4’
tall with dark green foliage. The
flowers are large, with a lovely dark purple hue.
v ‘Rose de Rescht’ was brought to England
by Miss Nancy Lindsay from Iran
or France . This rose forms a bushy shrub that stays
fairly small, approximately 3’ tall.
Very double flowers have a purplish-crimson color and are fragrant. There is ample, rough-textured foliage, and
it reliably produces at least two crops of flowers.
v ‘Marbrée’ was raised by Robert et Moreau in 1858, in France . The shrubs tend to grow to about 4’ tall with
plentiful dark green foliage. The
flowers are a deep purple-pink, mottled with pale pink. They open flat and have only a slight
fragrance. These roses are generally
free of disease.
v ‘The Portland
A Rose Before Dying
Only Sir Edward had the
motive and the opportunity.
When the first
victim dies, Sir Edward is the likeliest culprit. The murdered woman was Sir
Edward’s ex-mistress who threw him over for a younger man, and she dies after
receiving a mysterious rose. Confused and stricken by her death, Sir Edward is
horrified when a second rose is delivered, along with a note insinuating that
he had something to do with his mistress’ death. In desperation, he begs his
nephew, Charles Vance, to help him prove his innocence.
Charles Vance,
the new Earl of Castlemoor, is convinced Sir Edward is innocent and agrees to
work with the renowned head of the Second
Sons Inquiry Agency to flush out the murderer. But the investigation soon
reveals more reasons why Sir Edward may be responsible and even the inquiry
agent warns Charles not to let family loyalty stand in the way of the truth. There
may be some truth behind the rumors. "The
roses may simply be Sir Edward’s attempt to cast suspicion elsewhere."
"Misdirection." Or so the whispers say.
Desperate to
stop the murders, Charles enlists the aide of notable rosarian, Ariadne
Wellfleet, to identify the roses in hopes of saving the next victim.
Unfortunately, his actions sweep the Wellfleet household into the killer’s net
and puts friends and family alike at risk. He has no choice but to finish the
investigation, regardless of the costs.
A Rose Before Dying is a witty
Regency whodunit combined with a heart-warming romance in the tradition of Georgette
Heyer’s The Masqueraders and Victoria
Holt’s The Mistress of Mellyn. This
addition to the Second Sons mystery series includes an unwilling detective whose
family loyalties are tested as he seeks to catch an elusive killer.
Thursday, July 26, 2012
Alba Roses - Fragrant Old Garden Roses
I thought I would continue writing a few blogs about one of my favorite plants: roses. Some of you may have already noted this obsession of mine, considering some of my books such as Smuggled Rose or A Rose Before Dying so this blog shouldn't really be a surprise. I do love roses and history.
So here you are...a short article about Alba roses.
Alba roses are classed with the
Old Garden Roses (OGR), which are generally considered to be roses hybridized
or introduced prior to 1900. The 1900’s
marked the beginning of the era of the Hybrid Teas, which are the most popular
roses today. OGR’s have been around this long simply because they are worth
growing and are survivors. The majority
are intensely fragrant and extremely attractive when in full bloom, and the
Alba roses are no exception.
Alba roses are extremely
ancient and during medieval times, the white roses were often associated with
the Virgin Mary. Many rose historians
speculate that the Alba rose class arose from crosses between wild Dog roses
and ancient Damasks (which will be covered in the third article).
The Alba class of roses are
fairly large shrubs with bluish gray leaves and white or pale pink
flowers. Albas bloom once, generally in
summer, and are wonderfully fragrant.
The entire bush can be covered with blossoms during the flowering period
and will fill the air with their heady perfume.
They do not need to be
sprayed and do not suffer from blackspot.
They are, in fact, one of the toughest and easiest of all the roses to
grow. They are extremely tolerant of
imperfect growing conditions including:
bad soil, light shade, and insufficient water. However, if you live in the hot and humid South, Albas do struggle in that climate and seem to prefer cooler climes.
The most common
characteristics of the class are:
- Thorny stems.
- Soft, bluish gray leaves.
- Buds are long and graceful, with long sepals.
- The bushes are generally quite large (average 7’
tall).
- Somewhat shade tolerant.
- Colors range from white through light pink.
- They require no pruning and will flower well,
year after year, by only removing the dead wood.
A few Alba roses include:
‘Great Maiden’s Blush’ ancient.
This is one of my favorite roses and is a gorgeous soft pink. The shrub can reach almost 8 feet and will
sucker if grown on its own roots. The glorious
flowers are very double with pale pink outside petals with a deeper pink in the
center. The flower will gradually fade
to white as it ages. Very rich
fragrance.
Rosa alba ‘Semiplena’ ancient.
‘Semiplena’ is another large shrub, known to grow up to 8 feet
tall. It has pure white flowers,
semi-double, with a rich scent. It has
been grown frequently in place of Damask roses, to produce Attar of Roses. It will grow even in partial shade.
‘Jacobite Rose’
(aka Rosa alba ‘Maxima’) – ancient
origin. Rosa alba ‘Maxima’ can grow up to 7 feet tall, with graceful,
arching branches. The flowers are pure
white and some may have a touch of pink in the center. Good fragrance
‘Céleste’
late 18th century. It reaches
7’ tall and sports semi-double flowers in rose pink color with gold
stamens. The roses are particularly
delicate in appearance and have an interesting elongated, slender bud. The flowers are exceptionally fragrant.
‘Félicité Parmentier’ known since 1834.
This Alba is one of the shorter, and therefore more useful shrubs that
reaches 4’. It has double flowers in
pale pink set off by a green button eye.
Good fragrance.
‘Mme Plantier’ Plantier, 1835.
‘Mme Plantier’ is another tall shrub which can even be trained as a
small climber (approx. 8-9’). It has
lovely double flowers in creamy white.
The buds are red-tinted prior to opening. As with the other Albas, this one has a good
scent.
These are just a few varieties. All the Alba roses are well worth the garden space
and require minimal to perform exceptionally well. They aren't that easy to find, but Pickering Nursery is a good source for these and many other OGR.
Happy Gardening!
And speaking of gardening...Oriana Archer in the first of the Regency series of books about the adventures of the Archer family is also a fanatical gardener. (Hmmm, wonder how that happened?) If you want to find out more about her and the cursed family necklace she discovers, check out The Necklace.
Thursday, July 19, 2012
Growing Roses Organically
Organic Rose
Gardening
Bucking
Conventional Wisdom and Doing the Impossible
A lot of folks have expressed an interest in converting their garden
over to a more organic approach to user fewer pesticides or other
chemicals. I’ve been doing this for some
time now and have learned a few lessons--the hard and very expensive way--so I thought it might be worthwhile to share.
My main focus here is on roses, but most of the hints are also useful
to all kinds of gardens, including vegetable gardens.
Why grow roses organically? There are a
lot of reasons. My own included the
following:
- Our well, which
supplies the water we drink, is right dead center in the garden. I don’t particularly want to drink the
stuff folks spray on roses.
- We are an official
National Wildlife Federation Habitat which means we provide food, water
and shelter for birds and small animals.
I don’t want to endanger the wildlife nesting in our roses by
spraying them right in the middle of breeding and nesting season
(spring/early summer).
- I travel for work so
I’m frequently gone for a week at a time and don’t have a lot of time to
spend spraying.
- Our dogs have been
known to eat our roses. In the
fall, they eat the hips they can reach.
I’d rather not poison them, if I can help it.
- We occasionally eat
the roses and hips. Rose hip jelly
tastes a lot like apple jelly and is a good source of vitamin C. I also like sugared rose petals on
yellow cake, or rose petals sprinkled in a salad made of fresh spinach
leaves, mandarin oranges, toasted almonds, spring onions and a red wine
vinaigrette dressing. Mmmmm, tasty.
So now that you know a few excuses (other than I’m lazy and don’t feel
like spraying) let’s discuss how to actually accomplish this and still have a
fairly nice garden. This is possible, despite black spot and our
hot, humid summers in the south-eastern-most tip of North Carolina, but it does
take a little compromise.
Step 1: Buy Liz Druitt’s book, The Organic Rose Garden. It is written for southern gardeners and is
one of the best resources I’ve found on organic rose gardening. It is a superb little book.
Step 2: Your roses will need a really
good home if they are to survive organically.
This means lots of water, a
decent bed rich with organics, plenty of mulch, at least six hours of sunshine
a day, and no root competition.
The number one reason why organic rose gardens fail is that the roses
are simply not given a good home. They
are struggling in the shade of some huge tree, competing for water and food,
and don’t get enough sun. If you correct
this situation, a lot of roses (and other sun loving plants like veggies) can
be grown organically and will shrug off black spot as if it is nothing.
Step 3: Don’t plan on growing a lot of
Hybrid Teas. You are lucky to be living
today when we have David Austin’s beautiful English (shrub) roses which are
remontant (reblooming) and can easily take the place of the Hybrid Tea
roses. There are also the Old Garden
Roses, some of which cannot be sprayed or they will not do well.
There is a list of roses at the end of this article which I have
successfully grown organically in this area.
Now for the nitty-gritty...
Going organic doesn’t necessarily mean not spraying at all. If you have roses that suffer black spot, you
can reduce it using organic methods.
Black Spot
Organic methods will not provide a cure for black spot, so get
over the idea.
What you can do is try to prevent it, or reduce it.
Here are the basic steps to take to reduce black spot.
- Remove all leaf litter
from the roses in the winter (this should include infected leaves which
dropped last summer.)
- Spray with a dormant
oil. Yes. This is
considered “legal” if you are doing organic gardening.
- Provide a thick layer
of mulch.
- During the growing
season, pluck badly infected leaves off the roses to remove the source(s)
of infection.
- Provide enough
water. Water, water, water. Make
sure the water is on the ground,
not on the rose’s leaves if you water in the evening.
- Spray with a mixture
of 1Tbsp Baking Soda per gallon of water, plus horticultural oil. In the summer, you can spray with just
the 1Tbsp Baking Soda per gallon of water, but do it in the morning. This mixture will kill new spores, which
will help prevent infection, but won’t kill existing infection.
- Keep the bed heavily
mulched. We use pine straw. Anything, including grass clipping, will
work. Just note that if you add
grass clipping, you will need to add a source of nitrogen because
decomposition will temporarily rob your roses of nitrogen while the
clippings decay.
Planting
·
Dig a hole twice as wide and twice as deep
as the container of the plant you are planting.
For most roses, dig a hole 36 inches wide and 20 inches deep.
·
Mix the dirt as follows
This “recipe” is built around our soil which is gray
clay, acidic, and lacks almost all nutrients.
We basically have to build the soil.
I prefer to create the bed with this stuff in December/January, let it
sit for a month or two, and then plant roses in it during February.
o 1/3
- 1/2 of the top dirt dug from the hole (move the bottom-most dirt aside)
o Several
cups of Gypsum
o 1-2
cups of Lime (I need this, you may not, depending upon the acidity of your
soil)
o 1/2
cup Epson Salts
o 3-4
cups of Cotton Seed Meal (Alfalfa Meal is better, but occasionally hard to get)
o 1
bag of soil amendment (looks like finely shredded bark)
o 1
bag of mushroom compost
o 2
cups sharp sand
You can add any other soil conditioners you need. Ones I like to include
occasionally are: Kelp Meal, Bone Meal, Blood Meal, etc. If you have a source for horse manure, marry
them or at least get heavily involved so that you can get a constant
supply. If all else fails, pay the guy
to deliver in the fall and spring. Or
start raising dwarf horses.
Now that you are ready...
Once you have prepared your beds for your roses and are
ready to take the plunge, you will need to purchase some roses, or at least
acquire some which stand a good chance of survival.
Personally, I prefer own-root roses, so I buy almost
exclusively from two sources: Roses Unlimited and Chamblee’s. Chamblee’s in particular is my first choice
since they are about half the price of everyone else.
I’ve never had a rose from either of these sources die on
me. They are sent in large pots and the
roses are always in good shape.
Here are varieties I have had very good success with and
seem to have very little problem with disease.
I have focuses mostly on remontant varieties, rather than listing the
once blooming Old Garden Roses.
Bourbons
Souvenir de la Malmaison
This rose stays short-3’ tall, never needs
to be trimmed, blooms constantly, and has exquisite blooms in pale pink. Very fragrant. It is particularly
disease-resistant.
Noisettes
Reve d’Ohr
This is a HUGE rose, so be warned. It is a good climber. It will take over any support unless you keep
it trimmed back. Beautiful pale, buffy
yellow flowers. Blooms constantly. Very
disease-resistant.
Tea
Marie Van Houtte
Very large shrub (6’x6’) with beautiful
creamy white flowers that age to pink.
Blooms constantly. Very disease-resistant.
Duchesse de Brabant
This rose stays fairly compact-4’ tall,
never needs to be trimmed, blooms constantly, and has exquisite blooms in medium
pink. The flowers are shaped rather like
a tulip. Very disease resistant. This was one of Teddy Roosevelt’s favorite
roses and he often wore one on his lapel.
English
Wise Portia
Small, tidy bush. Stays about 3’ tall and never needs to be
trimmed. Gorgeous deep magenta
flowers. Blooms constantly. This is a wonderful rose paired with Souvenir
de la Malmaison.
Lilian Austin
Coral blend, loosely double flowers. Blooms constantly. The form stays short, but it “weeps”. If you have the room for it to sprawl, it is
lovely left as a loose fountain shape.
Otherwise, you can trim back the flexible shoots.
Wife of Bath
This rose stays short-3’ tall, never needs
to be trimmed, blooms constantly, and has exquisite blooms in pale pink. Very fragrant. It is very similar to Souvenir de la Malmaison,
except the flowers are smaller.
Noble Antony
Small, tidy bush. Stays about 3’ tall and never needs to be
trimmed. Gorgeous magenta-red
flowers. Blooms constantly.
St. Swithun
Pale pink globular flowers. Blooms constantly. The form stays medium height, but it
“weeps”. If you have the room for it to
sprawl, it is lovely left as a loose fountain shape. Otherwise, you can trim back the flexible
shoots.
Climber
Single blooms in fire-engine red with a
white center. Glossy green leaves. Large clusters of blooms. Blooms continuously. Extremely
disease-resistant.
And of course, the Gallica as well as many others of the
Old Garden Rose classes do not require spraying and are resistant to black
spot. My favorite Gallica is currently
sold as ‘Sissinghurst
Castle
Good luck and I hope you have success with your rose garden
in the coming year.
And of course, I have to mention that in my Regency mystery, A Rose Before Dying, Ariadne grows all her roses organically.
Monday, July 09, 2012
It's Summer and Time for Roses
I can't resist writing about roses, as you probably figured out in my last blog. :) Gardening is the best way I know to relax and yet accomplish something while your mind broods over your latest novel and what twists you can possibly feed into your story.
This time, I thought I would talk about the Queen of the rose shows: Hybrid Teas.
So...Hybrid Tea roses. These are the classic rose most people today
think of when they hear the word ‘rose’. They are also sometimes called Large-flowered
Roses. It’s the rose you get for your
sweetheart from the florist, and it’s the rose that wins the awards of Queen,
King and Princess in rose shows. There
is a wide variety of color in this rose class, every color except true blue and
black, and they all have large, stiffly petaled flowers and very long stems. They have been the most popular class of rose
for over a hundred years because of their ability to rebloom through the
spring, summer and fall season.
The first Hybrid Tea Rose is considered to be ‘La France ’ which was introduced in 1867 by Guillot,
a Lyons-based firm in France . The parentage is not documented, but it is
thought to be a cross between a Hybrid Perpetual and a Tea Rose. Interestingly, this rose was classed as a
Hybrid Perpetual for many years until the newer Hybrid Tea nomenclature caught
on.
Initial Hybrid Teas were created by crossing Hybrid
Perpetuals with Tea Roses until the twentieth century when more and more Hybrid
Teas were simply crossed with other Hybrid Teas to form new roses.
Because this is such a large class of roses with more
being bred every day, it is nearly impossible to provide an adequate
description of the class since growth, foliage, bloom form, color and fragrance
all differ from rose to rose. With the
exception of the 5-petaled single form of the Hybrid Tea, most are high-pointed
“florist” roses and generally considered their most beautiful in the
half-opened stage of the blossom. This
is in direct contrast to older roses which are most beautiful when fully
opened.
However, it is still fairly safe to provide the following
list of characteristics.
{ Blooms
are carried on long stems, often with a single bloom at the end of the stem.
{ Roses
have high-pointed centers with large, thick petals.
{ New
growth is often reddish tinged.
{ Roses
rebloom fairly well (thanks to their China forbearers).
{ Colors
include the full spectrum of whites, pinks, red, purple, mauve, yellow, orange,
with a variety of blends. The only
colors not available are true blue and black.
{ Disease
resistance varies from highly susceptible to black spot and mildew to very
disease resistant.
{ Size
varies from small bushes up to large climbing forms.
{ Fragrance
varies from none to a rich rose perfume.
There are a great many Hybrid Tea Roses to chose from and
some are even quite healthy when grown organically without sprays.
A small selection of Hybrid Tea Roses that are healthy and can be
grown with organic gardening methods include the following.
{ ‘Dainty
Bess’ is a silvery pink, single rose (5 petals) with beautiful deep red
stamens. It grows between 3-4’ tall and
has a slight fragrance.
{ ‘Peace’
is a famous rose brought to market after WWII.
It’s a beautiful blend of yellow with pink edges and is fragrant.
{ ‘La
France ’
is the rose that started it all, and it is still an excellent garden
plant. The blooms are soft, silvery pink
and it is fragrant.
{ ‘Mister
Lincoln’ is a reliable, dark red rose with a good fragrance and excellent
health. It is also widely
available.
Newer varieties include:
{ ‘Gemini’
which is a pink blend and rated 8.2/very good by the American Rose Society.
{ ‘Moonstone’,
a white rose also rated 8.2.
{ ‘Touch of Class’, an orange pink rose with a
great rating of 9.0.
‘Mrs. Oakley Fisher’
When you have bought a few more roses and planted them all, what should you do? Why, read a book! And if you're a fan of light Regency romances with a bit of humor and mystery, you can settle down with Escaping Notice, the latest in the Archer family series.
Discarded by his betrothed with
a parting sally that “being an earl does not excuse being a bore,” Hugh Castle,
the Earl of Monnow, joins his brother on a relaxing cruise, hoping to forget.
But a storm capsizes their boat, and despite Hugh’s desperate efforts, he can’t
save his brother’s life. Then, when the wreckage reveals evidence of sabotage,
he realizes he was never meant to return to dock. Someone intending to murder
the earl killed his younger brother, instead. Angered and grieving, Hugh
travels to London to enlist the aid of the Second Sons Inquiry Agency in
finding his brother’s murderer.
Helen Archer attended the Earl
of Monnow’s ball in expectation of joining the celebration for his betrothal,
but the event seems destined for disaster. She arrives late, the earl makes no
announcement, and Helen manages to lose the fabled (but cursed) Peckham
necklace her sister reluctantly loaned to her. Unwilling to admit her
carelessness to her sister, Helen rashly decides to return to the earl’s estate
and retrieve it in secret.
When his aunt threatens to send
him to the Earl of Monnow, his purportedly cruel uncle, Edward Leigh-Brown
decides he’s had enough of female interference. He’s going to join the navy and
follow in Lord Nelson’s footsteps to become a military hero. But finding his
way to London is a lot harder for a young boy than it seems, and he’s soon
lost. When he bumps into Miss Helen Archer at an inn, he’s more than happy to
accept a ride in her carriage, even if she seems determined to escort him to an
inquiry agency to hire someone to locate the family he doesn’t want located.
When the three meet in London at
Second Sons, Helen impulsively decides to accompany Hugh to the earl’s home.
They will be disguised as servants and free to pursue their secret goals. Hugh
hopes to uncover a killer, Helen hopes to find her necklace, and Edward just
hopes he can find the opportunity to escape again.
But they are soon engulfed in an
adventure none of them anticipated, and Hugh must hurry to identify who wants
him dead before their deception ends in the death of another innocent.
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