Somehow I was put on a list for rose catalogs, and they are coming in. Edmunds, Jackson and Perkins, Wayside Gardens, and roses in the various seed catalogs. One arrived that featured all the old-time roses that some love to plant.
Rather than extol the classic roses of the past, the catalog seemed to delight in running down hybrid tea roses, my favorites. No sale there. I like "spindly plants," another name for long stems. I enjoy repeat blooming, not just once a year. I had a rugosa rose once, the meanest thing on earth, covered with prickles rather than roses. Someone gave it to me, free - I wonder why.
Tree roses have great appeal - and cost. I might buy one at the end of the season, if offered for $10. The $50 price tag is due to the extra labor to create them. If you think Double Delights and Peace roses disappear fast, try them on standards. They will not be among the $10 leftovers. It will be more like Desert Mistake Tree Rose - or Purple and Black Tree Rose. But still - worth a try again.
Some say, "Plant roses in threes and fives," Those experts probably work for the rose companies. Roses can be priced low in larger groups. But - have you noticed - roses never clash in an arrangement. No matter what colors are put together, they look glorious.
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| Bella Roma - yes, fragrant too. |
All my roses dollars were used up when I saw two more kinds that I wanted - well, maybe next year. Mrs. Ichabod approved one for later - Bella Roma. I will not even mention the other one - OK - Summer Surprise.
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| Summer Surprise |
But I learned this - introduce an irresistible purchase slowly, gradually, subtly. If all goes well, Mrs. Ichabod will say, "Did you buy a Bella Roma yet? I hope some are left."
As everyone knows, half the enjoyment is studying the lists, comparing the strengths and weaknesses, counting spaces, anticipating watering, and building more compost. True gardening browsing is a year-around endeavor, the best time being in winter when no weeds grow and no plants fail. Maybe I can capture rainwater from my two gutters and save that for real boosts for the roses.
Rose DNA and Creation
What continues to dazzle me is the vast library of rose DNA they shape and move around with hybridizing. Roses were great but odorless. Boom, they created new varieties with color and fragrance galore. But where does all this come from? The data was built into the rose at the very beginning. "Nothing that was created was created apart from Him."
The software of each plant, microbe, and soil creature works to perfection, and yet they are inter-dependent on each other. Software is not exactly the right term, but it comes close to describing what happens. Temperatures call into action three different types of bacteria, which appear when needed.
Earthworms will mix and improve compost, but only when the time is right. If they entered the fray too early, they would melt in the heat of the early stage of composting. Human drivers head into storms heedless of the danger, but earthworms are wiser and more careful.
All of this points to Creation, which is more astonishing at the microbe level than at the plant level, which is beyond comprehension.
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| Tree or standard roses are doubly spliced to add height and drama to the flowers. |