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| Falling in Love |
The doorbell rang with no UPS truck at the curb. I opened the door and there were the mother and daughter smiling, who caught me leaving roses for Mothers' Day last month.
They thanked me all over again, smiling, and gave me the plastic cup back. Attached was a hand-written thank-you.
Our neighbor finished by saying. "Your yard is such a pleasure for everyone to view."
I said, "Wait until the new roses bloom, probably this month. They are leafing out now." They left smiling.
I mention these responses because roses generate so much happiness for so little work. We began leaving them at the chiro's office and added one of their client's to the list. Yesterday we came in time to send a bunch home with the retired agriculture professor. His wife loves roses - she also mailed a thank-you note. He was quite taken by the California Dreamin' rose in the vase - among others. When I saw that one in the catalog last year, I had to grow some.
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| Europeana Floribunda Rose - riveting in the garden. |
Floribunda Roses
I enjoy floribunda roses because they add plenty of color. They usually have very short stems, so they need to be cut with some imagination for the vase. But they can also grow a generous cluster of roses all on one stem.
Our KnockOut roses produced like crazy in their first bloom and will now get pruned back by about 50%. Rain is going to delay that effort.
Ideas
If I were just going to grow a rose hedge for color, I would get a group of floribundas, the same color or contrasting. Starting with KnockOuts only - that is rather unimaginative. Their initial bloom seems to bewitch people into thinking they need no mulch, no pruning, no weeding. When a distant neighbor had a weed growing out of his sad, neglected KnockOut rose, I was happy that his privacy fence hid the tragedy.
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| Mr. Lincoln darkens as it matures, fun to watch open up from the bud, once the five sepals are open. |
Another splash of color would be a group of Mr. Lincoln roses - perfect buds and roses, deep red color, powerful fragrance. Last year I found the new Mr. Lincoln roses trying to grow 8 feet tall.
Older Roses
The brand new roses are fascinating. I would like to have 10 of each. But I have found the hyped roses of today will reveal some weaknesses later. Every rose has its limitations and favorite places to grow. The older roses can be priced at various outlets and are well known for strengths and weaknesses. The new ones are hyped as if they must be ordered at premium prices TODAY or none will be left.
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| Many people still name Peace as their favorite older rose. |