They are decorative, functional, long lived, have innumerable varieties and above all are amongst the easiest of plants to grow and maintain.
Judicious mixing of the various forms around your garden or yard such as creepers, shrubs, ramblers, climbers, hedges or just as beds of Hybrid Teas or Floribundas in standard or bush form will add extra interest to a colorful display.
Fossil remains show that roses were established in most of the temperate zones of the northern hemisphere before man evolved and the plant developed naturally from a small shrubby bush into a variety of shapes and habits.
These are the wild roses that are still grown in formal gardens today and there are over 150 varieties of this true species.
Virtually all grow single flowers each with five petals.
Gardeners from as early as the fifteenth century in England and quite possibly many centuries earlier began to recognize new shapes and colors with Rosa Gallica, imported from the middle East around the twelfth century, believed to be the parent from which all European varieties are descended.
Their were about fourteen of these earlier varieties that appeared naturally in the form of sports; but little more development in Europe took place until the sixteen and seventeen hundreds when the nobility and other wealthy land owners began to construct formal gardens.
The ’sports’ or chance offshoots from the parent plant bearing a different colored or shaped flower were then propagated by grafting, budding or planting cuttings to continue the new variety.
The next stage recognized by gardeners was to cross breed the different shapes and colors to produce even more varieties and this has continued to this day with more than a hundred new varieties appearing each year, only a few of which go on to enjoy lasting popularity.
Breeding new varieties of roses has become a sophisticated and scientific art for professional growers and nurserymen but there are thousands of enthusiastic amateurs worldwide most of whom are using the tried and tested historical methods to produce their dream hybrid, and sometimes they are successful!
It is easy to see why the rose has such an enthusiastic following as no other plant has any where near the variety of colors, flower and plant shapes and all round versatility of this ancient plant.
Select plants from a reliable source.
The roots should appear fibrous and not look dried out and the stems and shoots a healthy green.
As a beginner it is best to seek out your suppliers advice and choose hardy disease resistant varieties, there are plenty about with a full range of colors.
I would avoid standards and climbers and start with straightforward HTs and Floribundas in shrub form for the first season or two and by then you will have the knowledge and experience to progress to the more esoteric varieties.
It is imperative to prepare the soil in advance of planting.
Pages: 1 2
{ 1 trackback }
{ 0 comments… add one now }