SOME OLD ROSES

I've spent the week deadheading.  If you grow a lot of roses no doubt you've been doing the same.  Mr B has Covid and so has been at home all week and is helpfully able to point out all the roses that need deadheading, in case I hadn't noticed.

The theme this week is Old Roses and I'm starting off with a short climber - Blush Noisette.  I know last week I asked if anyone knew of a rose which is healthy, perfumed, repeat flowering, and Grahame added thornless to the list.  Well - here it is...

It dates back to the Eighteenth Century according to Peter Beales or to a rather more precise 1817 according to David Austin.  I've seen it covering a single story wall before and it looked rather lovely.  Here it is growing up an obelisk and has reached about 5ft after 4 years.  It's not supposed to get much taller than 7ft.

I had to have one Moss Rose in the garden for their curiosity value.  I chose William Lobb for its great slatey purple colour.  This one has been in for a few years and it's still rather spindly.  Planting it in the shade of a large Silver Birch is setting it a challenge, but one I'm sure it can rise to.  So with this one we get health and scent, but it only flowers once and it is a thorny one indeed.  It's worth growing though for that mossy growth on the buds.

Introduced in 1855, the year that Dickens 'Little Dorrit' began to be serialised, though you'd have to wait until 1857 to read the final chapter. I think the Victorians liked horticultural oddities like this,

My next rose is 'Maiden's Blush' according to the label, although we know it's really called 'Cuisse de Nymphe', though why have we Brits gone all coy when 'Sexy Rexy' hasn't changed its name?

This one dates back to the fifteenth century, the time of the Wars of the Roses.   It's taken some years for this one to get going, but it's flowered really well this year.  It is in a partly shaded position and is a mid height (4ft or so).   It smells wonderful.

It's one of the Alba roses, a group of very old roses in shades of pale pink and white.  Other ones I grow are Queen of Denmark, Chloris, Felicite Parmentier and Celestial which I talk about below.  The Albas can take some shade, so I've gone for them in a big way as part of the Rose garden is shaded by the huge oak tree. 

My next selection is Rosa 'Prince Charles' a Bourbon rose from 1842 described as Tyrian Purple by Trevor White Roses.  Who could resist?  I'm growing it over a frame as its a tall rather lax shrub and it needs some support.  It's beautifully perfumed and is growing well in a shady spot.  It flowers just the once but the flowers last well.

Another purple one next - Cardinal de Richelieu.  It's been in a couple of years and has grown rather unevenly and laxly, but I'm sure it will sort itself out in time.  1847 was the year of introduction for this one, which was the year Wuthering Heights was published.  If I only had room for one out of these two I would choose Prince Charles.

My last one is the Alba rose Celestial.  This one has a slightly more open centre so you can see that central boss of stamens.  It dates from eighteenth century Holland or a very precise 1759 according to David Austin. the year the British Museum was founded.  I ought to explain that references to what happened in the year that each rose was first introduced are mainly for my benefit, though I hope you may have enjoyed them too.  It just helps me visualise just how old these old roses are, and I find that fascinating.  Celestial is growing very tall indeed, and I've placed it right at the back of a very deep border, and like some of the others I think it is only just getting into it's stride after four years.

There you have it  - Six old roses on Saturday, although there could have been many more.  Thank you for reading, and don't forget all the Six on Saturday posts can be found on Garden Ruminations where Jim collates all our garden ramblings.  See you next week.