Fair Bianca Austin Rose

Austin Rose

Rosa 'Fair Bianca'

(RO-zuh)

Synonyms: English Rose, AUSca

This Austin rose was introduced in 1982. Not as showy as some of the other Austin roses it seems to grow well and have a good amount of flowers. The fragrance is a little funky but pleasant to me. The petals form an intricate kind of old rose shape. One characteristic I like about 'Fair Bianca' is it doesn’t get too tall. Growing to about 2.5 feet it is nice for the front of the rose garden or mixes well into the border. Like most Austin roses it is very hardy and always seems to pull through the winter with minimal damage.

There are going to be some changes in my personal and professional life coming up. I can’t say anything right now but will try and keep this site up as much as possible.

“Progress is impossible without change, and those who cannot change their minds cannot change anything.”

George Bernard Shaw

Abraham Darby Austin Rose

English Rose

Rosa 'Abraham Darby'

Synonyms: Austin Rose, Country Darby Tree, AUScot, Candy Rain

My rose hunt was successful and I ended up scoring 30 bushes. It is quite a mixture (just like their new garden). Five of the 30 were Austin Roses. They will join a half a dozen other Austin types presently in the garden. 'Abraham Darby' has a slightly weird color but blooms nicely through the season including a couple of great waves in the spring. Since the garden is located on a windy, cold ridge hardiness is important and the Austins seem to be able to withstand the conditions.

Now to get all these planted. Actually moving them around is even a bit of a problem. When the roses were in the back of the pickup you could smell them about 6 feet away. I can’t wait until they get loaded into the enclosed Grand Cherokee. Scented Heaven.

Lucetta Austin Rose

English Rose

Rosa 'Lucetta'

(RO-zuh)

Synonyms: AUSemi, Austin Rose

It seems like it has been awhile since we had a rose photo here. The roses did pretty well despite the weather last season. It was difficult trying to keep them looking fresh with all the rain. The tropical storm in August really did some damage to the flowers and foliage but the plants themselves seem to snapback pretty good.

In the big rose garden we have been adding more and more Austin type English roses. 'Lucetta' has been a bit of a star in that department. My only complaint is the flowers fade to almost white after coming out with a little pink/apricot color. There seems to be either some misnaming going on or the flower color is a little variable.

The disease resistance and the habit of this rose are stellar (like most Austin roses). It was introduced in 1983 and can get quite large if left to its own devices Up to 10 feet tall but we maintain ours at about half that height.

Here are some particulars on 'Lucetta':

Type: Shrub. English Rose

Color: Blush pink fading to almost white

Fragrance: Mild

Petal Count: 9-16 petals. Semi-double.

James Galway English Rose

English Rose

Rosa ‘James Galway’

Synonyms: Auscrystal

Another Austin Rose beauty. This rose has a nice color that gets more intense near the center of the flower and also has a nice fragrance. Like most Austin types it is easy to grow and a well behaved garden citizen.

The cleanup at the Estate continues today and will for several more days. My main strategy is to get the big stuff cut up and removed and then concentrate on doing the fine pruning and staking. It was a little disheartening to see the scale of the damage to the garden. Luckily most of the rare and prized plants seemed to get mercy from nature. I started to keep a list of the plant species that we worked on yesterday but stopped after about 4 pages in my little notebook.

Normally I can kind of say to myself “well that’s nature” and just dive into the work but couple of times yesterday I found myself a little down in the dumps thinking about all the hard work it had taken to get the plants to where they were before the storm. As an example we planted a Sugar Maple (Acer sacc. ‘Commemoration’) about 20 years ago that was just a mail order stick. Several years later we had to transplant it to present location, which it seemed to really love, and it grew into a handsome tree about 40 feet tall. When I saw it on Monday its main trunk was splintered about 8 feet from the ground and it is almost a total loss. One leader looks okay and I am going to try and save it but I don’t think it will ever recapture its former glory. The tree was in peak fall foliage before it got wasted.

Several other gardens we tend to had a lot of damage including uprooted large trees, branches on the roof and power lines and just generally crushed shrubbery. The damage is not always readily apparent and it takes a close inspection to find all of it. We are back to chainsaw heaven today.

Grace Austin Rose

Austin Rose
Rosa ‘Grace’
Synonyms: AUSkeppy
Bred by David Austin, UK, 2001
US Introduction: David Austin Roses Limited (USA), 2005
Parentage: AUSleap × Seedling

This is another great Austin Rose. Although you can’t tell it from this photo it has a beautiful apricot color and a strong fragrance. To me the petal count of 76 is the amazing part. Packed into a relatively small flower all the petals make for a great design. Another beautiful, hardy and disease resistant rose from David Austin.

Since it is Sunday come join us at Today’s Flowers .

Bonus Flower for Sunday. Another black and white rose. This rose was featured on this blog a couple of weeks ago in color. I had another opportunity to shoot it in black and white and it shows a little more drama than the colored one.


Shrub Rose
Rosa 'High Voltage’
Synonym: Baiage

English Shrub Rose

English Shrub Rose
Rosa ‘Alnwick’
Synonyms: Alnwick Castle, AUSgrab

Another in the long list of beautiful roses brought to us by David Austin. This rose is really a nice shade of pink and has a fruity fragrance to go with the color. Here are some facts on Alnwick:

Breeder/Introduction: David Austin (UK) 2001. Introduced by David Austin Roses Limited
Petal Count: 41
Parentage: Seedling × AUSgold
Height: 48 inches (122 cm)

This rose is named after the 700 year old Alnwick Castle, Which some people may recognize as the setting for some of the Harry Potter (The Philosopher's Stone, The Chamber of Secrets) and other movies. The gardens have been restored and look magnificent from the pictures.

For more flower pictures from around the world check out:
Today’s Flowers .

Today’s bonus flower is an Orchid bud.
Asian Corsage Orchid
Cymbidium
(sim-BID-ee-um)

Austin Rose-Molineux

Austin Rose
Rosa 'Molineux'
Synonyms: English Rose, AUSmol

This is another of the long line of beautiful Austin roses. It has a classic color and shape. The warm yellow is a welcome addition to the garden and its medium strong fragrance is also nice. 'Molineux' was introduced in 1994 and one of its parents is my favorite Austin rose ‘Graham Thomas’.

The yellow rose symbolizes friendship and caring. They can be given to good friends to show that you are happy to with their friendship. Yellow roses can also be given as an appropriate symbol of sympathy.

Austin Rose 'Buttercup'

Austin Rose
Rosa 'Buttercup'
Synonyms: AUSband, Buttercup 98
Bred by David Austin, UK, 1998
Parentage: Graham Thomas × Undisclosed

This rose picture was captured at the NYBG rose Garden so I don’t have any personal experience growing it. It is truly a beautiful rose and if I were to see it at the nursery it would probably end up in my cart. It figures that one of its parents is the great yellow Austin Rose ‘Graham Thomas’, which was featured on this site a couple of weeks ago.

This coming week should be fun. Even though it is a little hot out we have a big transplanting job. Just have to add a lot of water, I guess. The plants have to move for some construction and after that is done there will be a new little garden to build. On Thursday we are headed for Cleveland for an old friend’s wedding. They don’t have a photographer so I will be taking a lot of pictures.

Austin Rose Mary

Austin Rose
Rosa 'Mary Rose'
Synonyms: AUSmary
Bred by David Austin, UK, 1983
Parentage: Wife of Bath × The Miller

When we first planted this rose my initial impression was “it is just a another pink”. Over the time it has been the garden it has charmed me with its delicate shades of pink, good blooming habit and nice fragrance. Like most of six or seven other Austin roses in the garden it has performed well and is always a delight when it blooms. It has proved itself to be disease resistant and that is always a big plus.

Of the new roses I purchased this year ‘Mardi Gras’ is doing fantastic. The flowers are almost psychedelic and it has kept producing them. On the other hand ‘Burgundy Iceberg’ has been an epic fail. Yesterday it had to be cut to the ground because a heavy mildew infestation. It has a beautiful color and had quite a few flowers before it went away but it was the only rose out of 180 that had the mildew. I hope to be able to report later in the season that it is back but right now it is on the ‘don’t plant’ list.

Austin Rose ‘Graham Thomas’

Austin Rose ‘Graham Thomas’

While going through the hundred rose photos I took last weekend. I picked these two but didn’t know they were related. The first is the English rose ‘Graham Thomas’, which is named after the great horticulturist. What can you say about a rose that is this color, has a good habit, is free flowering and has a nice fragrance? It is one of my favorite Austin roses.

When I picked out this second picture I did want a rose that had a similar color. Little did I know that ‘Graham Thomas’ was one of the parents of this Pioneer rose. ‘Stephen F. Austin’ had a very unusual color. It was a little pink, a little white and a little yellow all at the same time. It was very intriguing when viewed as a complete bush. This rose was introduced in 2006 by the Antique Rose Emporium and is named after the “Father of Texas”.

Teasing Georgia Yellow Rose

‘Teasing Georgia’ Yellow Rose
Rosa ‘AUSbaker'
David Austin Shrub Rose

Austin Rose - Belle Story

Austin Rose
Rosa 'Belle Story'
Synonyms: Bienenweide, AUSelle

This rose was shot at the NYBG a couple of weeks ago. I just got around to cleaning off the memory card. Although I haven’t grown this Austin rose the culture of quite a few of the other Austin varieties has been pleasurable and rewarding. I would certainly have this rose in my garden. Here are some facts about ‘Belle Story’:

Year of Introduction: 1984
Hybridizer: David Austin, UK
Height: 5 feet
Parentage: (Chaucer x Parade) x (The Prioress x Iceberg)
ARS Color: Light Pink
ARS Rating: 8.9
Petal Count: 35
Fragrant: Yes, Spicy
Class: English Rose

We finally got a little rain from some thunderstorms yesterday. It was very local and some areas didn’t get it. Everything is so dry I am not sure that it helped. I am actually hoping the remnants of Tropical Storm ‘Hanna’ will make it up here. We don’t need the damaging winds but some copious amounts of rain would be welcome. It may hit here on Saturday.

Festival of Roses ~ Day Nine ~ Shrub Roses

'Quietness' a Modern Shrub rose developed by Dr. Griffith J. Buck

Festival of Roses ~ Day Nine ~ Shrub Roses

2007 Digital Flower Pictures.com Festival of Roses Continues

I have shied away from posting a lot of shrub roses because I really don’t deal with them that often. I like them but I guess the one-time bloom thing has probably turned me off a bit. Maybe I should think of them as Rhododendrons, Azaleas and Lilacs; they only bloom once a year, too. All that said I think that shrub roses are growing on me (pun intended). As I have posted before I am really starting to like the David Austin roses and the big shrub roses in my garden have actually been producing some flowers and look like they have a flush of blooms before the frost (it is going to be a race against the clock, however). So this isn’t the place to come for expert advice on caring for your shrub roses, yet. I have a lot to learn about tending them and a short time to do it.

Shrub roses is kind of an all encompassing term when you think about it. Pretty much all roses are shrubs, but the classification is for basically any rose that doesn’t go into any of the other classes. There is such a variety of forms and flowers that it would be difficult to come up with an exact definition. One nice thing about the shrub roses is they are generally hardier.

Here is so more information on Shrub Roses:
Illinois U.

and there is a definition on this page:
Amity Heritage Roses

The first couple of today’s roses were shot at the Peggy Rockefeller Rose Garden. They have an unbelievable collection of shrub roses though a lot weren’t blooming when I was there.


‘Quietness’ facts:
Class: Modern Shrub/Buck Rose
Origin: Dr. Griffith J. Buck, US
U.S. Introduction: Roses Unlimited, 2003
Petal Count: 41
Fragrance: Moderate
Good disease resistance.

This next rose is really a soft pink. The buds on this rose were kind of small but nice and the flowers opened to an average size.. This is another Buck rose which were bred in Iowa. They can stand up to harsh winters and humid summers. There wasn’t much information on this rose but here is the Buck Rose Homepage

'Country Music'

'Country Music'
Class: Modern Shrub/Buck Rose
Origin: Dr. Griffith J. Buck, US
Fragrance: Mild

I couldn’t really talk about shrub roses without having at least a couple of David Austin roses although a lot of people put them in their own class. Here are two that I had photos of. I have featured several other Austin roses over the last couple of months.
David Austin's English Shrub Rose 'Winchester Cathedral'

'Winchester Cathedral' facts:
Class: Modern English Shrub/ David Austin
Origin: David Austin, UK, 1988
Petal Count: Fully Double Blooms
Fragrance: Mild
Parentage: Sport of Mary Rose
Synonyms: AUScat, White Mary Rose, Winchester

'The Shepherdess' another David Austin English rose.
This rose was a nice apricot color and the plant seemed to be a little smaller than most Austins. It is a new rose and there is also a Floribunda rose with this name. I don’t know how they work that out. According to Austin’s website, “The Shepherdess is named after a character in Sir Philip Sidney’s Arcadia, published in 1593”.

Class: Modern English Shrub/ David Austin
Origin: David Austin, UK, 2007
U.S. Introduction: David Austin Roses Limited (USA), 2207
Petal Count: 41
Synonyms: Austwist

Here are the two roses I bought on Saturday and I plan on planting them today.

‘Red Fairy’ a disease resistant Polyantha rose.

‘Bonica’
Class: Modern Shrub
Origin: Meilland International, France, 1982
Petal Count: 17-25
Fragrance: Mild
Parentage: Seed: Rosa sempervirens L. × Mademoiselle Marthe Carron Pollen: Picasso
Synonyms: Bonica '82, Bonica Meidiland, Demon


That is all I have time for today. Tune in tomorrow as the Festival of Roses continues!

Festival of Roses ~ Day Eight

Festival of Roses ~ Day Eight

2007 Digital Flower Pictures.com Festival of Roses Continues

I guess I got my days messed up as I had two Day Sixes. My trip to Long Island was enjoyable and I even bought a few roses. The perennial nursery is starting to sell shrub roses so I picked up three ‘Bonica’. One Fairy Queen (which is a red) and a couple of ‘Seafoam’. I am going to plant them in the borders I am fixing up. I thought that they would make a nice backdrop.

Today I am off in search of a few more rose shots. I am cleaning off some memory cards to take with me. I wanted to wake up at 5:30 am but slept a little later than that so I a little pressed for time. So here are today’s roses.

This first rose is ‘Jardins de Bagatelle’, which is named after the famous gardens in Paris. It is listed as a Grandiflora and a Hybrid Tea rose and it certainly looks to me like a Hybrid Tea.

Jardins de Bagatelle:
Origin Meilland International, France, 1986
Fragrance: Strong
Parentage: Seed: Queen Elizabeth × Elegy, Pollen: MEIdragelac
Synonyms: Karl Heinz Hanisch, Queen Silvia, Sarah

This second rose is a shrub rose named ‘Midnight Blue’. Of course there is no such thing as a blue rose but the color on this flower is fantastic. The flowers are small and borne in clusters although the color more than makes up for that. I would like to do a whole post on shrub roses. They are plants that I am starting to appreciate the beauty of.

'Midnight Blue' considered a mauve blend rose.
Class: Shrub
Origin: Tom Carruth, US, 2004
U.S. Introduction: Weeks Wholesale Rose Grower, 2005
Petal Count: 17-25
Fragrance: Strong, Spicy
Synonyms: WEKfabpur


Since I haven’t featured to many Yellow roses here is the Hybrid Tea called ‘Midas Touch’. It is a deep yellow and grows on a disease resistant bush. The legends of King Midas are well known including his rose garden.

Hybrid Tea 'Midas Touch'
Class: Hybrid Tea
Origin: Jack E. Christensen, US, 1992
U.S. Introduction: Bear Creek Gardens, Inc., 1994
Fragrance: Yes, musk
Parentage: Brandy × Friesensöhne
Synonyms: JACtou


I had this rose labeled as ‘Grande Amore’ but I don’t think that is it. It looks a lot like the Austin English rose ‘Tamora’ but I am not sure. Since I like to keep this place as factually correct as possible lets just call it a beautiful apricot blend rose.

Modern English Shrub Rose 'Heritage'

Modern English Shrub Rose 'Heritage'
Synonyms: Roberta, AUSblush

In celebration of having my blog reviewed in ‘Rose Ramblings’, the monthly newsletter of the San Diego Rose Society, I have decided to post this photo. The newsletter is available by subscription only so there is no link that I can post. I hope some of the members send me some email. I would love to be able to grow roses in Southern California. They have to grow better than here in Connecticut, with its broiling summer heat and suffocating humidity.

The other nice thing that happened to this website was it was awarded a ‘Photo Genius’ award from Mike at Photoxication. The award was created by Ali at A Bit of This and a Dash of the Other! Both Ali and Mike are nice people, people you wouldn’t mind going out with for a few pints at your local pub, although I think Mike drives his motorcycle a little too fast sometimes (just kidding). I am both honored and humbled that he thought my photography warranted this award.



This rose is another winner from David Austin. In some ways it is a bit plain when you consider the way roses are going these days. There is beauty in its simplicity and elegance in its plainness. One consideration I have when talking about roses is the ease of its cultivation. Since I grow this rose in three different rose gardens I can say that it is a very prolific and profuse bloomer. That moves it right up the rose scale in my book. I would recommend this one, although for the back or corner of the garden since it can get quite large. One site I was looking at said it occasionally re-blooms later in the season. In my case it has always re-bloomed, sometimes heavily.

Here are some details about ‘Heritage’:
Introduced: 1984 by David Austin Roses
Height: 4-6 feet (or more)
Fragrance: Strong (Citrus)
Hardiness: USDA Zone 5, at least, reports of Zone 3 and 4
Parentage: Seedling x (Seedling of Iceberg)
Petal Count: 40
Average Flower Diameter: 3.5 inches, double, cupped



I had a nice anniversary yesterday. I figured out it was my 16th, although we have been together for a lot longer than that. We went to a just opened place (we have been there a couple of other times) called Bluu. It is a Sushi/Pizza/High end Burger/Bar that is a little noisy but nice. I am not big on Sushi but did have a couple of California Rolls. The interior and exterior has a changing light show with the lights changing through several colors.



Today I am happy to been invited to an Estate in Greenwich to a big Garden Party. There will be food, drink and flowers which sounds like heaven to me.

Modern Shrub Rose ‘Gertrude Jekyll’ ABC Wednesday

Modern Shrub Rose ‘Gertrude Jekyll’
ABC Wednesday

If you’re here for Wordless Wednesday that post is below this one. Consider joining us for ABC Wednesday. It is open to all.

I always feel a little (tiny, really) twinge of pride when I post a flower that I have grown and photographed. This is growing in the Rose Garden I am tending to on a large farm in South Salem, New York. This little beauty was tucked way in the back but still blooming nicely. There are several large shrub roses planted in the back and before I pruned them they were pretty much snuffing this rose.

I am glad that I uncovered this one, as it is a beautiful clear pink with a luscious very strong fragrance. Another one of David Austin’s English Roses it is a cross between Wife of Bath × Comte de Chambord. I must admit that previously I have turned my nose up on Austin Roses and shrub roses in general. I had been favoring Hybrid Teas but the Grandifloras and Floribundas had been creeping in among my favorites. The Austins have been winning my heart though. As a gardener I should know better than to dismiss classes and types of plants but experience and observation is a great teacher. I had several posts about David Austin’s Roses on this blog.

‘Graham Thomas’, ‘Abraham Darby’ and 'Crown Princess Margareta' are just a few of the beautiful David Austin roses I have been enjoying.

Gertrude Jekyll was a famous garden designer from Surrey, England if you haven’t heard of her. Here is a link to more information on her fascinating life:
Click here.

One thing I learned about Miss Jekyll that I didn't know before was that she was a very accomplished photographer. That must have been tough to do in her day. I have two small connections to Ms. Jekyll. When I lived in Weybridge, Surrey it turns out to be about 30 miles from her area of Surrey. I certainly could see how that would inspire one to be a gardener. The other connection is my parents lived about a half mile from the Glebe House in Woodbury, Connecticut. I am pretty sure that the garden there is the only surviving Gertrude designed garden in the United States. I will have to take a drive up there is weekend.



Okay, in honor of our ABC Mentor, Creator and Guru I am posting this picture. It is Luca, a very special dog. He lives at the farm and visits with us gardeners often. He comes out with a big bluster of barking and teeth but is soon trying to cuddle up to you. He always has an eye on what’s going on but has time to play with your gloves, fetch a stick or just hang out. He is training for herding, which I don’t remember any German Shepherd that I have known actually doing any herding or shepherding. I think him and Wilma would make some beautiful puppies. He is quite handsome and loves to pose for pictures. I took about a dozen of him and all but two came out so it was difficult to pick. I did have to show those ears, though. They are something.



So, 'G' is for Gertrude, German Shepherd, and as Mike pointed out Grand Central



Here is the list for ABC Wednesday:
(I'll post more when I find them.)

mrs nesbitts place
hin's photoblog
tech the man
a bit of this a dash of that
Little Rock Daily Photo
photoxication
Kissing the Dogwood
strolling through Georgia
Ruth's Garden Blog
dwq online
kate isis
bidadlah.com
photography by kml
AVCR8TEUR'S Blog
Salty Dogs
The Modern Goddess
Simply Sage
HeART of the Nest
Gemmas House
author blog
kai

Here is another photo I took in Grand Central on Saturday. Humor me while I work on my Black and White Photography.

Hybrid Tea Rose ‘Sunset Celebration’

Hybrid Tea ‘Sunset Celebration’
Synonyms: Chantoli, Exotic ®, FRYxotic, Jolie Môme ®. Warm Wishes

Here are couple of more from the ‘new’ rose garden I will be taking care of.

‘Sunset Celebration’
Hybrid Tea, Large Flowered (5 inches)
Height: 3 to 6 feet
Fragrance: Mild, fruity
Parentage: Pollen: Seedling × Cheshire Life. Seed: Pot o Gold
Petal Count: 35
Breeder: Gareth Fryer. 1994
Introduced in the US: Weeks Wholesale Rose Grower, Inc. Celebrating the 100 year anniversary of Sunset Magazine

I am looking forward to growing this one as it has won numerous international rose awards. It has a lot of delicate undertones. Here is another rose. It is the David Austin Rose ‘Graham Thomas’ which I featured in it’s own post here.



I am going out to get some pictures today.

Old Westbury David Austin Roses

As I said yesterday Old Westbury Gardens had some interesting David Austin Roses. This was one of them. It doesn’t really show it in this picture but ‘Benjamin Britten’ is a real deep red with a touch of orange as the flower ages. It shows the red but not really the orange highlights. This rose has a great fragrance and a flower that has a deep cup. The plants had nice foliage and were in heavy bloom. Introduced in 2001 by David Austin with a varietal name of AUSencart. Named after the famous English composer, conductor and pianist Benjamin Britten.




This one is Graham Thomas. Named after the British hortculturist Graham Stuart Thomas. It is one of the nicest yellow roses I have ever seen. It has such a deep and warm color when in bud. It can be used as a climber but these were being grown as a shrub rose. Again the plant was loaded with blooms and the flowers had a strong tea fragrance. It appeared to be a vigorous plant with deep green foliage. It was bred by David Austin from Charles Austin X Iceberg seedling and was introduced in 1983.



Varietal name: 'Ausmas'

Modern Shrub Rose 'Lillian Austin'

Modern Shrub Rose 'Lillian Austin'

I went and got my roses yesterday at Pound Ridge Nurseries in Westchester County. It is a real high priced nursery but they have the goods. They really sell some gorgeous stock. As a contractor they give me a slight discount. It didn’t really matter what they were charging at this point. I needed some roses and they had them, nice selections too. I kind of fell into the old trap of buying what had the most flowers and buds for Sunday. I got the following varieties:

Strike it Rich (a 2007 AARS winner. Grandiflora. Yellow)

Moondance (which I featured here)

Pink Travatia (Pink. Romantica® Hybrid Tea. Over 100 petal count. Enormous flowers that look like an old fashioned rose. I got this one because the sign said it was one of the “strongest disease resistant roses”.)

Sheer Magic (another 2007 AARS winner. Can’t really describe the flower color, it is awesome though.)

Rainbow Sorbet (Nice orange, red and yellow rose. Floribunda. Strong fragrance. Petal count 15-20)

These roses are going into the rose garden in front of the house. That is what it turned into anyway. I just started with a few roses and went on from there. Some of the other roses I have in the garden (off the top of my head) are:

Gene Boerner
Peace
Chicago Peace
New Zealand
Day Breaker
Cary Grant
Mr. Lincoln
Chrysler Imperial
Memorial Day
Marmalade Skies
Playboy

One rose called Abraham Darby has just gone crazy this year there had to 50 to 60 flowers on it yesterday. It is a nice rose but even if it wasn’t it be hard to ignore. The roses grow really strong in the bed, my 'Mr. Lincoln' is about 6 feet tall.


I also needed a couple of shrub roses to go with some ‘Pink Knockout’ roses that I had already purchased. I decided on the yellow-orange ‘Tequila’. The Knock out Roses have been sitting around for about 10 days now and they are just silly blooming in the pots.

I didn’t buy the featured rose but it was a nice one. It had a good fragrance and handsome foliage on a stout bush (only gets to 3 feet). It is named after his Mother so I am pretty sure it is a good rose.

Petal Count: 30
Parentage: Aloha x The Yeoman
Breeder/Date: David Austin, U.K., 1973

This guy seemed to like it



For great insect photography visit Mark at The green fingered photographer

English Rose (Rosa 'Crown Princess Margareta')

English Rose
Rosa 'Crown Princess Margareta'

The color of this rose is superb. The way the petals are formed is very interesting. Of all the David Austin Roses I have seen I think I like this one the best. Named after the granddaughter of Queen Victoria, Crown Princess Margareta of Sweden, was an avid and accomplished gardener. Since it was late in the season the plant didn’t look the greatest but it was a bushy shrub type about 5 feet tall. The color really matches the season.