Date: Fri 02-Apr-1999

Publication: Bee

Author: JAN

Quick Words:

roses-home-&-garden-Johnson

Full Text:

Home and Garden / LIBRARY

with cut: The Rose: A Beautiful Thing To Behold

B Y J AN H OWARD

Now is the time to start planning for a rose garden.

Roses have held a special place in the lives of many people and in history.

A gift of roses is always welcome, whether for a birthday, anniversary or

other special occasion. They are used for corsages and in bridal bouquets.

The rose is reported to be the most popular bloom used on household items,

such as silver, china and wallpaper. Four states, the District of Columbia,

and England have named the rose as their official flower.

Legends and traditions surround the rose. Ancient historical accounts are

filled with references to rose gardens. It seems that wherever civilization

has spread, roses have gone with it.

The Greek poetess, Sappho, wrote about the rose in the sixth century BCE, and

Roman women of the first century were said to take pleasure in arranging roses

for flower shows.

Roses have symbolized war and peace. England's War of the Roses started in

1455 between the House of Lancaster, symbolized by a red rose, and the House

of York, with its white rose. A red and white rose memorialized the

settlement.

It has been said that the hybrid Peace Rose came to the US from France on the

last plane before France fell in 1940 and that bouquets of it were presented

to delegates at the first United Nations conference in San Francisco.

Roses are beautiful, and lovely to receive and to view. But for gardeners,

roses demand more attention than other flowers in the garden.

"This is not an easy climate to grow roses in," Tom Johnson, owner of

Lexington Gardens on Church Hill Road, said recently.

"The rose garden in Elizabeth Park in Hartford is a good place to visit to see

which roses do best in Connecticut," he said. He said the best time to visit

the garden is around the second week in June when most hybrid tea roses are

flowering.

Types of Roses

Roses are classified as hybrid teas, floribundas, grandiflora, climbers, and

multiflora, Mr Johnson said.

Hybrid tea roses are prized for their shape and beauty, but are more

susceptible to winter damage and diseases, he noted. Floribundas and

multiflora roses tend to be more hardy as are climbing roses and rosa regosa.

Mr Johnson said the trend is to develop hardier and more disease resistent

versions of roses for growing in northern areas, such as the William Baffin of

the Explorer series.

Disease resistance and fragrance is becoming more important to rose growers,

he said.

"If people can find the rose they want, they will definitely go to the disease

resistant variety," he said.

David Austin English roses are similar to old fashioned cabbage roses, he

noted. They are fragrant, available in a wide selection of colors, and more

hearty and disease resistant.

Mr Johnson said Lexington Gardens carries an extensive line of roses,

including the David Austin variety. Roses are available for purchase the third

week in April. They are classified according to cane size and the size of the

plant.

He said a buyer will get a much better value when purchasing a number one

rose, which usually would be priced from $12 to $18. "The satisfaction is

greater than with lesser roses," he said.

Planting A Rose Garden

Now is the time to decide where you will plant your rose garden.

The rose garden should be located where roses will receive at least six hours

of sun a day, Mr Johnson said. Roses also should be protected from excessive

wind during the winter and have good air circulation.

Soil in the area where you plan your garden should be tested, Mr Johnson said.

Roses prefer a well-drained, loamy soil that is properly drained and

fertilized.

Once the ground is workable in the spring, roses can be planted, he said.

Roses should be planted about 3« feet apart, so they receive good air

circulation around them, according to Mr Johnson.

It also is not advisable to put other plants around them, he added.

Larger roses, such as the David Austin, should be planted in the background,

he said. He suggests planting roses of similar size, using miniature roses as

borders or in containers.

Care of Roses

Roses are prone to diseases, such as black spot and powdery mildew, Mr Johnson

said.

Black spot is more difficult to control and is spread from the soil, he said.

Powdery mildew, a fungus disease, is air borne, he said. It occurs most often

when the days are warm and the nights cool and air circulation is poor.

Mr Johnson said using a commercial rose spray will help prevent both diseases.

They are more easily prevented than cured.

The roses should be sprayed every 10 days, starting in early to mid-spring.

Insects, such as Japanese beetles and aphids, can also be a problem, he said.

Aphids appear in late May and are an ongoing problem in the summer.

"Insecticide should take care of them," Mr Johnson said. Some gardeners also

put beetle traps in adjacent gardens to attract and trap them.

The principle reason gardeners become disappointed with their roses is because

they don't start a spray program early enough, according to Mr Johnson.

Roses are heavy feeders, he said. The plants should be fed with rose foods

from early spring through mid-August.

They also require a constant supply of water. Mr Johnson recommends a slow

soaking several times a week.

Roses should be lightly pruned in late fall to shape them and to prevent

splitting, Mr Johnson said. They should be repruned in the spring when the

buds are expanding. When pruning, take out the spent blossoms, he added.

Roses should be protected during the winter because temperatures below ten

degrees can kill the canes.

Many roses are grafted and should be mounded by three to four inches of soil

to protect the graft during the winter, he said. Using rose cones eliminates

the need to hill up around the graft. A rose cone sits on top of a rose and

protects it against wind and the southwest sun of winter, which can split the

bark.

Burlap can also be used to protect the rose plant in addition to mounding.

Roses do require extra effort, but can be very rewarding, Mr Johnson said.

Buying quality plants, properly planting and caring for them, and protecting

them from disease and insects will have its rewards, because as Mr Johnson

said, "A cut rose is a beautiful thing to behold."