The Beacon February 2011 - Beacon Parish of Ditchling, Streat ...

Beacon Parish Coffee Morning
Thursday 24 th February at 10.45 am
at Southwind, Streat
Thorn in my Side
Valentine’s Day approaches when red, scentless cut roses that seem to wilt
within a day, will be bought in their millions. I cannot be the only person who
would prefer receiving a rose bush that will produce magnificent scented blooms
for the entire summer.
Bare-rooted plants are still available now and are much cheaper than potted
roses, which of course means that you can buy more! A newly planted single
rose does not pack much punch in a border. Try planting three of the same
variety, very closely together. When flowering it will look like a single plant and
will give impact in its first year.
It is easy to be seduced by a rose in picture, but I would strongly recommend
that you research your subject thoroughly before committing to purchase. Roses
come in all shapes, sizes, colours ….. and some have appalling thorns. There are
roses that are more problem-free than others. I would never purchase a rose
that only blooms once a year, has no scent, or is prone to “rose balling” (a
condition that prevents a flower from opening).
Roses in themselves are remarkably ugly plants. From the neck down, they
really need disguising and their ankles are truly awful. Surround them with
perennials that provide the modesty they need, the size of which will be
determined by the height of your rose. Climbers obviously need to have clouds
of planting compared to shorter shrub roses. There is no mystery about pruning.
In late autumn, reduce the length of stems by about a third and remove any
deadwood. Then in the spring when the sap starts to rise, look out for buds
starting to swell and prune hard to encourage the production of plenty of new
stems.
Any man reading this article who has not organised a fabulous weekend in Paris
for his beloved, would do well to start looking at rose websites right away!
Karoline Baird
30