This has been a really good year for rose blossoms. Gardeners who have roses in their landscapes have enjoyed excellent displays that might have resulted from the combination of drought conditions followed by timely rains. Perhaps botanists and meteorologists will collaborate to track the progression of weather effects and rose blooms.<\/p>\n
The notorious \u201csome people\u201d have announced that the challenges of rose cultivation exceed the value of these plants in the garden, but there are still plenty of dedicated fanciers of the rose and public rose gardens to defend the genus. The vigor of the American Rose Society demonstrates the continuing appeal of roses.<\/p>\n
Hybrid tea roses are enduring favorites for most rose lovers, but value can come from comparing examples of different species. For example, compare rebloomers, mostly modern roses, with once-bloomers, many of which are ancient roses, e.g., Gallica, Damask, Alba, Centifolia, Moss, China, Portland, Bourbon and Hybrid Perpetual Roses.<\/p>\n
Numerous roses bring seasonal color to my garden. Most are hybrid teas, including several David Austin roses.<\/p>\n
![\"Rose](\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/ongardening.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/05\/Rose-Graham-Thomas.jpg?resize=225%2C300\")
My favorite among these is \u2018Graham Thomas\u2019, a yellow classic climbing rose, selected by and named after the English rosarian and author of several books on roses. This vigorous repeat bloomer occupies a prominent spot next to my house.<\/p>\n
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Another favorite is \u2018Dortmund\u2019, which is a highly rated climber that produces dark, glossy foliage and clusters of single, white-eyed, red flowers, borne freely from summer to autumn. This plant grows on a gate under a very large pittosporum; the rose does well but surely would do better in full sun.<\/p>\n
It is now time to deadhead the repeat bloomers, to stimulate the\u00a0development of a second flush of blooms. This should be done soon after the blossoms fade, to maximize the time for new growth and, incidentally, to deny nesting opportunities for certain insects, e.g., earwigs, sow bugs, thrips.<\/p>\n Rosa Graham Thomas deadheaded<\/p><\/div>\n Deadheading generally is done just above the first set of five leaves. It could be done lower on the stem, to the second five-leaf set, or even to a seven-leaf set, when the plant needs shaping. After all\u00a0the blooms are spent, leave the plant to develop rose hips for winter display.<\/p>\n Once-bloomers need not be deadheaded as soon as blooms fade because that won’t produce additional blooms. Deadheading once-bloomers in late June, however, will maximize the time the plant has to produce many new buds for the next season. If you like to see colorful rose hips in the garden, leave the once-bloomers on their own through to late winter.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Deadheading your roses now is a timely investment for a rewarding yield in the next season.<\/p>\n ***<\/p>\n For information,\u00a0visit the website of the Santa Cruz Baroque Festival<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" This has been a really good year for rose blossoms. Gardeners who have roses in their landscapes have enjoyed excellent displays that might have resulted from the combination of drought conditions followed by timely rains. Perhaps botanists and meteorologists will … Continue reading ![\"Rosa](\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/ongardening.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/05\/Rosa-Mulligani.jpg\")
<\/a>Among my once-bloomers is Rosa mulligani, one of the largest climbing\/rambling species that was the center of Vita Sackville-West\u2019s iconic white garden at Sissinghurst Castle, in England. This rose, growing on my backyard fence, produces a cloud of white blossoms, with branches reaching up to twenty feet to the left and to the right. Roses, like apples, produce blossoms and fruit best on horizontal branches, so this is fine placement for any climber.<\/p>\n<\/a><\/a>You can see a fine collection of eighty old garden roses and shrub roses at the Santa Cruz Baroque Festival\u2019s \u201cMusic in the Garden\u201d fundraiser on Sunday, May 22nd<\/sup>. This exceptional event offers opportunities to enjoy a majestic private garden in Soquel and performances by harpist Jesse Autumn (shown) and Anak Swarasanti\u2019s Gamelan orchestra, and to support the ongoing contributions of the Baroque Festival.<\/p>\n