“And the day came when the risk to remain tight in a bud was more painful than the risk it took to blossom”

At last the roses are waking up and opening in a blaze of colour. And the first roses to peep through the greenery are the Lady of Shallot roses; rich apricot petals opening from deep orange buds, glowing in the garden, especially in this perfect Spring weather. The chalice-shaped blooms were right on queue for our weekend visitors.

Apart from providing an alluring display, The Lady of Shallot Rose has a soft tea rose scent reminiscent of spiced apples, and what a colour!

Spring makes its own statement, so loud and clear that the gardener seems to be only one of the instruments, not the composer.”
Geoffrey B Charlesworth

This rose is one of my favourites not only because of the charming roses it produces but also because of the versatility in the way it can be grown. If left natural and not aided by ties or stakes it will become a robust bushy shrub, or it can be attached to a trellis, obelisk, pillar, post, fence, or grown en masse as a hedge.

Previously I’ve grown Lady of Shallot in large terracotta pots that were a welcome sight at the back door so, these stunning roses were my constant companions and easily nurtured and watered daily. In return I was rewarded with charming shaped, orange, ethereal blooms. In the new garden they are positioned in centre view of a lounge room side window so, are again a constant source of delightful colour from inside or in the garden.

The Lady of Shallot Rose has been around since 2007 and was bred by David Austin in the UK. It is an easy rose to grow and has reasonably good disease resistance, although I’ve had spider mites and blackspot on mine at times They may require some attention from time to time. The foliage is mid-green, and the rose will do well in any soil type or position if it receives water and sunshine.

“Each garden has its own surprise.”
Susan Allan Toth

The Lady of Shallot roses in the garden are both bare root roses this year and roses transplanted from large pots into the ground, which they seem to love. I have left them to reign free and grow into sprawling shrubs in a protected sheltered but, sunny position.

The other reason ( if we needed one) is, I love this rose because of the mythical story of her namesake from the Alfred Tennyson poem, and the Pre-Raphaelite paintings by John William Waterhouse.

The end of October marks a transition from winter into full Spring. The early blooms of the Camellias, Magnolias, Rhododendrons, Cherry Blossoms, Daffodils, Daphne and Clematis have come and gone and it is time for the summer roses, and perennials.

Greeting me early this morning was Rosa Father of Peace (‘Meitroni’) sometimes called ‘Frances Meilland Rose’ -the French rose breeder who created The Peace Rose – the world’s most favourite rose. Do not be fooled by the soft pink delicate appearance of this rose, it is actually extremely hardy, vigorous, and totally disease free with an enticing rich fruity scent.

In my experience in the farm garden, Father of Peace Rose never succumbed to problems of disease or pests. Quite the contrary, it grew handsomely tall to between 8-12 feet hence, the reason it was not transplanted but planted fresh as a bare root rose this year. The rose features 60-65 petals in a cup formation with semi-glossy very dark green foliage. and the blooms are extremely large, perfectly formed with many many softest shell pink petals reminiscent of fine china tea cups.

There is no spot of ground, however arid, bare, or ugly, that cannot be tamed into such a state as may give an impression of beauty and delight.
Gertrude Jekyll

The hardiness, disease resistance and vigour of Rosa Father of Peace is quite unusual for a Hybrid Tea rose. The rose is the recipient of numerous awards; winner of the ADR award in Germany in 2008; a certificate for overall hardiness and appearance after being monitored for three years in various gardens with differing climates. Also, awarded the All American Rose Selections, the Biltmore International Rose Trials and the Portland Rose Society Gold Award.

“A rose is an argument. It proclaims the triumph of beauty over brutality, of gentleness over violence, of the ephemeral over the lasting, and of the universal over the particular. The same rose bursts into bloom on the North Cape and in the Sahara desert.“
Alain Meilland

The Blushing Pierre de Ronsard Rose is flowering too, and appears to love, not only the cooler climate, but also, the sheltered position within our courtyard. It was transported to the new garden in this tall terracotta pot and I decided not to plant it out this season. The position is a sheltered corner of the courtyard and so far it is exceptionally healthy, with vibrant, glossy foliage and huge buds unfolding more each day. This is a great example of how a more protected position with plenty of sunlight in a cooler climate will create an exquisite rose. When grown at the rural garden it always looked a little sunburnt.

Blushing Pierre de Ronsard rose is part of the Renaissance – Romantica® collection bred by Meilland International in France in 1987. The idea was to bring the timeless old-world charm to modern roses. What a beautiful rose, another of the first roses to bloom this year.

The Pierre de Ronsard Rose has opulent, seductive, heavy blooms that open from these pale soft green buds. It opens pink with creamy white outer petals and a soft pink centre. At full bloom the flowers are cupped shape and pink dominates with glossy foliage. The rose has a light tea rose fragrance and will produce blooms all season if dead-headed regularly.

Flowers are the music of the ground from earth’s lips spoken without sound.”
Edwin Curran

Who was Pierre de Ronsard? He was a 16th-century poet born from 1524 to 1585 and known as The Prince of Poets, which adds a romantic sense to this magnificent popular rose. The World Federation of Rose Societies awarded Pierre de Ronsard rose the World’s Most Popular Rose in 2006.

Be like a rose; no matter how many thorns you encounter in life, bloom.”
Matshona Dhliwayo

Mme Isaac Pereire Rose is impressive in colour, size and vitality, despite growing in a large pot and as yet not attached to a trellis. Like all roses Mme Issac Pereire likes full sun but will tolerate light shade. It was bred by Armand Garcon 1876 in France, and was introduced in Australia by C. F. Newman and Sons in 1894. It is a classic Old Bourbon Rose with intense fragrance and many large blooms. I’ve counted over sixty buds on our potted Mme Pereire Rose which will also set hips if not deadheaded towards the end of summer.

Which is loveliest in a rose? Its coy beauty when it’s budding, or its splendor when it blows?
George Barlow

Armand Garçon named this rose ‘Le Bienheureux de la Salle’ then it was renamed in 1881 to Rosa Madame Isaac Pereire. Our Australian suppliers call this rose a climber but it can be left as a large sprawling shrub growing 2 – 3 metres tall by 120 wide or trained onto a structure as a classic climber. Once climbing roses are attached to a trellis and tied down horizontally the long canes will shoot up vertically and cover quickly.

Nature generously supported the garden with four days of rainfall, last week and now sunshine, mild temperatures and clear blue skies are the norm. I always welcome rain and consider it a great help in establishing the new plantings: Nagami Cumquat trees planted in Cerulean Blue pots with Lavender shrubs in the Mediterranean garden. An old Dutch Agapanthus called Agapanthus Pallidus from Lambley Nursery that flowers in Silvery Blue amongst other new finds. These were also just in before the rain began.

Adding to the excitement of Spring in a new garden are the white balls of the European snowball bush, Viburnum Sterile commonly called Eastern Snowball Viburnum. The brilliant flower heads begin apple green and age to luminous white. This is one of the oldest viburnums that dates back to the 16th century, when it was called “sambucus rose.”

“No occupation is so delightful to me as the culture of the earth, and no culture comparable to that of the garden.”
Thomas Jefferson

This morning when I walked out into the garden I was excited to see the Scentimental Rose almost fully in flower and lots of buds about to open. Now, this one is an outstanding rose not only due to the unique splashes of colour on the petals but, once the season starts it will never be out of bloom. It has a sensational fragrance hence the name Scentimental.

Scentimental Rose in the cooler climate garden.

There is a remarkable difference in these two roses yet they are the same variety growing in different climates. The intensity of the sun deepens the colour dramatically. It will be interesting to see over Summer if this rose gains more colour as the weather heats up.

Rosa Scentimental is a Modern Floribunda Shrub Rose bred by Tom Carruth, USA, 1999. The prolific number of buds open to reveal stripes of burgundy-red and creamy white petals so, no two flowers are ever the same. It grows very shrubby with plenty of large dark green leaves which are serrated and very leathery- always a sign of a strong healthy variety of rose.

At the end of winter it is always inspiring to see and feel the presence of flowers whether outdoors or a glimpsed from a window or driving by. Our country town is picturesque at the moment. There is a definite quickening of pace in residents and visitors alike because Spring lifts the spirits with the abundance of colour and perfume.. The magic of Spring brings lavish growth on trees, shrubs, grasses, lush foliage, weeds and beautiful flowers. Everything is growing well and there are a few surprises too; the most stunning this week is a row of Purple Iris along the driveway.