The Rose

“What’s in a name? That which we call a rose
By any other name would smell so sweet.”
Shakespeare, Romeo and Juliet, act II, sc.ii

The rose evokes more passion and romance than any other flower. Roses are the symbols of love, beauty, war, and politics. According to fossil remains, the rose has been with us more than 35 million years, and 150 species have spread throughout the Northern Hemisphere, to Alaska, to Mexico, to northern Africa, to China, and beyond.

Roses are available all year around, and they usually have a vase life of 3-7 days, depending on how they are prepared. As soon as the florist receives her roses, she should recut the stems under water. You don’t want the stems to dehydrate. Then remove the lower ½ of foliage and thorns. Condition the roses in a preservative solution at 32-33 degrees F. and around 90-95% humidity for several hours before using. You may store the roses in a cooler under the same conditions for up to 7 days. Conditioning in the dark reduces bent neck, and conditioning in low ph solution aids in solution uptake. Change the solution every 1-2 days-and be sure to keep your containers clean! If roses are shipped dry or suffer from bent neck or wilting, use a citric acid solution.

General planting and growing instructions:

When you are ready to plant your roses, you have several options: bare root, containerized, grafted, and various grades. Select the variety you want according to the size of your garden and the growing conditions. Roses need full sunlight, good air circulation, and well-drained soil. Having lots of organic matter doesn’t hurt, either.

Bare-root Roses

If you get the bare root varieties, you should wait to as close to planting time as possible. They can be planted (in the North) as soon as the soil can be worked in spring, or (in the South) in the fall. If your roses arrive early, be sure to keep the roots moist, and keep the plants in a cool, dark place.

Before you plant the bare-root roses, soak them in water for 8 to 12 hours. If the canes are dehydrated, place the entire plant under water. After soaking, trim off the damaged or diseased roots. Botrytis is a gray mold that is commonly found on roots and canes that have been stored for a while. If you see this mold, try soaking the plants in water and the fungicide Daconil.

Be sure to prune your roses back to 3 to 5 canes, and cut each cane back to 3 to 5 buds. The smaller canes should be removed.

Planting holes should be dug wide enough and deep enough to comfortably hold the roots. Place the rose plant on a cone-shaped mound of soil in the center of the hole. Fill the hole with soil and water. Be careful not to tamp the soil or you will damage the root structure.

For maximum buds, pile the soil around the canes up to 8 to 10 inches. This called “sweating.” In 2 or 3 weeks, new growth with appear, and the soil can be gently washed away. Do not disturb the new growth. Sweating is done only with newly-planted bare-root roses, and it is done only the first year.

Potted Roses

Potted roses are the easiest to plant because the roots are in this ball of soil, and the plant is already growing. When you have the planting hole ready, tap the container on its side to loosen the soil, and then ease the root ball out. Place the root ball in the prepared hole and refill it with soil and water. You don’t have to sweat potted roses.

No matter which variety you choose, you need to follow a few simple procedures if you want your roses to be healthy and beautiful. Full sun is good; it helps to dry the leaves quicker and reduces diseases. For the best results, prepare your planting beds as soon as possible, and set your plants about 24 inches apart.

Planting Procedures

1. The planting hole should be 1 ½ times the depth of the size of the root
2. In the planting hole combine peat moss, cow manure, and organic top soil. Add the correct amount of fertilizer-nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium in a 3-1-2 mixture.
3. The soil around the root structure should be left about two inches above the ground level. The soil will sink as it settles.
4. Firm the soil gently around the roots and water thoroughly.
5. Mulch the plant with about 2 inches of cypress, pine bark, or eucalyptus. This will protect the roots, control weeds, and retain moisture.
6. For the first 2 to 3 months, check the rose to make sure it is getting enough moisture. When the plant settles, it will require routine watering. . Roses need a good soaking once a week and more often during the dry season. They will also require routine fertilization with a 12-4-8 fertilizer.

Use a general purpose rose spray or dust to prevent insects and diseases. Black spot and mildew are the most common diseases, and plant mites and aphids are the most common insects.

Rosa

The rose is of the genus Rosa, and there are more than a hundred species of wild roses mostly from the temperate regions in the northern hemisphere. They are generally thorny bushes or climbers. Most are deciduous, but a few are evergreen.

The flowers usually have 5 petals (a rare few have four), and are white, pink, yellow, or red. The fruit of the rose is called a rose hip. The open-faced roses are more attractive to bees and other insects, so they are more readily pollinated. These plants are more apt to grow hips. Many domestic roses have petals that are closed too tightly to provide access to pollination, and consequently seldom grow hips. The hips are mostly red, but some are dark purple and black. Hips from some species, such as the Dog Rose and Rugosa Rose, are very rich in vitamin C and are used to make herbal tea and jelly. Some larger birds like to eat them while smaller birds eat the seeds. Deer like roses, too, in spite of their thorns.

Roses are subject to certain diseases such as 1) rose rust fungus, which can defoliate the plant, 2) rose black spot, which makes circular black spots on the leaves in summer, and 3) rose mildew.

Perfume

Rose perfumes are made from rose oil, which is obtained by steam-distilling the crushed petals of roses. The technique originated in Persia and spread through Arabia and India. Today about 70 to 80% is produced in Bulgaria. It takes about 2,000 flowers to produce one gram of rose oil.

Cultivated Roses

Roses are classified in one of three major groups: wild roses, old roses, and modern roses.

Wild roses are what the name says; roses that grow in the wild. These are usually red, pink, or white, and have a sweet scent.

Old roses are usually what we think off as the garden roses our grandmothers grew. Some were bushes and some were climbers. They filled the garden with vibrant colors, and on warm sunny mornings their scent perfumed the air. These roses were believed to have been brought to England by the Romans. Rome had large public rose gardens, and the popularity of the roses seemed to follow the political climate. After the Middle Ages, with the rise of commerce, horticulture began to flourish. The Netherlands became the center of horticulture. In England, certain noble families used flowers as their symbol. The House of York used the white rose, and the House of Lancaster used the red rose. The two families were continually fighting, and this time in history became known as the “War of Roses.” France loved roses also. In fact, the rose was used as legal tender of a while. Empress Josephine collected all sorts of roses and encouraged the breeding and hybridizing of new varieties.

Modern roses include hybrid teas, grandifloras, and floribundas. They are descendents of the Old Roses. Hybrid teas are the florist roses. They are tall with large double blooms on long stems. They are most popular as cut flowers for their fragrance, their color, and their form. The blooms are produced all season long, and they can be conditioned to last for several days. Colors are white, pink, red, yellow, orange, russet, mauve, blended shades, bicolors, spotted or freckled, and a different color on the edge of the petals. Hybrid tea roses became popular because of their striking appearance: a long stem for cutting, the pointed bud, a smaller bush that didn’t take up most space in the garden, and repeat blooming. Some of the favorites are Peach, Tropicana, Great Century, Versailles, and Double Delight.

Floribundas are descended from polyantha and hybrid teas, and their sweetheart-size blooms are very fragrant. The name means “flowering in abundance.” They are cluster bloomers, and they bloom throughout the season with heavy sprays of beautiful colored blooms. They may be shaped like the hybrid tea or like the Old Rose. They are called “landscape” roses and are usually used for hedges, borders, and foundation covers. A new type of floribunda gaining in popularity is the miniature, a tiny plant that grows 6 to 10 inches. These hardy little bushes can do quite well outside as well as inside. If they have enough light, you can enjoy the tiny colorful blooms all winter.

Grandifloras are beautiful bushes that produce large clusters of blossoms. They are very effective as a single bush or as a hedge. The grandiflora is a “manufactured” class. The class was invented for the rose “Queen Elizabeth,” which was introduced in 1954 by Germain’s Nursery in the United States.

The newest editions to the garden are climbing and pillar-type roses. Pillars reach 5 to 7 feet, while the true climbers grow to 20 feet or more. Both can grow on posts, trellis, walls, or arbors. The Imperial Blaze (bright red) has been a favorite for years. Newer examples are Sir Wilfred Laurier and Sensas Delbard. In 1997, New Dawn was voted the most popular rose in the world at the 11th World Convention of Rose Societies. This rose is silvery and blush-pink with medium sized double flowers. The plant is very hardy and may be grown as a shrub. It can reach a height of 12-18 feet.

In 1998, the first green rose, the Emerald, came out. Soon to follow were Cream Aroma, Supergreen, and Lemonade. The Green Planet is the most popular of the green roses. The entire rose is green, and it has a vase life of 14 to 20 days. The buds open slowly, making it a good traveler. At full flower the bloom reaches 3 ½ inches; the stems usually reach a length of 24 to 32 inches.

In 2006, a new hybrid tea was introduced-Let Freedom Ring. It is strawberry red with a near-perfect flower form and a long vase life. Its height is medium tall, its blooms are large, double, and high centered. It is descended from Prima Donna and Touch of Class, and it has a slight fragrance. The rose was created by World War II veteran and amateur hybridizer, Ernest Earman of Virginia.

Modern roses are still evolving. Breeders are pushing the envelope when it comes to hybridizing roses for their color. They are working on a “blue” rose now. Will we ever have a black rose? We have deep red, deep chocolate, deep purple, and deep violet tones. But a truly black rose? Some time in the future-maybe.