Tips on the perfect rose

THE GARDEN FANATIC

“Reign endless, rose...”

Herman Melville

The autumn roses in our garden are the loveliest of the entire

season. With Congress passing a proclamation declaring 2002 “the Year

of the Rose,” our elected officials have proven they can get it right

sometimes.

And what a season it has been! A mild winter ensured that our

first rose was in bloom on the day before Super Bowl Sunday. Since

then, we have struggled to find enough vases to keep pace with our

bountiful production of blossoms.

In compiling fall’s list of roses, I have selected roses that are

particularly fragrant, disease resistant and easy to grow. They’ve

been personally grown by Catharine and myself.

Especially fragrant roses: David Austin holds the shrub rose,

Gruss an Aachen, in high esteem. He has even adopted it as one of his

English roses.

The deeply cupped blooms have a pleasing fragrance, which turns a

pearl pink to creamy white.

Possessing an old rose perfume, Orthello is a standout rose. It

produces large, cupped blooms of crimson fading to purple. Florists

tell me that the blooms are excellent in flower arrangements!

Tiffany is treasured for its large pink blossoms that are very

fragrant. This hybrid tea grows vigorously upright with long stems

and elegant buds.

Disease resistant: The emerald green foliage of Pristine is the

first indicator that mildew should think twice about invading this

tough rose. Its graceful, crimson blooms edged with white look

wonderful in a vase.

Royal Bonica continues the trend of modern roses -- free blooming,

disease resistant and not fussy about pruning. Pale pink blooms cover

very green and shiny foliage.

I recall when I first introduced Winifred Coulter into my garden.

That was nearly seven years ago, and its glossy green leaves have yet

to be sprayed for either insect or disease! This floribunda’s rose

pink blooms seem almost never ending.

Easy to Grow: One of the most rewarding of the climbers is the

single, blood-red blooms of Altissimo. Very fragrant and excellent as

a cut flower, this rose blooms freely throughout the year. This is

the strongest red climbing rose for Laguna gardens.

A vigorous and bushy plant, Heritage is a perfect rose. The blooms

are a lovely soft pink with a nice fragrance. Not fussy, it requires

very little care.

The non-stop bloomer Iceberg is a climber and bush that doesn’t

quite reach pure white in our coastal clime. Very fragrant and nearly

disease resistant; if you only have space for one rose, this is the

one.

The rose reigns supreme in our garden. If my wife had her way (and

of course, who says she doesn’t?), the entire garden would be filled

with roses (well, maybe a few vegetables). Those who know her are

aware that Catharine knows best. See you next time.

* STEVE KAWARATANI is the owner of Landscapes by Laguna Nursery,

1540 S. Coast Highway in Laguna Beach. He is married to local artist

Catharine Cooper and has three cats. He can be reached at (949) 497

2438, or e-mail to [email protected].