More on Roses

>>I know this is a perennial robin, however, since people have been discussing
roses  and since I can't seem to get hooked up with the woody plants robin, I
hope no one minds this question.<<  

I don't mind the question on the perennial list because roses make such great
companions for perennials.  The classic English garden practice of growing
Nepeta in the rose garden is particularly wonderful.  Personally, I think
gardens with heavily pruned roses and no other plants are bare and dreadful.
But let the roses develop their natural form and throw in some perennials and
you have a lovely garden.  INHO.

You probably ARE hooked up to the woody plants list.  There have been few, if
any posts lately.  That list goes like that.  Sometimes it is very active,
sometimes quiet.
There was a very long thread about disease-resistant roses a few months ago.
You might want to check the archives.  

I second the vote of confidence for "The Fairy".  Mine has never had the
slightest disease or pest problem, gets no special care, no sprays, and blooms
profusely from early summer to frost in a half day of sun.  It is looking
particularly lovely today, in October in St. Louis!  Lovely, lovely plant.
Looks great with purple Heliotrope planted around it.

I have "Grus an Aachen"  by my front door on the northeast side of the house.
It gets only morning sun and blooms off and on all summer.  With less than a
half day of sun, it is not as profuse a bloomer as is "The Fairy".  However,
if you can give one a bit more sun than mine gets it will bloom more.  In the
eight or so years I have had mine, I have never sprayed it and have never had
a disease or pest problem.  

Someone on the list mentioned "Zephrine Droughin" (I never can remember how to
spell that).  It does bloom in partial shade and is lovely and THORNLESS.
However, mine has had a bad problem with black spot for that last several
years and I am going to take it out because I am an organic gardener and
refuse to spray it.  I have tried all of the natural controls to no avail, so
out it goes.  There are so many wonderful plants that don't have to be
pampered and don't need poisons from which to choose.   

"Nearly Wild" is another rose that blooms well in partial shade and is
troublefree.  It has single-petaled, rose-colored flowers that look very much
like those of a wild rose.  But this rose has the bonus of repeat blooming,
and tolerance of partial shade.  

If you have full sun-- for carefree, workfree, disease & troublefree roses --
you should try wild, "species" roses. My Prairie Rose, Rosa setigera, is
great.  My back yard is devoted to Missouri native plants, and she is the
star!  I recommend finding out if there are any native roses in your area, and
if so planting them.  You just can't go wrong.  I don't even water my Prairie
Rose, nor do I prune or fertilize it, and it thrives.  That is what roses were
like before we started getting fancy .  They were very, very tough plants.

--Janis
Missouri, Zone 6



  







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