Roses

Cherry, are you going to keep this thread going with helpful information?

I know nothing about roses. I had a pretty red one which came with the house and needed moving. When I dug it up the root split into four, I gave two to my brother and potted up two for myself. My brothers two went straight in his garden and are doing well, my two in pots died. I want to know how and when to take cuttings.

I also dug up a very pretty peach one which is doing well in a pot. I'm not brilliant with pots and I'm sure it will need feeding with something.

I've got a climbing one too (it also came with the house), I've never done anything to this, to say it is leggy is an understatement.

I would like some scented roses, the kind you walk past and can't help but smell them. I've looked at the GS and there are just so many that I give up before I even look at a label.

I'll pick a copy of the Rose Expert up from the car boot at the weekend. I have successfully managed to ignore my roses for years, it is time I learned what to do with them.

Choosing roses was too much of a minefield so I always opted to look at the plants I understood

I think they are easy, but that there is too much misinformation surrounding them.

There are Classic Roses catalogues coming for you both Grindle and WF, but as the new ones have not been delivered yet, they would ask that you bear with them for about two weeks in order to have the new ones.

You possibly don't want them until the winter anyway, but do look for the Expert on Roses. I think they would be the simplest plant I grow, honestly. I like them in borders with other plants and think that is why they don't suffer from blackspot and other ailments.

I will take a few photos, but they won't be beautiful specimens. Geranium can do that. Mine will be untended plants blowing in the wind, falling down if they are climbers, and squeezed with aconitum if they fit. I love them all except three. One of these three is useful though and the other two will have to go. One goes for miles and I planted it for the sake of memories and the other was a freebie from a newspaper and has no scent and few flowers, although they are on long stems.

Rosie sent me one called 'Jenny's Rose'. It is new, but has small leaves to suit its small size and it looks as if it is a very pretty flower. It may not flower this year. We will see.

There is another point I want to make. I have read, on the last forum, that a member would only grow David Austin roses. Now, some of them are beautiful, but I would just ask that you open your eyes and look at all of them. Also, some of our smaller growers have beautiful roses and do breeding work on them.

Jenny's rose...

It has a nice scent too, 6-8 on the roses smelly scale ;D ;D