118 What is causing the interest in English Roses?
Description
This article is from the Rose Gardening FAQ, by Bill Chandler chandler@austin.ibm.com, Jolene Adams jolene@cchem.berkeley.edu, Brent C. Dickerson odinthor@csulf.edu, Karen Baldwin kbaldwin@veribest.com, and many contributors
118 What is causing the interest in English Roses?
Interest in English Roses might be attributed to several of their
attributes.
* Flower form
* Repeat bloom
* Color
* Fragrance
* Plant shape
* Uniqueness
'Flower form'. Most varieties of English Roses have the old-fashioned flower
forms of the Old Roses. This includes rosette-shaped flowers,
lightly-cupped, deeply-cupped, etc. Some gardeners prefer the forms of the
Old Roses to the high-centered form of the Hybrid Teas. English Roses
usually produce fully double flowers with many petals.
'Repeat bloom'. Many gardeners would not grow a rose that blooms once a year
as many Old Roses do. Many English Roses produce Old Rose type blooms
several times a year. How often they repeat bloom depends on the variety and
local climate.
'Color'. English Roses come in a variety of colors. The majority of English
Roses come in soft pastel shades: pinks, peaches, apricots, etc. There are
also some excellent yellow English Roses and some popular white and dark red
varieties.
'Fragrance'. As a group, English Roses are very fragrant. English Roses have
a variety of rose fragrances, such as damask, tea scent, citrus, etc. Many
English Roses, notably 'Constance Spry' the first English Rose, have an
unusual scent described as "myrrh". Some of the more fragrant varieties of
English Roses are Getrude Jekyll, Othello, Evelyn and Abraham Darby.
'Plant Shape'. English Roses are often classified as Shrub Roses and some
make good overall landscape plants. Although sometimes pruned hard and
treated as bedding plants, many English Roses can be allowed to grow out and
become excellent shrub roses.
'Uniqueness'. Another reason for planting English Roses is that they are new
and different, and some gardeners like to plant something that is not found
in anyone else's garden in the neighborhood.
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