Roses have always played an important part in British gardening but in recent years I have noticed a shift from the formal, high maintenance beds of hybrid teas to a more relaxed cottage garden style using species roses.
These vigorous, easy species have graced the rose walks and arches of the major British gardens and are now finding a place in small urban gardens. Given a pergola hybrids such as Rosa ‘Seagull’ and Rosa ‘Wedding Day’ can provide a majestic, but short-lived, display.
My personal favourites are Rosa brunonii, Rosa filipes ‘Kiftsgate’ and Rosa multiflora. The first two are very vigorous Himalayan species capable of growing more than 10 metres across - just one ‘Kiftsgate’ rose covers the wall of my house. Both are particularly attractive in the early spring when the young shoots are tinged
with copper hues – the foliage of R. filipes turns a glossy green while R. brunonii turns a most pleasing matte grey green. Both have delicately scented white flowers.
The latter is typically used as a rootstock for grafting modern bush roses but is also a lovely plant in its own right. It is not as rampant as the other species and is entirely thornless. So it is perhaps more suitable for very small gardens. I have also grown this species in the open where it will eventually form a dome three metres high and half as much again wide. Clusters of 25 mm diameter white flowers smother the fresh green foliage in June. These develop into pea sized bright red hips that glow in the low autumnal sunlight. As an added bonus these hips provide a valuable mid winter feast for our urban birds, which delights me as much as the flowers themselves but has a downside as I will explain later.
Cultivation of ramblers is relatively straightforward. Any reasonable soil will do and almost anything can be used as a support from pergolas and trees to that old unsightly shed in the corner of the garden (great excuse to get rid of the Russian Vine!). If attaching wires or a frame to wall or fence on which to grow your ramblers do try to leave at least 75 mm between wall and wires. This enables good air circulation reducing occurrences of disease and creates a perfect nesting site to boot!
Most ramblers require very little pruning save for the removal of wayward stems and overly old flowering branches.
Pests and diseases are rarely a problem but in these days of cleaner air blackspot can occur. Mildew can also affect those ramblers grown against a wall. In this situation a thick mulch applied in spring around the base of the plants can reduce their susceptibility. I have to say I don’t mind the odd mildewed branch as it provides a food source for the 22 spot ladybirds during the summer months.
Aphids have never presented a great problem either. You will probably have guessed by now that I don’t use any chemicals in my garden, which allows a huge range of wildlife to thrive. Don’t get me wrong I have aphids – just small quantities that make no impact on the plants I grow. The bonus for me is that they provide a food supply for blue and great tits, various ladybirds, lacewings and hoverflies which animate the garden at various times of the year.
Propagation is also very simple either from seed or from cuttings taken between late September and November. These should be taken from new growth and be about 200 - 300 mm in length cut just below a leaf joint at the base and a normal pruning cut above the bud at the top. Use only the ripe wood, between pencil and finger thick, discarding any soft growth at the tip of the shoot. After stripping all but the top two leaves the cutting is simply firmed into the ground leaving around 50 mm proud of the soil surface. Many gardening manuals will suggest a nurserytrench but I have found that striking the cuttings in their final position leads to a much quicker establishment. If your soil is particularly heavy add some sharp sand to soil before filling around the cutting as this makes it easier for the new roots to grow.
“What about that downside?” I hear you cry.
Well, much of my time is spent growing rare plants from seed with the best part of half the rear garden given over to pot staging areas around the boundary fence. It is the usual practice of our resident blackbird to feast on the hips and once sated retire to bask in the autumn sun atop the fence. Suffice to say that the internal workings of the blackbird prepares the seed perfectly, leaving me with a delicate weeding task each May as the rash of rose seedlings swamp the pots!
To add insult to injury the pair always nest in the very same rose.
Anyway that’s enough rambling from me! Enjoy your gardening.
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Oct 14th, 2001
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