I thought that it would be appropriate to write a review about Roses since today, the 14th February 2007, is St Valentine's Day and Roses have been linked to Romance and Love for many Centuries.
Roses were originally grown in Monasteries for their medicinal properties and they were also used in various Religious Ceremonies. The traditional Rose that was grown by the Monks was a cross between a French Rose and a Wild Rose. It is believed that the Monks were probably the first People in Britain to Cultivate these Plants and start to create some of the hybrids that we know today.
Roses come in many different varieties, shapes and sizes. In fact such is their diversity they are more symbolic than any other Plant. As well as a symbol of Love, Roses are also popular at Funerals, and have long been associated with Remembrance. Although we now use Poppies to commemorate those that sacrificed their lives in the last two Great Wars, long before 1918, Roses were laid out to remember those that had died in battle. It was only because the battlefields of Northern France, Belgium
and Holland were strewn with Wild Poppies that the Poppy is now used in favour of the Rose to commemorate the two World Wars.
The Rose has been popular in Britain since the Middle Ages and has been used as a symbol for the two rival Counties of Yorkshire and Lancashire. The White Rose of Yorkshire and the Red Rose of Lancashire representing the two Royal Houses during the so-called War of the Roses. Henry V11 symbolically merged the two Roses and created the Tudor Rose, which ended the War of the Roses.
Roses can be classified into many different categories, these include Hybrid Tea Roses, Old Roses, Climbing Roses, Rambling Roses, Wild Roses and Miniature Roses.
These days Roses are planted for many different reasons often simply for their aesthetic or fragrant properties but climbing varieties can also be used to cover garden fences or to add colour to Hedgerows.
All Roses belong to the genus Rosa, but there are well over a hundred species of Wild Roses, these all originate from the Northern Hemisphere and they are mostly from temperate regions. Roses are characteristically prickly shrubs or climbers, but some varieties are also trailing plants, reaching between two and five metres tall.
The leaves are generally fairly short, five to fifteen centimetres long in length and rounded in shape. The undersides of these leaves are usually covered in tiny prickles. The flower that a Rose produces has five Petals with each Petal being divided into two distinct lobes. There is however a variety of Rose called Rosa Sericea that only has four Petals. Traditionally the flower of a Rose is White or Pink but hybridisation has produced virtually every colour of Rose within the spectrum and Yellow and Red are now also popular colours. Today there are several thousands of varieties of Roses and many of these have yet to be given common names. Should you want to name a Rose of your very own this can be done via several Websites for a fee ranging from between £300 and £800.The Petals of Roses are noted for their sweet smelling aroma.
All Roses produce Fruit in the form of a Berry called a Rose Hip. These are usually Red in colour but a variety called Rosa pimpinellifolia produces dark Purple or Black Hips. Another characteristic of a Rose is a thorny stem. These thorns can grow quite large and they are very sharp. There are many myths regarding Roses and I recall as a Child being told by my Grandmother that a prick from a Rose thorn can cause Cancer, there is of course no Medical truth in this, but it kept me away from Roses for many years.
One of the reasons why Roses are so popular is presumably because they are very easy to grow for the amateur Gardener like myself, yet for the more advanced Gardener there are varieties available that are a lot more challenging.
My Garden is full of Roses and I do very little to them yet they still produce beautiful flowers every Summer and Autumn. At the end of the growing Season, usually at the end of September I do cut them back a bit, to prevent them from taking over the Garden but other than that I generally just leave them to their own devises. This is in complete contrast to the Roses in my Parent's Garden that are fed Horse manure regularly and stand in carefully prepared soil. To my amateur, and somewhat naive eye there is very little difference between the Rose Bushes in my garden and those in my Parent's garden.
One problem with Roses is that they are quite susceptible to Pests and Diseases. One of the most serious diseases is known as Rose Rust which is a type of Fungus called Phragmidium mucronatum. This turns the leaves a brown colour and causes them to eventually shrivel and fall off. Left untreated Rose Rust will eventually kill your Plant and quickly spread to your other Plants.
One of the commonest diseases is called Black Spot, this is caused by another type of Fungus called Diplocarpon rosae. The characteristics of this disease are small, circular black spots that appear on the leaves during Summer.
These Fungal diseases can be cured by a preventative program of spraying with an Insecticide. Once the Fungus has become established unfortunately there is little that can be done. There are now many disease resistant varieties of Roses that are available so this may be the future of Pest free Roses.
Thank you for reading.
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Feb 14th, 2007
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