Rosa Glauca

Elisabeth — Tue, 11 Nov 2008 22:28:00 GMT

It's a funny time of year to write about roses, but yet I appreciate my Rosa glauca, sometimes known as the "red leaf rose" even more right now. The gray green leaves still cling to the arching stems, so the decorative qualities of the bush remain, even though the flowers are long gone. In certain lights, the leaves have an almost bluish cast. New growth and buds appear purplish-red and the flowers are light pink, with only five petals apiece.

Rosa glauca is a shrub that you can grow purely for its landscape value. I saw my first one, a was a large bush, over six feet tall, in a private garden. I discovered it on a misty day when it appeared almost ghostly (though graceful). I was so taken by its unique coloring that I went home and ordered one right away. Unlike flashier roses, Rosa glauca thrives in light shade. Flowering once a year, it also produces oval-shaped orange hips, which contrast beautifully with the glaucous foliage. If you can stand to cut them, the branches also look wonderful in indoor arrangements.

Most commercial Rosa glauca plants are grown on their own roots, which means that though they may start a bit smaller than grafted roses, they will be stronger and healthier in the long run. Should frost damage the canes--even killing them off to the ground--new ones will grow back true to the rose's type.

If you are starting to plan for next spring, consider Rosa glauca--lovely but not gaudy.

Winter Roses

Elisabeth — Mon, 27 Oct 2008 15:18:00 GMT

Gardeners have been known to agonize about winter rose care. Most of it comes down to common sense, a knowledge of the weather patterns where you live and good, healthy roses. If you have "own root" roses rather than grafted varieties, your roses have an even better chance of surviving tough weather.

It's easy to tell whether your roses are "own root" or grafted. Just look at the trunk near the soil line. If you see a significant thickening in the trunk, you probably have a grafted variety. If there is no significantly thickened area, your rose is probably "own root."

Gardeners in extremely cold winter areas have historically planted their roses in protected spots and wrapped them for the winter in burlap, sometimes with the addition of leaves to fill in any spaces between the burlap and the rose. In more temperate areas, gardeners simply cut the roses back to keep long canes from flopping around in the cold breezes, ensure that the plants are well mulched and let it go at that. The mulch, which should be laid down around the plants without actually touching the trunks, is especially valuable in areas where there is little snow cover and frequent freezing and thawing cycles.

If your roses are damaged, they will often recover. When spring comes, check the bushes and prune away any dead canes. Chances are there will still be one or more ready to break dormancy. "Own root" roses can grow back from healthy roots even if all the canes are dead. Grafted roses that are killed to the root line may grow back, but the roses that bloom in the spring will be those of the rootstock, not the grafted variety.

Roses are a bit like people. If they are adequately nourished, protected and get enough winter rest, they will awaken refreshed and ready to blossom in the spring.

Growing Wise : rose care

Rosa Glauca

Winter Roses