Rio Samba Rose, Fairfield Glade. May 17, 2009.
Several times over the years I’ve been asked why I take the trouble to grow roses. Roses have a reputation for being difficult to grow. I’ll admit that they can take a lot of time, but I think they are definitely worth the effort.
I first started growing roses about 35 years ago, At that time I was teaching and found that coming home and getting my hands dirty was great therapy.
As I said, the rewards for growing roses are pretty wonderful. Take looking at roses, for instance. You’ll have to ignore the dirt splatters from the rains we had yesterday, but those three blossoms are from the same rose. Rio Samba starts out as a bright yellow bud with red highlights (lower right). As the bud opens, it shows more and more pink with yellow in the center (lower left). But as the blossom matures, the yellow turns to white (upper blossom). The mature blossom has coloration completely different from that of the bud.
I haven’t even mentioned fragrance. Today I brought in a rose for Betsy. It’s another new rose and is very fragrant. I’ll say more about that rose another time.
Sure roses can be work, but with displays like this you can understand why Betsy and I are always eager to check the roses when we get up in the morning.
Senior Moments 
May 18, 2009 at 5:51 am |
George: That is wonderful that you have roses in the glade.
May 18, 2009 at 7:40 am |
That’s a neat name for that rose. Wish I could smell it.
May 18, 2009 at 8:15 am |
Wow…hard to believe that they change so much in color! I would not have guessed that the pink top one was the same rose! I wish I had the ambition to grow them, but I will just have to look at other people’s.
May 18, 2009 at 8:53 am |
Roses are indeed worth every bit of work that goes into growing them. In one of our homes, we had five rose gardens. How wonderful to have cut roses all over the house. I miss them.
May 18, 2009 at 10:00 am |
I’ve never found them to be too much work…I was intimidated at first, but they are pretty hardy.
Yours are very pretty!
May 18, 2009 at 11:09 am |
Very much worth the effort George!
I can almost smell them from here….
You have some of the prettiest I have ever seen, now that’s a compliment coming from someone, who comes from a country where they stake their reputation on growing them 🙂
May 18, 2009 at 2:18 pm |
Those are beauties for sure.I can only imagine the fragrance. Blessings
May 18, 2009 at 4:29 pm |
AH Roses – the Flower of the UK.
Cant beat them George.
May 18, 2009 at 4:49 pm |
I am such a huge fan of roses and if I had a house with a garden, I know that 95% of the garden would be roses! I just adore the aroma!
May 18, 2009 at 5:19 pm |
I didn’t dream all three were the same rose, I thought maybe the bottom two…then I read and find out all three. It is almost like you get three-for- one with it.
May 18, 2009 at 6:38 pm |
I only like the smell of REAL roses.
Your look lovely!
May 20, 2009 at 9:44 am |
I also grow them but I like the wild variety. They smell wonderful, have thick stems and are very prickly.
They are the only flowers which survive. Anything else I plant gets eaten by slugs.
I put baking soda on them since I don’t like the commercial stuff.:)