A Few Roses To Brighten Your Day

Happy Friday!! I began my day with a hot mug of coffee, Vivaldi on the stereo, completely lost in the delightful world of David Austin roses. Would you like to join me? I will take you on a little tour of my favorites (the photos here come from Heirloom Roses and the lovely descriptions from David Austin)…

Spirit of Freedom ~ “The flowers of this rose commence as small, rounded buds which gradually open to form a cupped flower that is well filled with numerous petals…The colour is a soft glowing pink, which gradually turns to lilac-pink as the flower ages. There is a pleasing fragrance with a hint of myrrh.”

Mary Magdalene ~ “A very charming rose, having a particularly beautiful Tea Rose scent with a hint of myrrh. Named for the church of St. Mary Magdalene, Albrighton. The flowers are of a soft apricot-pink colouring, with delicate silky petals arranged around a button eye.”

Pretty Jessica ~ “A good ‘old fashioned rose’ for a very small garden. It’s flowers are a warm rich pink and of perfect formation; a shallow cup closely packed with petals. There is a strong Old Rose fragrance.”

Abraham Darby ~ “In early summer it is studded with large, deeply cupped blooms in shades of pink, apricot and yellow, and in spite of their size, these continue to be produced for the remainder of the season. A rich, fruity fragrance with a refreshing sharpness.”

Don’t you just love the descriptions of the colors and fragrance? I am more than a bit obsessed with finding the most deliciously fragrant rose possible to plant in my own garden. What’s the point of a gorgeous rose that smells of nothing? So far, the most heavenly-scented roses I have come across were the hundreds-of-years-old roses in the Knight’s Garden in Florence (tucked in the back of the Boboli Gardens), and the wild beach roses on Block Island – of course, I won’t be planting either of those in my own yard! If you are looking for more floral inspiration, run over to either the David Austin website or Heirloom Roses – both are phenomenal, and make me want to plant far more roses than I have room for!

{images: Heirloom Roses}

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