Pegging Roses

Graham Thomas

I don’t remember exactly when I planted Graham Thomas where he is now. It must have been during a reconfiguration of the back rose garden close to twenty years ago. I planted and replanted him twice until he settled into the cozy spot as a specimen plant in his own private bed that he occupies today in front of the garden.

This star treatment has agreed with him and over time he grew to 8 feet by 8 feet – some years I let him go, growing easily to ten feet. And star he is. Each June he produces a massive display of buttery yellow, cupped flowers with a distinct tea fragrance – 4 to 6 blooms on each long arching stem, perfect for cutting. The June bloom is so heavy it requires a half dozen stakes to support the major canes to prevent them from breaking under the load.

Graham Thomas with "hole"

In April before the foliage breaks while I can clearly see the bones of the bush, I prune Graham back to five feet or so, thinning out dense growth from the previous season and sometimes removing one or two gnarly old canes to encourage new basal growth. Several years ago, a “hole’ developed on the north side of the bush where I had pruned out a heavy old cane but no cane grew back to replace it. I tried nudging nearby canes over to fill the void with mixed results.

I remember my mother recalling her father, an Irish estate gardener who immigrated to this country in 1914 from Scotland, pegging roses back in the day when she was a child. The goal then was to propagate more of the same variety by bending canes still growing on a bush over into contact with the soil and pegging them down, hoping they would take root.

Hmmm…why not take the long rogue canes that Graham typically throws off at mid-summer that grow to 12 feet or more and yield nothing and, instead of pruning them back in the fall, bend them over the hole and tie them off low to a nearby cane? By changing the orientation of each long cane from the vertical to the horizontal, the potential lateral stems along each cane would grow longer and stronger next season much the same way climbing roses are more floriferous when trained horizontally. Thus the hole is filled.

Selecting canes

Placing cane

Tying Off

Pegged cane

I first tried this technique three years ago and the results were excellent, but temporary, with the effect lasting only one season. The bent canes did indeed develop longer stems with roses that filled the void but the rebloom was sparse. The best results were achieved when pegged canes were pruned back and fresh canes replaced them each year.

 

Pegged Rose

 

 

I pegged Graham again last week and look forward to another flashy display next summer.

Graham Thomas is the senior rose in the garden and, like me, is not only growing older but growing better.

Ping Lim & “Remember Me” Roses

Ping Lim in Shanksville, PA

Remember Me Rose Garden

Last month I posted “Remembering 9/11 with Roses” and Ping Lim, whom we became friends with several years ago, added a nice comment to that post.  Ping, in addition to hybridizing the Easy Elegance roses that Mike and I like, has also developed several “Remember Me” roses. Because of his contribution, Ping was invited to and attended the 10th anniversary of September 11 held at the “Remember Me” Rose Garden in Shanksville, Pennsylvania. (Above photos courtesy of Ping Lim)

Mike with Ping at the Chet Clayton Sustainable Rose Garden at the University of Rhode Island

Ping, who immigrated to the United States and became an American citizen, was pleased to become “a part of American history” by being involved in the creation of the “Remember Me” gardens. His rose ‘Forty Heroes’ honors the 40 heroes of Flight 93 who bravely fought back against the terrorists. (Photo of Forty Heroes courtesy of Ping Lim)

Roses, aside from being America’s National Flower, symbolize different things to different people and evoke memories of those we’ve lost. Ping expresses his thoughts in an essay he shared with me. He writes, “I am very honored that among the many roses chosen, four of my bred roses were selected to be part of the event to commemorate the 911 victims, including the 40 heroes on UA93.”

He continues, “This is indeed an opportunity that, as a rose breeder, I would never dream of having in my career. The rose has charm and beauty, is a symbol of love and brings sunshine to deeply soothe. It touches more than any political language….The rose shares love, remembrance and respect. It far transcends the meaning of a rose and I was totally awed by such a great honor.”

Thank you, Ping, for using your talent in creating beautiful, hardy and disease resistant roses to honor those who lost their lives on 9/11.

Visit Ping’s web site (http://rosesbyping.com to learn more about his roses.

Autumn Roses

A few days ago Angie stood looking out the kitchen window and remarked about all the roses in bloom – they seemed to have opened over night. Now in early October when the 3^rd and final bloom cycle is traditionally modest due to the loss of sunlight and dropping temperatures, our rose gardens were a mass of color due to drenching rains and above average temperatures.

Outta the Blue

I cut a few sprays of Outta the Blue roses and they’re now sitting on our kitchen table, filling the room with the sweet scent of clove and roses. This beauty has very fragrant, deep magenta blooms with golden yellow stamens, but no tolerance for heat. While the petals burn and shatter the minute they open in intense mid-summer heat, the cooler autumn display is spectacular with clusters of 3 to 5 old-fashioned, wine-colored blooms.

Playboy

This isn’t the only variety affected by seasonal change. The colors of some varieties morph from season to season. The gold and scarlet hues of the beautiful but fussy Playboy are more saturated in October than in June and the stunning reds and whites of Cherry Parfait are sharper in the fall. Some whites turn a pale pink and bi-colors show stronger contrasts.

Cherry Parfait

Regardless, these are the last roses of summer and I’ve already started the annual rite of fall – preparing the gardens for winter. Three yards of horse manure have been ordered for delivery later in the month; potted roses are being gathered together and lightly pruned, ready to be pack away into cribs after Thanksgiving. The long, long arching canes of our very mature Graham Thomas that shot up in mid-summer will be swung over a bare spot in this large elegant specimen rose and pegged down to fill the bare spot with blooms next summer.

But despite the calendar, this may be one of those rare years when the rose gods are kind and really hard frosts are delayed, making it possible for us to have roses from our gardens on the Thanksgiving table. We’ll let you know.

Six-Pack Rose Show

Back Row: Easy Does It, Ebb Tide, Outta the Blue, Julia Child; front row: Playboy, Hot Cocoa

Serious rose gardeners love to talk (and write) endlessly about roses. And we also love to exhibit roses, which is what we did on Saturday when the RI Rose Society had its annual “Six Pack Rose Show.”

Roses to bring to Show

This show is very low key and lots of fun. Everyone is invited to bring in no more than 6 roses displayed in bottles of any kind — water bottles, wine bottles, juice bottles or beer bottles. This late season, informal rose show encourages Society members, who may never have exhibited roses before, to give it a try. It’s also educational because Mike organizes an “open-judging” format. Judges verbalize the judging process out-loud as they critique each exhibit, explaining the awards – first, second or third place – that each entry receives. It’s an interactive process with the audience that asks questions throughout the judging.

Mike and Dave

On Saturday, Mike was joined by fellow ARS horticultural judge Dave Long from Old Lyme, CT. They presented an informative peek into the enigmatic world of show roses and how they are judged. Especially appreciated by novice and seasoned exhibitors alike, were their tips and insights on grooming show roses.

Another perk at having an informal rose show in the fall is that we get to appreciate the subtle differences that occur in roses due to changes in light and temperature from June to September. Our Playboy and Hot Cocoa roses have more saturated color now than they did last spring and our Julia Child roses were smaller than they were in June. We also have more of a chance to check out all the entries than we do at our big June rose show. This helps us decide what varieties to add to our “wish list” for next year.

Distant Drums

At the end of the judging, Mike and Dave culled all the “Blue Ribbon” winners (we used blue stars instead of ribbons) down to five. Then the members were polled to determine the best two entries. They voted again for “Best of Show” which went to Clive Nickerson for his picture-perfect bloom of ‘Distant Drums’.

The “Six Pack Rose Show” was one more way to enjoy rose gardening as this 2011 rose growing season winds down. Plus, look at the beautiful vase of roses I had when I came home!

Remembering 9/11 with Roses

The rose, a beautiful symbol of concern and sympathy, is America’s national flower.  So it comes as no surprise that an organization called “Remember Me” Rose Garden is planning on establishing rose gardens to honor those who died on September 11, 2001.

The “Remember Me” Rose Garden – Flight 93 has already been created on 15 acres located across from the Flight 93 National Memorial Park in Shanksville, PA. Gardens are also planned for locations on or near the sites of the attacks in New York City and Washington D.C.

The rose industry has been generous and supportive in this endeavor and a percentage of the proceeds from the sale of “Remember Me” roses will be donated to the “Remember Me” Rose Gardens. The following are some of the roses now known as “Remember Me” roses that can be purchased at garden centers throughout the United States.

Firefighter

Firefighter in honor of the 343 firefighters who died on September 11

Soaring Spirits in honor of the workers who died in the World Trade Center Towers

Forty Heroes in honor of the crew and passengers of United Flight 93

We Salute You to honor the 125 people who died at the Pentagon

We Salute You

The Finest in honor of the 23 NY Police Department officers lost in the line of duty

Patriot Dream in honor of the crew and passengers of American Airlines Flight 77

Survivor in honor of those who survived the collapse of the World Trade Center and the attack of the Pentagon

Wings of Courage in honor of the crew and passengers of Flight 11, the first plane that crashed into the World Trade Center

For more information on the “Remember Me” Rose Garden visit their website: http://www.remember-me-rose.org

The photos of Firefighter and We Salute You are by Gene Sasse © 2007 used courtesy of Weeks Roses.

Evaluating Roses

All the Rage

Labor Day weekend usually is when Mike and I start evaluating our roses and begin thinking about any changes we want to make. We look at each rose and see if we liked the way it has performed during the season. We evaluate each variety, especially the new varieties we planted this year, according to fixed criteria. Did it produce enough flowers? Did we like the blooms? Was the growth habit as expected? Was it disease resistant?  Overall, how well did the rose grow? The answers to these questions decide whether a rose will stay or go. We usually allow a variety two seasons to develop, but occasionally a rose will be such a complete loser that it gets the boot after the first year.

Brite Eyes & Home Run

Our sustainable rose garden is the smaller of the two gardens so we look at this one first. Generally, we’ve been pleased with the sustainability of the varieties we have. After trying several different climbers in the past, we planted Brite Eyes which is in its second year.  Last year we were satisfied with its disease resistance which is why it survived its first season. This season it had a sizeable growth spurt, which is to be expected since it usually takes at least two years for a climber to establish itself. It has reached a height of 6 ft. which is about as tall as it will get which is one of the reasons we chose it. We didn’t want a large climber that would grow taller than the house. Brite Eyes, hybridized by Bill Radler who is known for his Knock Out roses, has a single flower (5-12 petals) that is a soft pink with creamy yellow inner petals that throws off nice sprays all summer. I was also really pleased with its second bloom cycle in late July.

Sweet Fragrance (in front) & All the Rage

Planted side by side, we have the eye-catching Easy Elegance shrub roses All the Rage and Sweet Fragrance, both favorites for the last several years. The golden yellow stamens along with the yellow of its inner petals against All the Rage’s apricot blooms and Sweet Fragrance’s cupped double apricot blooms produce sprays all season. They both pick up a little black spot at the end of each season, but not enough to jeopardize their space in the garden.

Sweet Fragrance

Other roses in our sustainable garden include My Girl, a floriferous, deep pink rose with double, ruffled blooms, which is very disease resistant and meets all our requirements for a sustainable rose. So does Super Hero with its small, velvet red, perfectly formed

Super Hero

blooms. This variety, as well as many of the others, like White Out, Lady Elsie May and Yellow Brick Road, has a nice compact habit. Larger bushes like Knock Out, which is an anchor plant at the corner of our sustainable garden, and Blushing Knock Out and Pink Knock Out, which surround our flag pole, are perfect for their spots.

White Out

Unfortunately, Home Run, a red single rose with golden yellow stamens planted in front of the climber, is going to have to go because it has grown too big and is crowding out Brite Eyes. We’ll replace it with a smaller rose – maybe Yellow Submarine. The Yellow Submarine we have now was damaged last winter by heavy snow falling from our awnings, splitting the bush in two. We were hoping it would recover, but it hasn’t.

Yellow Submarine & Carefree Celebration

Another rose that will go is ‘Sunny Knock Out’. I’m not crazy about its blooms which are small, single pale yellow that fade to white and look very unattractive after a day or two.

Mike and I reviewed our older garden today and plan on replacing some older rose bushes with younger plants of the same variety and removing a couple of very old varieties which no longer fit into our grand scheme. Rose gardens should always be dynamic works-in-progress with every season its own horticultural experience.

Hurricane Irene

Patio before Storm Preparations

We’re busy preparing for Hurricane Irene, expected to hit RI tomorrow. Mike has the generator ready to go and filled a second tank of propane gas for the grill. We’ve checked our flashlights, stocked up on bottled water, and bought extra batteries.

Storm Ready Patio

Other than moving some hardscape, the in-ground roses in the two gardens are on their own. But the 150 roses in pots required a little more thought. In seasons past, when stormy weather would knock pots over, Mike just left them knocked over until the following day. However, that resulted in broken canes and otherwise beat the roses up…not the best solution. A better way is tightly gathering the pots into groups of 20 or so on the ground where each pot supports the ones next to it, lessening the likelihood of any one of them toppling over.

Hurricane Ready Roses

Trees, however, present another problem. Since we have no control over the trees on the city land that surround the pond behind our home, damage from falling trees and branches remains the biggest threat. We already experienced a large tree limb falling in June, damaging the fence and taking out an entire bench of roses.

We dismantled the garden room we create each summer on our flagstone patio, took our flag down, and called it a day. We’re hoping that everyone will get through the hurricane with minimal damage and that Irene will be kind to you and your roses.