Not so thrilled:
A couple of days ago I allowed the puppies into a no-puppy zone. They are nearly grown up and ready for more places in the house. Their reaction surprised me: after exploring just a bit, they became terrified and huddled silently together in the curve of the stairway. Not thrilled with the New.
Boring old 'Souvenir de la Malmaison'. Yawn!
We gardeners, in contrast, seem to be ever-thrilled with newness. New plants, fresh and pristine, are an inexpensive invitation to adventure. Roses especially are an ever-alluring example of the "This Year's Girl" syndrome, aren't they? So much beauty! So much fragrance! So much disease "resistance"! Or so we are told, and we fall for it every year, or at least I do.
The sky is always blue when the plant is new:
I've been trying to get a decent photo of last year's "This Year's Girl", 'Young Lycidas'. Still not there yet.
The flowers nod. Roses that nod are difficult to photograph. Laying them down on the stucco wall helped:
'Young Lycidas' has a fine fragrance and is a willing rebloomer. The plant itself, gangly and sparse of foliage, isn't the most attractive thing.
This year's girl, 'Princess Alexandra Of Kent' was introduced last year in the US, but I waited until this year to get it. Early reports called it a compact grower, and it was compact in my garden until about two weeks ago, when it produced a thick, strong 5' cane. So not compact after all. Blue skies, shining at me...only blue skies do I see...
Pretty flower, but a lot like 'Jubilee Celebration' without the yellow touches, and more pink than JC, and JC is a small, twiggy grower. A different fragrance as well. JC is citrus; PAOK is rosy, with a sharp, almost harsh final note. Come to think of it, PAOK was a tiny-own root plant back in May. A big strong cane by November means vigor. PAOK is a bit like 'The Endeavour' as well, which I also have--why do I get so many roses that are so similar? Are all gardeners as gullible as I am?
Here's another PAOK, with a little Katydid damage:
...and here's 'The Endeavour'...
...which is also similar to 'Christopher Marlowe', without 'Christopher's' very charming yellow button eye.
PAOK is lovely. It really is, though perhaps it's not as new as I thought, considering how many similar roses I already had. What is new is not so new after all? Hmmm, puppies?
A couple of days ago I allowed the puppies into a no-puppy zone. They are nearly grown up and ready for more places in the house. Their reaction surprised me: after exploring just a bit, they became terrified and huddled silently together in the curve of the stairway. Not thrilled with the New.
Boring old 'Souvenir de la Malmaison'. Yawn!
We gardeners, in contrast, seem to be ever-thrilled with newness. New plants, fresh and pristine, are an inexpensive invitation to adventure. Roses especially are an ever-alluring example of the "This Year's Girl" syndrome, aren't they? So much beauty! So much fragrance! So much disease "resistance"! Or so we are told, and we fall for it every year, or at least I do.
The sky is always blue when the plant is new:
I've been trying to get a decent photo of last year's "This Year's Girl", 'Young Lycidas'. Still not there yet.
The flowers nod. Roses that nod are difficult to photograph. Laying them down on the stucco wall helped:
'Young Lycidas' has a fine fragrance and is a willing rebloomer. The plant itself, gangly and sparse of foliage, isn't the most attractive thing.
This year's girl, 'Princess Alexandra Of Kent' was introduced last year in the US, but I waited until this year to get it. Early reports called it a compact grower, and it was compact in my garden until about two weeks ago, when it produced a thick, strong 5' cane. So not compact after all. Blue skies, shining at me...only blue skies do I see...
Pretty flower, but a lot like 'Jubilee Celebration' without the yellow touches, and more pink than JC, and JC is a small, twiggy grower. A different fragrance as well. JC is citrus; PAOK is rosy, with a sharp, almost harsh final note. Come to think of it, PAOK was a tiny-own root plant back in May. A big strong cane by November means vigor. PAOK is a bit like 'The Endeavour' as well, which I also have--why do I get so many roses that are so similar? Are all gardeners as gullible as I am?
Here's another PAOK, with a little Katydid damage:
...and here's 'The Endeavour'...
...which is also similar to 'Christopher Marlowe', without 'Christopher's' very charming yellow button eye.
PAOK is lovely. It really is, though perhaps it's not as new as I thought, considering how many similar roses I already had. What is new is not so new after all? Hmmm, puppies?
Do you have a list of all of the roses in your garden somewhere? It seems like you have dozens (hundreds?) and I'd love to see them all sometime.
ReplyDeleteI do have hundreds. I always think I'll make a list but something always comes up...it would make for a very very long blog post.
Deletehoovb, I hear you! I am known to be falling for the latest rose fancy, too. But this year I was good. Didn't buy any new roses at all, because I have more roses in my pot ghetto than I might be able to plant in my small garden. Nonetheless, that 'Young Lycidas' is just drop dead gorgeous and presents a real temptation to me! Did you have a chance to observe the mildew resistance of YL?
ReplyDeleteChristina
No mildew that I saw, sorry, but no new roses for you until you get the pot ghetto planted, okay? ;)
DeleteHooverBoo, thanks for your reply! It is good to know that 'Young Lycidas' didn't show any mildew so far in your garden. Somehow the newer David Austin roses seem to be more disease resistant. You are so right about planting the pot ghetto roses! I am working on it and hoping to plant another rose over the Thanksgiving weekend :-)!
DeleteChristina