All About Roses

The most well-known of all flowering plants you could grow in your garden has got to be the rose.  The rose plant can spark a quick conversation amongst even the shyest of persons.  Almost anyone can tell you of someone they know who has grown beautiful roses or of someone who couldn't.  Almost anyone can tell you of someone who got or sent roses, especially around the holidays.  Even little children know what the rose plant is.

Cover of Beautiful Roses

Your local florist most likely has dozens of colors, types, and sizes of roses.  It would seem to be the best selling flower of all time.  The local discount store and even the local grocer carries some sort of rose these days. There are even books written just about roses! 

In my personal opinion, the best rose is one that has a strong scent.  A rose has a most distinct smell, and a scent welcome to most anyone.  The fragrance is like no other and has been reproduced in hundreds (if not thousands) of perfumes and air fresheners for years.  There are rose-scented oils and lotions, bath products, soaps, and shampoos.  There are rose colors and rose images galore.  You can find rose parades and people named Rose (like me!) :-).  You can even come out "smelling like a rose".  All because of a mere plant that reached enormous proportions of popularity.

The rose plant is available in a wide variety of colors, sizes, and types. It is known and grown worldwide.  The prices vary depending on where you buy or what type and size you want.

Do you want a rose plant already started in a pot?  You may have to repot it, so make sure you do your homework before you buy one.

Bagatelle Rose Garden (Paris, France). (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

When you decide what type of rose plant you'd like in your garden, think of placement.  There is a plant called the thornless rose plant that will grow in the shade.  But most rose plants are known to have thorns, so you wouldn't want your small child or grandchild or frequent tiny visitors to happen upon something that is so pretty that they can't resist grabbing and end up with an unwelcome handful of thorns.  It may even sour them on the enjoyment of the rose plant for life because of a tearful memory.  And roses are too beautiful to allow such a thing!

There are climbing rose plants which you most certainly wouldn't want trailing across the ground to be stomped by animals or other foot traffic.  Some roses are delicate and unfiltered light would cook their leaves to an unlovely brown.  If your rose plant is the type that grows into a bush, you would want to place it in a spot that allows for it to spread.

As you can see, deciding where you would like to plant your roses is an important consideration that is largely determined by the type of rose you are planting, so it will require some research and careful planning.  But for rose-lovers everywhere, it is a job that is well-worth the work.


Rose Gardening Resources: