We’re lucky as rose lovers to have a wonderful choice of roses to select and grow in our gardens and even more so to have new varieties coming onto the market each year tempting us to add them to our gardens. There is too many for winter 2018 to feature in one column so my June column will feature the rest.
Keep an eye out for these and if you can’t find a source, email me (hayden@nzroses.org.nz) and I’ll do my best to point you in the right direction.
A Moment in Time: Another new Bob Matthews variety with the most exquisite blush champagne blooms of old world form. A good scent rounds off what is a great garden rose that grows to 1 metre high. Available from resellers of Matthews Nurseries or www.rosesnz.co.nz
Amore™ Black Lace: A romantic red rose of perfect form and plenty of them. Blooms come mostly one to a stem, perfect for picking for a vase. Velvety red petals acquire a contrasting ‘lace’ edge in the heat of the sun. A light tea scent to complement the bloom.Bush grows tall and straight well furnished with glossy disease resistant leaves. Available from Amore Roses www.amoreroses.co.nz
Amoré™ Espresso: A very unique colour coupled with a spicy clove fragrance makes this a highly desirable rose. Not only that but it is very highly disease resistant with dark highly polished foliage all through the growing season. Available from Amore Roses www.amoreroses.co.nz
Beach Hop: A patio rose with eye catching blooms of orange yellow edged cerise red. Bushy, medium growing with dark green foliage. Available from resellers of Rasmussen’s Nurseries.
Candy Crush: Bred by North Canterbury rosarians Michael and Marian Brown, this variety has beautifully formed blooms of golden apricot with a sweet fragrance. Great bushy growth that has very good health. Very free flowering. Available from South Pacific Roses www.southpacificroses.co.nz
City of Lights: This new rose has masses of creamy lemon blooms with a strong citrus smell. Compact growing with dark green glossy foliage, this is another variety from Rob Somerfield. Great in smaller gardens and looks fantastic as a short standard. Available from resellers of Glenavon Roses www.robsomerfieldroses.co.nz
Eye in the Sky: The persica roses have created much interest in recent years for their novel blooms but have all been bush roses. Now, we have a climbing version for growing against walls, fences and pergolas. ‘Eye in the Sky’ features single blooms of apricot with a distinctive purple ‘eye’ in clusters. Quick to repeat and very healthy, this is a very welcome addition to the range of persica roses. Available from Tasman Bay Roses www.tbr.co.nz
Everlasting Hope: This new shrub rose bred by Rob Somerfield was named for Postnatal Depression Canterbury to promote the amazing work they do. Large blooms of soft medium pink are strongly scented and good for picking. A tall growing variety with great health and dark glossy foliage. Available from resellers of Glenavon Roses www.robsomerfieldroses.co.nz.
Gold Reef: This rose is a welcome addition to the range of floribunda roses in the yellow shades. Deep yellow blooms are produced in clusters with dark green foliage. Good repeat of blooms. Available from resellers of Rasmussen’s Nurseries.
Gospel: Large blooms of crimson purple are a feature of this rose, as too is the strong scent. Good for picking with long stems. Medium growing with semi-glossy, medium green foliage. Available from Tasman Bay Roses www.tbr.co.nz
My Dad: A stunning new rose bred by Bob Matthews from his gorgeous ‘My Mum’. Clusters of fragrant yellow flowers cover this floribunda, putting on a wonderful display. The perfect rose to honour your dad. Great for the vase, repeat flowering, grows to 1m approx. Available from resellers of Matthews Nurseries or www.rosesnz.co.nz
Pavlova: This mouth-watering variety features clusters of creamy white blooms that make a great display. Healthy, medium growing plant with a slighty spreading growth habit. For best results, do not prune hard in winter. Available from D & S Nurseries www.4arose.co.nz
In the Rose Garden for May
- It’s a quiet month in the rose gardens ahead of the winter months.
- Continue to prepare the soil for new plantings. Dig over and add compost ready for winter planting. If planting where roses have been before, swap the soil for that in another part of the garden.
- Clean up around your roses by removing any fallen leaves and debris.
- Discard any roses you wish to no longer grow.
- Order new seasons roses for winter planting from garden centres and rose nurseries.
By Hayden Foulds
Hayden also serves as Deputy Chairman of the World Federation of Rose Societies Rose Trials Committee amongst other rose endeavors.
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