In praise of the single rose

[Eric Hardy]

In praise of the single rose

It has been a dry hot couple of days so I have been carrying a lot of water this evening. It gave me a chance to think of a subject for a new thread. So here are a few shots in praise of the single roses in our garden. Unlike the Hybrid Teas and Floribundas in our now old and defunct rose bed these single roses have gone on and on for decades.

The first is Rosa “Moyesii” which has been growing against our summer house for 45 years. It grows stems like small tree trunks with vicious thorns which we thin out from time to time. Described in the RHS A -Z as vigorous, I have to say that this is the understatement of all time and the topmost bloom is above our first floor gutter at this moment so it must be over 16 ft tall. I have only seen this in one other place and that was the NT Barrington Hall in Somerset where it was growing up a gable wall.






 Not easy to weed around this as you can see


The second is Rosa “Cantabrigiensis” which has a single yellow rose which is very attractive and whose blooms have been out for over three weeks and are still going strong. We have two bushes about 8 to 10 feet high. One is about 40 years old and the other was grown by Anthea from a cutting of the original.



The third is Mermaid which grows up the west wall of our house. This has been there for about 30 years. This is not in bloom yet so the photo is from an earlier year.



The fourth, Rosa “Ragusa”,  is pretty indestructible and thrives on the far bank of our tiny pond.



The fifth is Rosa “Summer Breeze” which grows up a screen by our drive. This was planted in 1999 so is just a youngster




The sixth is Rosa “American Pillar” which also grows right across the summerhouse roof.



The seventh is an interesting rose called Rosa “Farreri” or “the threepenny bit rose”. This was propagated about 40 years ago by Anthea from a cutting from her parents garden and it grows by our side gate onto the common.



Lastly, Kiftsgate. I know I have recently posted pictures of this in the discussion on the Master Database but I will include it here to complete the series. It grows at least 30 feet up into our conifer.





Eric H

[ideasguy]

That is a very good topic you've started Eric, and a great selection of plants to get things rolling.
Great photos!

I have a single rose growing in my hedge which came with the house! Don't know its name though - what we call a wild Irish rose, I guess.
We also have another which is growing close to a hedge, but it is some form of old rose, almost like a cabbage rose. The scent is absolutely gorgeous. It only flowers once (pink), of course, but my wife loves it. I'm trying to "cultivate" it.

Rosa 'Farreri' and 'American Pillar' are very nice roses, I have to say. Thewy all look like good value for money, with such a lifetime 

Those thorns look downright dangerous! I can never, and I mean never, go near a rose without gettin a scratch which draws blood.
Mixing plants which require weeding with roses is madness! Needless to say, I do it 

Is there any scent with any of your single roses?

A request if I may. If you get a chance to take that 2nd one again in your presentation (Rosa 'Moyesii') when its not basking in the sunshine I would love to include it (and the others you've posted of course) in the Master Database.

[Lyn and Malcolm]

Snap Eric and snap again



Ours is about 4 years old, and only 5 foot tall at the moment, have been taking pics of the buds and flowers today, a really lovely rose, just hope it don't get too big, otherwise it will have to be out. It is labeled moyesii Geranium

The second snap is Cantabrigiensis another lovely rose, about 7 foot tall at the moment.



Malcolm

[ideasguy]

OK, I missed commenting on that - Rosa 'Cantabrigiensis' looks lower nice indeed.

I'd prefer roses with more foliage. I dont like long bare stems.
Any in those singles to fit the bill?

[Eric Hardy]

Is there any scent with any of your single roses?

That is the downside, George, they are not heavily scented although R. Ragusa does have a faint delicate scent.

A request if I may. If you get a chance to take that 2nd one again in your presentation (Rosa 'Moyesii') when its not basking in the sunshine I would love to include it (and the others you've posted of course) in the Master Database

I have just been outside to take some more photos before the sun gets round to it. At present the conifer is shading it. I will post them after breakfast.

Eric H

[Eric Hardy]

Ours is about 4 years old, and only 5 foot tall at the moment, have been taking pics of the buds and flowers today, a really lovely rose, just hope it don't get too big, otherwise it will have to be out. It is labeled moyesii Geranium

According to the bible the R. moseyii "geranium" has a more compact habit so you may be lucky Malcolm. The one we have is just too vigorous for words. Every year we cut large lumps out (a prickly business) and the base is a solid lump of wood almost a foot across.

The second snap is Cantabrigiensis another lovely rose, about 7 foot tall at the moment

Cantabrigiensis is more manageable and is a great favourite of ours.

Eric H

[Eric Hardy]

I'd prefer roses with more foliage. I dont like long bare stems.
Any in those singles to fit the bill?

I would say all these roses have plenty of foliage and don't suffer from overly long stems

Eric H

[Eric Hardy]

A request if I may. If you get a chance to take that 2nd one again in your presentation (Rosa 'Moyesii') when its not basking in the sunshine

Here are some more I took at about 7 am this morning George.







This last one I have posted so that you can see the scale of the rose. The little bit of building you can see is the eaves of the roof over the first floor. This variety would certainly not suit Malcolm.

Eric H

[NightHawk]

Great photos Eric.

You're obviously a keen rose man.

Laurie.

[ideasguy]

Thanks Eric. They are perfect!

[Lyn and Malcolm]

Regarding Rosa 'Cantabrigiensis' , there were 17 flowers along a three foot length of branch. Not all flowering all at one time though. This is one branch not the whole plant, didn't count them all. 

I do like to take photos in the bright sun sometimes, brings the picture to life don't you think ?

Rosa 'Cantabrigiensis'


Malcolm

[Eric Hardy]

Regarding Rosa 'Cantabrigiensis' , there were 17 flowers along a three foot length of branch. Not all flowering all at one time though. This is one branch not the whole plant, didn't count them all. 

They are terrifically prolific in blooms, Malcolm.

I do like to take photos in the bright sun sometimes, brings the picture to life don't you think ?

I agree, Malcolm, it depends upon what you are setting out to achieve. Your lovely shot there is helped by the light and shade. I think the sunlight helped this tulip too. I think I see what George is driving at with more general pictures of a plant though.



Eric H

[Eric Hardy]

You're obviously a keen rose man.

Yes, Laurie but as I have said before our rose bed is defunct and we don't feel like creating another one at our time of life. This is why I am so fond of these single roses which seem indestructible. One or two survive like R. "New Dawn" which is a climber which we have had in both the front and back gardens for many years. Not a single rose but here is a shot I took on Thursday.



Eric H