The Rural Voice, 2005-08, Page 39By Rhea Hamilton -Seeger
Where can you meet Victor Borge.
Elizabeth Taylor, Gertrude Jeky II.
Cary Grant and Pierre Joseph Rodoute
all in the same bed? At Pam Stanley's
in Clinton. I know — just too easy a line.
I stopped in to talk to Pam about her
roses recently and was not surprised to
see a flat of miniature roses at the
doorstep.
Pam collects roses named after
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36 THE RURAL VOICE
Gardening
Collecting celebrities
celebrities, Shakespearean characters
and English landmarks and is more
Rhea
Hamilton -
Seeger and
her husband
live near
Auburn. She
is a skilled
cook and
gardener.
than delighted to talk about them all.
Her favourites are, of course, David
Austin varieties, those wonderful, full-
blown, highly fragrant roses similar to
those you see in Old Master's
paintings. Well some of them. The high
powered celebrity roses are mostly
hybrid teas with lovely full blossoms
and rich colours. The Shakespearean
and English landmarks are mostly
Austin roses.
Pam has had a passion for roses for
years. Her grandfather's postage -sized
back yard garden in downtown
Hamilton was an inspiration. Pam is
one of several .children and her
grandparent's home offered a stable
focal point for a family kept on the
move with the Royal Canadian Air
Force. Pam lovingly remembers the
little yard as the most fragrant place to
be With roses and lilacs crowding
around her.
Everywhere Pam has worked she
has found great nurseries offering
wonderful roses. She is drawn naturally
to the name of the rose rather than the
colour or variety. Another of her
passions is history and her choices
reflect that too. Her Pegasus rose
represents the symbol of the Royal
Canadian Airforce.
Glammis Castle is named after the
childhood home of the Queen Mother
and the legendary setting for Macbeth.
St. Swithun was named to
commemorate the 900th anniversary of
Winchester Cathedral. Winchester, a
fragrant old shrub rose, sits right beside
Brother Cadfael a wonderful peony -like
old Bourbon rose named after Ellis
Peter's medieval detective.
The roses seem to develop a
personality of their own. Abraham
Lincoln was a bit put out with Kennedy
but calmed down when several Peace
roses were added to the mix. And
Queen Elizabeth is quite content
alongside Lady Diana. Pam has had up
to 63 roses although not all of them are
celebrities. The Iceburg rose is a
prolific floribunda and Fisherman's
Friend will spread out quite nicely
when given the room.
Pam is not one of those gardeners
that spends hours upon hours with her
roses. She wears several hats aside
from her gardening bonnet, from being
the Chair of the Board for Huron
Community Futures, treasurer of the
Huron County Historical Society, to
involvement with the IODE just to
name a few.
All demand her full involvement so
she only has time to enjoy the roses and
not enough time to fuss if she were
inclined to do so. She trims any
damaged sections in the spring using
the same rule as for asparagus, just trim
what is dead, or what 'snaps'.
Pam tries to keep a close eye on the
leaves looking for aphids, or black spot.
This dry summer has been especially
good for roses as it deters the growth of
the fungus black spot. As an alternative
to chemical dusts, Pam will steep red
pepper flakes in water overnight and
use this on her roses. She also uses
detergent and water to keep the aphids
at bay. Fertilizer is applied until August
to encourage good root growth and
strong plants for next year. Pam will
water if very dry and uses tepid water
not cold. She never throws her cold tea
down the drain but straight into the
garden.
In the back corner of the yard is a
lovely lilac that reminds Pam of her
grandfather. Around its base she sets out
plants that need a bit of rehabilitating.
Throughout the years Pam has lost a
few roses in house/garden moves.
When she started collecting her roses
her present garden had a lot more light
back in 1988. But since that time it is
surprising what can take over. A huge
linden tree and a wonderful pine offer
dappled shade throughout the back
yard. But it is the three black walnuts
across the back in her neighbour's yard
that are offering a bit of a challenge to
the roses. Not daunted Pam and her
husband have cut a dangerous tree in
the side yard and opened up a
wonderful bright spot for, you guessed
it, roses. I wonder who will be moving
in?0