The Rural Voice, 1997-03, Page 39Gardening
Hardy roses rekindle love affair
By Rhea Hamilton -Seeger
I think I have fallen in love again
with roses.
Many years ago I bought a
number of rose bushes — hybrid teas
and grandiflora varieties. I was
plagued with black spot, aphids, and
could have been charged with
neglect for lack of nutrients to
produce the magnificent rose bushes
of my youth. With time the roses
became integrated into my perennial
border. When they bloomed they
were praised and when they suffered
they were cleaned up and ignored.
But like so many others, I am a
sucker for a well-turned petal, a
blush of pink on apricot or a whorl of
leaves around a perfect bud. So I
succumbed to my nostalgia and
bought a number of hardy roses born
and bred in Canada.
These roses were part of the
Explorer series developed in the
early sixties in Ottawa and further
enhanced at the government breeding
facility at L'Assomption in 1986. 1
dug in plenty of well -rotted manure,
soaked them well when planted and
used a thick mulch of bark chip.
Every year they complete for Tight
and space with a thick smothering
cover of wild sweet peas and every
year they bloom and prosper. Once
the pea blossoms begin to go to seed
you really notice the roses which
bloom far longer.
The Explorer series was bred for
hardiness, disease resistance and
perpetual flowering all summer. The
three planted in admidst the waves of
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smothering wild sweet peas are proof
of the success of the breeding
program that produced these lovely
roses. Five of the 16 Explorer roses
are cross -bred with Rosa rugosa, a
very hardy shrub rose. The lovely
double pink and high -scented Jens
Munk is one of these and is very
hardy. William Baffin (I think it is
deep pink but pictures show it as
medium red) is one of the pillar -type
Explorers and could be classed as a
climber. The Explorers are not
grafted onto hardy rootstock but are
grown on their own root system. As I
skip through my catalogues I notice
they are not offered this year so you
will have to check your local
nurseries. They are well worth the
search.
I have noticed, this year, a real
push to promote the Parkland series
of roses developed in Morden,
Manitoba. While they share a similar
hardiness to Canadian winters with
the Explorer series, there are some
basic differences between the two.
The Explorer series was developed
for humid regions of Canada while
the Parkland series does better in
drier regions. Parkland roses are
therefore more susceptible to mildew
and black spot than the Explorers,
but of course mnch less than many
other varieties.
Rose Morden Blush, Morden
Fireglow, Morden Centennial are all
part of the Parkland series. These
shrub roses are extremely hardy,
need no winter protection and lend
themselves easily to single specimen
planting or an informal hedge.
Once you have your favourite rose
home, pick a sunny location that
provides protection from strong
winds. Roses need at least six to
eight hours of sunlight a day.
Remember sunshine also hinders
mildew and other moisture -borne
diseases.
You can plant bare -root roses in
the fall or early winter when they are
dormant but for best results save the
planting for spring. Dig up a good
area, working in lots of organic
material — leaf mould, compost or
well -rotted manure. The hole should
not be deeper than the soil line on the
rose but should be twice as wide.
Rose roots like to spread out like tree
roots. If the root ball is matted,
carefully tease roots out and spread
thcm in the hole.
Now we come to the graft. I used
to have problems determining if it
should be below ground where it
could be protected from the winter
cold or above the ground so it did not
encourage suckers to sprout close to
the graft. Got the riddle solved.
Grafted roses should be about four
inches (10 centimetres) below
ground level except in Zone 8 and
higher where the bud union should
be just above ground level.
Pruning at planting time forces the
growth into key areas. Prune back to
several stocky shoots with a few
vigorous buds on each. Always have
the buds facing outwards so that the
new branches will grow outwards
leaving the centre of the plant open.
And last but certainly not least ...
mulch. This keeps the temperature
even, keeps the moisture in,
discourages weeds and keeps
harmful soil/water-borne diseases
from splashing on the leaves. Roses
are big feeders and if you have added
lots of well -rotted manure etc. then
you can use a balanced fertilizer or
special rose food early in the season
and twice more before mid-July.
Feeding later than this encourages
new growth that won't survive the
winter.
For years we have looked to both
the tropical south and the gardens of
Europe for our designs, inspirations
and new additions to our gardens. It
hasn't been until recent years that
gardeners have sought out the
beautiful in their own native habitat.
With the addition of hardy Canadian -
bred roses, gardeners are enjoying
the best of the breed and encouraging
the rest of the world to enjoy a piece
of Canada too.0
Rhea Jlamilton-Seeger raises two
children, and is a skilled cook and
gardener.