February Roses

February is the month where I have the least rose flowers in the garden, because most of the roses that are growing in the ground are freshly pruned and therefore do not have any flowers in the moment. But some of the roses growing in containers are still flowering, especially the Tea roses, or are starting to flower again, already. I keep the majority of my roses cultivated in pots temporarily in black plastic containers (only a few are staying in terracotta pots long-term)  until I am ready to plant them into the ground. I think, that the sun warms up the soil in those black plastic pots quite a bit and therefore the roses growing in them are more inclined to flower earlier than their siblings planted in the ground and in terracotta containers.

(you can click on the photos to enlarge)
 

Captain Christy. An older Hybrid Tea rose, which I think is to die for. I am in love with the subtle pink coloration, the many petals, and the beautiful more round flower form in comparison to the modern Hybrid Teas. 

 

Bewitched. This rose is one of my favorite pink Hybrid Teas. Even though it struggles with diseases like powdery mildew and rust at times more than most of my roses I keep it for its gorgeous, large, clear pink, flowers. The blooms are also great as cut flowers and last a  long time in the vase. Bewitched has a sweet strong Damask fragrance, which is simply heavenly!  

 

Mme. Melanie Willermoz. I have read that Mme. Melanie Willermoz is considered one of the finest Tea roses ever bred. I do not grow her that long, but what I have seen so far, I can imagine that this is true. I love this shot of her globular cream-white flowers against the saturated dark blue sky.  

Sweet Chariot. A new to me miniature rose, bred by the famous Ralph Moore, that immediately won me over. I had not seen it in person before I ordered it and was doubtful if I really would like it, but in reality it is much better than I had it expected to be.

Devoniensis Climbing. I have not seen anything else but absolutely perfect blooms from this rose. The color and shape is always very elegant. The only problem is, that I do not know, if I can keep it because of space issues. Devoniensis Cl. seems to want to be a real giant. It is still a young rose, which I have it in a two gallon pot but it has made a climbing basal cane of five feet length already. I have never had that happen with any other of my roses. It is almost a little scary!

Another shot of Bewitched. This rose is perfect even in a bud state. See how elegantly the sepals scroll back?

Grandmother's Hat. She had some problems to open in the cool weather with very little winter light, but I think, she is still very pretty.

My first plonk of this year shot on a warm and sunny day! On one side Grandmother's Hat and Scabiosa blooms...

... and if you turn the little vase around you see another beautiful flower of Bewitched on the other side.

Pretty Jessica. In this photo I find the many different shades of pink color of the petals very fascinating. The flowers are so heavy, that the rose is not able to hold them upright, so they nod.




Rhodologue Jules Gravereaux, another Tea rose that produces perfectly round buds. In the pictures you can see how neatly the petals scroll back.

At the end a bush shot of Baronne Prevost. This rose will be the first one to bloom for me this spring from the roses that are planted in the ground. I am kind of surprised why Baronne Prevost is so early this year. Maybe it has to do with the fact, that when she was planted in December 2010 I put fertilizer in the bottom of the planting hole, so that the roots could get right to it. Most of my other roses are fertilized not earlier than in February/March each year.


Hope you like looking at my rose pictures today!

See you in the garden!

Christina