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It’s a wonder the difference the color version made since, well, some of us grew up in a world where if we didn’t see things for ourselves we were probably going to see them in black and white.

I had a lovely David Austin rose I got on sale-dug it up to move it out to the boonies with the rest of the family. It was a cream/yellow color, I can’t remember the name. It smelled wonderful. It survived the trip and transplant. But eventually the deer figured out we are the only people in the area that don’t hunt. And instead of being grateful, they ate it and the tomatos and everything else.
Austin roses are not only pretty they smell good -at least I think most of them do.

Oh…. lovely roses at an old cottage in Albion during the fleeting but beautiful summer.

What a dream!

My sister-in-law was a specialist in antique roses, and when she died she left me most of her books on roses, about a hundred or so. I’ve been hunting for an antique secretary desk with a bookcase above, to use as a chair-side end table, so I can easily reach the rose books. The one I’ve been reading lately is David Austin’s “Old Roses and English Roses,” published in 1982.

What is the name of the white rose you have in your garden? You showed us a photo one time. I think the rose had grown over the garden shed.

I’m not very knowledgeable about roses, but aren’t the ones with the fluffy ruffly flowers all hybrids? And does the class “old-fashioned roses” include hybrids? Or should I go back to night-blooming cereus and shut up roses which generally do poorly in Florida anyway?

(If this shows up multiple times, blame some sort of incompatibility between my VPN and the sweasel.com server.)

Hello Deborah – I’ll jump in here as Her Stoatliness will only ask me, anyway 😉 The absolutely rampant one is a rambler called Rambling Rector. It’s a monster but, sadly, only flowers once. But when it does…

The other is one I first saw at Sissinghurst (Vita had fantastic taste in roses!) She’s called Madame Alfred Carriere – she’s a climber (the rose, not Vita). I’ve planted her near a tall hedge and a large holly tree and she has woven through the hedge and climbed to the very top of the tree where she sparkles in the sunlight like a flowery crown. She’ll repeat flowery and she’s scented too. Highly recommended!

Uncle Al—an antique rose (old rose, heirloom rose) is a rose that was cultivated before 1867, when the first hybrid tea rose, “La France,” was bred. Here is a link to the Antique Rose Emporium in Independence Tx—showing their antique roses, with a bit of narrative to go with them. I used to live about 10 miles from the ARE and their roses were everywhere. I am especially fond of the rose named “Seven Sisters” which dates to 1817 and was one of the first roses brought into Texas.
https://www.antiqueroseemporium.com/collections/true-antique-roses

Uncle Badger—Thank you. Rambling Rector and Madame Alfred Carriere would fit nicely into my Moonlight Garden. I don’t have anything for either of them to grow up on, except two shabby ornamental Bradford pear trees that I dislike, but cutting down a tree in the panhandle is an abomination unless it’s diseased. But letting Madam Alfred Carriere grow up the Bradford pears would be great compromise. Now I have at least one firm idea! Thanks again.

You’re definitely on the right frequency with your Moonlight Garden and Madame AC, Deborah. I understand she was Vita’s first choice for her famous white garden. It would be lovely to see a picture of her making her stately ascent of your pear tree!

About those Bradford pears (ick). You could let anyone who cares know that they suffered from a bad case of Domina contemnit and you didn’t want it to spread.

https://translate.google.com/?sl=la&tl=en&text=Domina%20contemnit.&op=translate

Thank you Uncle Al!