At some point in most gardeners' lives, there is that desire to grow roses at any cost. Roses can quickly divert you into a world of their own and become all consuming to the avid gardener that is growing them, for they are intensely beautiful. But to achieve this beauty, one must endure the thorny path to reach the bed of roses in all their splendor. ROSES
The serious study of roses is a fulfilled lifetime love affair that at first seems full of pitfalls and overwhelming complexity. But, once you embark on the journey of roses, there is more than one way to make your way through the path to reach the ultimate goal.
The first step is to look closely at the species roses and to sit back and marvel at the total number of garden selections available to you and from this develop a direction of plant you would like to take on. There are thousands of cultivars, but only several hundred are readily available.
One rose that you may want to consider as a part of your collection is a shrub rose. This rose's major point of interest occurs in late summer and into the fall, well after the flowering period. It is known for its fruit ("hips" of roses). This rose is commonly known as the apple rose (Rose villosa). It has large pear-shaped hips and will stop you in your tracks with the bright orange-red color flash.
Rosa villosa is of central European origin and is sometimes listed as Rosa pomifera. Its glossy green foliage is also attractive. Its common name is the Apple rose.
Apple rose can develop lovely soft yellow fall color. It is moderately thorny, multistemmed and will reach a height of 4 - 6 feet. Quite beautiful, single, blush-pink blooms appear in late spring and early summer. Following the bloom, a brilliant 4 inch long scarlet-orange pear-shaped fruit dangles from the branch like showy jewelry.
This rose is excellent for all that enjoy the garden and love to take those afternoon walks for nature's relaxing beauty. The fruits of the apple rose will liven up a special corner, summer border or corner of the patio.
Apple rose prefers moist, well-drained soil but will tolerate moderately heavy clay with adequate water and moderate drainage. It is hardy throughout the Piedmont area and in milder areas of the mountains.
Rosa villosa is subject to all the same diseases as other roses, but will bravely produce a beautiful crop of hips year after year, despite the disease battles of the season. The fruit will consistently show with minimum maintenance.
Rosa villosa can be propagated from softwood cuttings rooted under mist in the summer in a sand/peatmoss/vermiculite cutting mix. You can also be moderately successful rooting them in the same mix in the backyard in a small plastic covered rooting bed.
Look for apple rose through specialty mail order nurseries. Make the extra effort to look for suppliers dealing in "old" and alternative rose selections and you will be amazed by the selections available. This is the time of year to plant them, so do not delay long in looking for them. Enjoy your garden!
Mark Blevins , Horticulture Agent
http://www.ces.ncsu.edu/gaston/
