Earliest blooming roses

9 years ago

The garden club is going to tour my gardens next week--hope my roses open by then. I thought the meeting was a week later--didn't realize that Memorial Day interfered, so the club moved the meeting/tour up a week--it's going to be touch and go on about half my roses, whether they will be in bloom or not. With a normal winter, most of the roses would be open by now--but this winter wasn't normal, was it!

Here are the early bloomers in my gardens:

3 Home Runs--first to bloom, going strong now.
3 Queens of Sweden (Austins)--blooming like crazy. (They are so pretty!)
Lady of Shalott and Munstead Woods (Austins)--two of my newest roses and already two of my favorites. They both just opened yesterday and should be looking great by next Monday!
7 mini Sweet Dianas--little yellow cuties
Gourmet Popcorn--another mini--just opened today.
Two Double Knock Outs--the color is eye-catching, there's no doubt about that!
2 Mrs. John Laing (hybrid perpetual)--completely opened today--so charming!
Mortimer Sackler (Austin)--just opening but not looking that great yet.
Fru Dagmar Hastrup (rugosa)--good bloom for the first time ever!

That will give them some idea that there are roses besides KOs and HTs--but leaves quite a few of my roses in an iffy position. However, there are a few more that are in bud and hopefully will be blooming well by next Monday:

Buds with good color and/or half opened already:

William Shakespeare 2000 (Austin)--love those dark red buds--lots of them this year!
Pretty Jessica (Austin)--just popping with half opened buds!

One full bloom only for now--maybe they will be doing more by next Monday:

Mystic Beauty (bourbon)--gorgeous pastel
Our Lady of Guadalupe (floribunda)
Scepter'd Isle (Austin)
Dublin Bay (climber)
Cecile Brunner (polyantha)
The Wedgewood (Austin climber)

The others have lots of buds on them, but aren't anywhere near showing even any color yet. Problem is that that is about half my roses that just might be doing nothing by next Monday. Some of the garden club members don't really believe anybody could grow 65-70 roses, so I was hoping to show them what they are missing by turning their backs on roses, but now only half of my roses may make an appearance. How aggravating -- when I worked so hard to show off these beauties!

There are a number of peonies and iris blooming out there, so the gardens as a whole don't look bad at all. It's just that I wanted to show off my roses!

Did have one winter casualty--Chrysler Imperial. Couldn't find a replacement anywhere within driving distance this morning, so finally bought Oklahoma--with one bud on it. Hopefully it will open by next Monday? It is along the perfumed path, so I hope it smells good! : )

Kate

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Comments (5)

Maryl (Okla. Zone 7a)
9 years ago
So many pretty roses already in bloom. My Queen of
Sweden is just starting its bloom cycle here too (and I agree about liking this one). We had a late freeze just about the time buds were setting and I had to reprune almost all my roses to get rid of the fried buds. Glad no one is coming for the rose show in my yard. You have such a wonderful selection of varieties, that I'm sure everyone will have lots of pretty blooms to see and sniff.........Maryl
nippstress - zone 5 Nebraska
9 years ago
Wow, Kate - that just goes to show how much of a difference one state and zone's difference can make! Just north of you in Nebraska, I was shocked to see some very tight buds already forming on the early bloomers in my yard (Reine des Violette and Felix Leclerc usually vie for first place), but absolutely nothing rose-related is blooming. In fact, I still have tulips going strong and just fading in the warmer areas of the yard. This has been a weird weather year, and everything seems to be compressing into May that is normally stretched out over 2 months.

In the meantime, I'm sure your garden club will be suitably amazed and impressed at your yard, even if they don't see it in its full glory. Our role as rose enthusiasts is to always see beyond the present situation to what could be grown, but you will most definitely demonstrate how very well you can grow 70 roses in your most capable hands.

We of course welcome pictures.
Cynthia
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dublinbay z6 (KS)
Original Author
9 years ago
Thanks for the moral support, Maryl and Cynthia. Sounds like both of you--one Zone 7 and the other Zone 5--had some worse weather to deal with than we did here in Zone 6.

I'm going to try to assign my son to take pics. I'm afraid I'll still be hauling out leaves and pulling weeds as the garden club pulls into the driveway! LOL

Kate
kansas.girl
9 years ago
Wow, I would love to see your garden, Kate. I can only imagine how beautiful it must be! I feel like I have so long to go before I can enjoy anything as lovely as that at my house. Glad to hear the severe weather we just had didn't affect your garden!
meredith_e Z7b, Piedmont of NC, 1000' elevation
9 years ago
Have a great time! I'm sure it'll be gorgeous :)

Most of my roses are still buds -- so many buds! I can't wait. Some roses had to be cut all the way back, so it's nice to see so many doing well after the awful winter.

Blooming for a while now: Purezza and Pompon de Paris, Cl.

Just started but already looking nice: Lavender Dream, Natchitoches Noisette, Parade, Georgetown HP, High Society, Pat Austin, and a pink poly whose name I can never remember :D Oh, and Renae started!

I even have a tulip magnolia 'Jane' who is still blooming right beside Parade, and it's so pretty. Parade almost caught the lilac bloom this year, too! She didn't mind the winter one bit.