Tuesday, May 27, 2008

The Bliss Rose Extravaganza

Smothered with roses is what is happening at Bliss right now. The front garden is one mass of white roses and many an unsuspecting pedestrian, when turning the corner, looks like s/he has just been hit with the proverbial blunt instrument when they clap their eyes on this extravaganza. And when they get a whiff of that gorgeous rose scent they stop dead in their tracks. Very funny, I've seen it happen quite a lot recently and who can blame them? Not me, as it is quite overwhelming to encounter that many scented roses in full bloom.
Let me introduce these showstopping culprits to you. On top of the pergola and around the front door is Madame Alfred Carriere, a very dear friend of mine.
Here is a mugshot of her.
Pretty, isn't she, her flowers start out in the softest of pinks and become whitish later on. She is a very prolific bloomer, healthy, long flowering and she is very fragrant too.
It's a joy to walk underneath the pergola where her scent is trapped, pure bliss!

Another star on the Bliss rose firmament is rosa Moonlight. She is usually the first to flower and she is still flowering when most roses have given up.
Moonlight is a strong and healthy rose, her new leaves are purple-red and her flowers are white with a golden heart. Her scent is a lovely one, very enjoyable.
Rosa Moonlight and Madame Alfred Carriere

Another gorgeous rose is Sombreuil that has the best scent of all the roses flowering in the front garden. It's an oldfashioned rose, white with just a hint of apricot in the centre.
I've put her in a bed edged with box and filled with white lavender. When the lavender is in flower together with Sombreuil the air is filled with a very heady perfume indeed and the bees are working overtime then.
In the bed right next to Sombreuil is rosa Blanc Double de Coubert. This is not a climbing rose like the others but she does get to be about 2 meters tall.
Blanc Double de Coubert is in a bed filled with white geraniums and they look very pretty together.
The flowers of Blanc Double de Coubert are the very whitest of white and look like they are made of very thin tissue paper. Its scent reminds me of fresh pineapple, very pleasant.
But the one who is stealing the show right now is rosa Guirlande d'Amour.
She is literally covered with buds and flowers and she hasn't reached her peak yet.
On a sunny day her scent is overwhelming. It's a great rose to have, very strong and healthy, it's an exceptionally prolific bloomer, scented and long flowering too. What more could you possibly ask for? What's that you say? You love cutting roses for the vase? Well, so do I and the roses in the Bliss front garden are very good for that too. If you cut them at the right moment and give them proper care, they last for about a week and fill your living room with their wonderful scent.
This a little bouquet I cut about 2 weeks ago when the roses started flowering. In the vase are Madame Alfred Carriere, Moonlight, Blanc Double de Coubert and Sombreuil.

If you feel like you would love to have something like this in your garden too, then give it a try. Contrary to what a lot of people think, roses are not that difficult to grow. Mine are all grown organically, they are pruned twice a year (once in March and again in June), I deadhead them once a week when in flower and give them a feed twice a year too just after pruning. And I enjoy them from early May until the first frost in November. I do not spray them with toxins of any kind, there is no need. The trick is to select strong and healthy roses (disease resistant), buy them from a reputable rose nursery and treat them right.
On the left Sombreuil and on the right Blanc Double de Coubert.

Copyright 2008 Y.E.W. Heuzen

The rose speaks of love silently, in a language known only to the heart.
Unknown

33 comments:

Anonymous said...

Good morning, Yolanda! What a lovely way to start my day on this wet and miserable morning, with a tour of your wonderful roses. Thank you-I've cheered up considerably!

Anonymous said...

Absolutely glorious! I'm sitting here with my nose twitching at the vivid description of the scents from all these roses. xx

Lisa at Greenbow said...

Your beautiful collection of fragrant roses are wafting all the way into my office. MMMmmmmmm Love seeing them. All of these pictures makes me want to go right out and purchase some. They are just beautiful I can only imagine the smell.

Gail said...

Wow! Your roses are magnificent....and if I had the sun I would order all of them for fall planting! Would you plant in the fall?

Gail

Silvia Hoefnagels . Salix Tree said...

Heavenly! I love these, I would enjoy walking past your house. I'd definitely stop and savor the scents and sights.
My roses haven't yet begun to bloom, buds are there already.. so soon!

Barbara said...

Ups, almost the same happens here, as some of "your" roses are on the border near the street. In the evening it is funny to observe people, hearing them quarreling about the name of the scented roses, smelling with their nose and then continuing walking . Guirlande d'amour is still on my wishing list, but not available at my rose grower. Let's wait and see.
Enjoy your wonderful roses!

Melissa said...

WOW just beautiful!

Anonymous said...

Wat ik vooral zo mooi vind van jouw rozen is dat ze er niet zo formeel bij staan. Een beetje wild en overal tussendoor, heerlijk!

Anonymous said...

Ach, wat jammer nou dat jij hélemaal niet van rozen houdt! ;-))
Héérlijk, die enorme wolken van bloemen, daar wordt je bij de juiste temperaturen wel een beetje high van denk ik!
Het valt me wel op dat alle rozen het fantastisch doen, zelfs de gele roos in mijn keukentuintje die ik vergeten was te snoeien bloeit zoals ie nog nooit gedaan heeft!

Anonymous said...

Yolanda, your white roses are a delight to the eyes! That MAC is quite obviously happy in your garden!

Mr. McGregor's Daughter said...

I'm going to have to get a Rose - my daughter has asked for one. As full sun space is at a premium, only one will be allowed. Trying to decide which has become a real trial. There are so many beauties, as your garden shows!

Ewa said...

Good evening Yolanda, Your roses is a pure pure bliss :)) :)
I need more roses! I will make new plan.
Greetings,

archivesinfo said...

I adore roses! How long did it take these beauties to reach their current regal stature? I wish I could see it in person!

Yolanda Elizabet Heuzen said...

Hi all and welcome to rosy Bliss,

* Rosalind: morning! Glad to hear that my roses have cheered you up on an otherwise miserable day.

* Mike: it's a pity we don't have a scratch and sniff gadget on our computers, eh?

* Lisa: there is a rose for every garden so do go out and find one, or two. ;-)

* Gail: some roses do very well in shade too. Madame Alfred Carriere does fine on a north facing wall in full shade. I've planted my (container) roses in June but you can plant them for quite a long time, from say early March to November. In early Spring and late Fall you can buy roses bare rooted and plant them like that. During the rest of the growing months you can buy them in containers. Only during winter you cannot plant them.

* Sylvia: so there will be lots of roses to enjoy for you soon too? What a wonderful thing to look and smell ;-) forward to.

* Barbara: it is funny watching people react to the roses. Some are walking with their heads down, looking at the ground instead of up. Then they are hit by the scent and beng! up come their heads with a funny expression on their faces.
Hope you will be able to find Guirlande d'Amour as it is such a lovely rose.

* Melissa: just thanks! ;-)

* Brimstone: ik heb een formele voortuin aangelegd met buxus vakken en veel rechte lijnen. Het is dan leuk om de planten min of meer hun gang te laten gaan zodat het niet te strak en saai wordt.

* Marian: LOL Het is blijkbaar een goed rozenjaar. En ja, je wordt wel een beetje high van al die wolken geparfumeerde rozen.

* Nikkipolani: you are not wrong and yes MAC is very happy but she is not a difficult rose to grow as she is even happy in deepest shade.

* MMD: if space is limited, have you thought of buying a climber? They don't take up much space but then you must have a wall or something else available for them to climb up against.

* Ewa: you always need more roses, I do too and am going to buy a few more soon.

* Melissa: less than 2 years as I planted them in June 2006.

Thanks for visiting and commenting and please do come again!

Anonymous said...

soms denk ik wel eens lezen ze die commentaren van jou wel ??
ik kom nooit terug om te kijken of je me antwoord hebt gegeven hahahahahaha..maar rozig ben ik wel zeg ..fantastisch zoals ze erbij staan .....en zolang op vaas !! Hen zelf al een wéék plezier van de witte sering ;))
nou dat is een unicum hoor ..
meis een fijne dag ..groetjes Lenie

Hannele på Hisingen said...

I can feel a lovely smell.

Anonymous said...

Wat een impact heeft dit logje...ik ruik opeens rozen!!!!!!
OT vergat bij vorige log nog te zeggen dat ik de titel zo goed vond ;-))

Surya said...

Hi...
Your roses are very beautiful. It's really nice to see your garden full of roses. Good luck.

Cheryl said...

Beautiful fragrant Roses what a joy to stroll around your garden Yolanda. I love white blooms, so for me the absolute perfect post......thank you.

Garden Cats + Crafts said...

Da ist ja ein Schwall weißer Rosenblüten nach dem anderen, liebe Yolanda. Herrlich blüht es bei Dir schon. Hier bei uns legt die Rosenblüte jetzt gerade los. Jeden Tag werden es mehr.
Ist es nicht herrlich im Mai!
Liebe Grüße, Birgit

Miranda Bell said...

Love your roses - have just been getting together a pile of pictures of our own to do a posting on my own blog... the time of year!! Madame Alfred Carriere is fantastic and we were lucky enough to have 5 large bushes when we arrived in France - they seem to perform the best when pruned well in the autumn! The perfume is fab! Keep enjoying your garden Miranda

LadyLuz said...

What a feast for the eyes and nose, Yolanda. I love the contrast of the burgundy coloured hedging.

I feel inspired to try roses when I see yours, but I just don't have any success, whereas Mathilde's deep red ones next door are perfect.

gintoino said...

Beautiful, yolanda, just beautiful! that Moonlight rose is wonderful, I can almost feel its scent.

Frances, said...

Hi YE, I love the white theme you have going on in your front garden. I have never seen white lavender, still the same fragrance? We have Moonlight, two in fact, such a great performer, and just added Madame Alfred on the new arbor, partly because of the beauty of yours. Hope she grows to cover it in dripping flowers like yours. She is growing quickly, a good sign. I also love your boxwood and barberry hedges, so neat and crisp looking. Your garden is a dream.

Curmudgeon said...

Oh extravaganza is so right! Yes, a scratch n' sniff gadget on our computers would be so wonderful. I love the doorway with the roses overhead. --Curmudgeon

Karin said...

Your roses are stunning! I'm almost speachless. ;) Your garden must be lovely right now. It looks like your enjoying great weather aswell? Have a nice weekend!

Kram Karin

Rusty in Miami said...

Wow Yolanda that is quite a show of roses. I agree the Guirlande d’Amour is the star.

Jane O' said...

I was never one to care for roses until I got interested in old-fashioned rugosas. The hybrid teas are too formal for me. I love the rambling look of your climbers. Very victorian looking.

MUHEDIK said...

Oh, so wonderful! In Estonia the roses flowered in June-July. Thank You for the very interest and lovely blog!

Naturegirl said...

Gorgeous delightfull and I can smell them from across the miles!!
Yolanda there cannot be anything more pleasing to me than an abundance of roses filling the air with their perfume!Oh yours are certainly a wonderful sight I am sure when passing by!
Have a wonderful weekend in your beautifull garden of Bliss!hugs NG

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stadtgarten said...

This is exactly the kind of front garden my husband is dreaming. I have to show him this post! When we were in Steinfurth last week he was looking for roses like these.
Your garden looks absolutely wonderful, I can understand that people are stopping to see and smell.
Have a nice weekend, Monika

Kylee Baumle said...

There you go again, dear Yolanda Elizabet. Making me dream of your beautiful roses and how wonderful they must smell with so many blooms. They're as gorgeous this year as I remember them from last year.