There is a peculiar form of one-upmanship in being able to pick a nice bunch of flowers in December, and presenting a fresh rose on Christmas morn - and could there be anything nicer? Of course, it will hardly be likely to compare with a bloom from early summer, December weather is all wrong for a start, and most roses have long decided to call it a day, but some varieties just don't know when to stop.
They have somewhat smaller blooms but the group offers a range of colours, and one of them, 'Old Blush China', is also known as the 'Monthly Rose' because of the regularity with which it repeatedly blooms.
Anything from 4-6ft (1.2-1.8m) tall, the silvery-pink, sweetly perfumed flowers continue to appear right through autumn into winter. Naturally, this attribute attracted a lot of attention when it was brought to English gardens from China in the latter part of the eighteenth century, and reputedly it is the variety that inspired a famous poet of the time, Thomas Moore, to pen words that have become immortal as 'The Last Rose of Summer'.
The second method, which can be used with a bud that looks likely to open a day or two too early, is to cut the bloom, remove all but the top couple of leaves as before, and as quickly as possible get the cut end and the leaf scars under water in a tall vase to which ice cubes from the fridge have been added.
By all means you may be lucky, but as I say, I have never seen it actually demonstrated. An idea that does work - sometimes - is to immerse an entire, tight, just-beginning-to-open bud and stem, with just a couple of leaves, in a narrow tray or dish of water. It is vital that all air bubbles are removed; they may try to cling around the petals, and it helps to add one drip, no more, of washing-up liquid to dispel these.
A very good variety for our purpose is the modern pure white `Iceberg'. Buds in December sometimes show a slight touch of pink, but the above treatment either clears it or hides it under the opening petals to give a nice white bloom. - 16035
They have somewhat smaller blooms but the group offers a range of colours, and one of them, 'Old Blush China', is also known as the 'Monthly Rose' because of the regularity with which it repeatedly blooms.
Anything from 4-6ft (1.2-1.8m) tall, the silvery-pink, sweetly perfumed flowers continue to appear right through autumn into winter. Naturally, this attribute attracted a lot of attention when it was brought to English gardens from China in the latter part of the eighteenth century, and reputedly it is the variety that inspired a famous poet of the time, Thomas Moore, to pen words that have become immortal as 'The Last Rose of Summer'.
The second method, which can be used with a bud that looks likely to open a day or two too early, is to cut the bloom, remove all but the top couple of leaves as before, and as quickly as possible get the cut end and the leaf scars under water in a tall vase to which ice cubes from the fridge have been added.
By all means you may be lucky, but as I say, I have never seen it actually demonstrated. An idea that does work - sometimes - is to immerse an entire, tight, just-beginning-to-open bud and stem, with just a couple of leaves, in a narrow tray or dish of water. It is vital that all air bubbles are removed; they may try to cling around the petals, and it helps to add one drip, no more, of washing-up liquid to dispel these.
A very good variety for our purpose is the modern pure white `Iceberg'. Buds in December sometimes show a slight touch of pink, but the above treatment either clears it or hides it under the opening petals to give a nice white bloom. - 16035
