Visiting the American Rose Society and Chamblee's Rose Nursery

Over Spring Break, Angie and I visited her father in Shreveport, Louisiana.  Not as exotic as Anna's trip to Budapest and Prague (Czech Republic not Oklahoma) or as fun filled (I don't want to know the details) as Thomas' trip to Panama Beach but we did manage to stop by the American Rose Society Center Garden just outside of Shreveport and Chamblee's Rose Nursery in Tyler, Texas.  It was early in the season for all the trimmed hybrid tea, floribunda, grandaflora, and miniature roses but we did find many of the untrimmed garden roses in bloom.  This entry will be a bit photo heavy but most will stay on the computer hard drive waiting for some appropriate entry.

I have often seen pictures of Rosa Banksiae Lutea or Lady Banks Yellow in bloom but have never in person.  The sight of Lady Banks Yellow at the beginning of her show was enough to make the whole trip worth while.

Each tiny flower is less than an inch in size with 25 plus petals and is beautiful on its own.

The headquarters for the ARS is set deep in the grounds and is lovely surrounded by the tall pines.  I had planned to renew my membership while on the visit but the doors to the center were locked.  I guess I could have walked around to the parking lot side of the building but at that point I was more interested in exploring the gardens. 

My favorite section of the gardens was one that featured many tea, noisette, and hybrid musk roses.  I have always thought that I would really enjoy growing some of the noisette roses because of their large size, growth habit and flower form but I think Oklahoma winters would just be a little cold for them.

It looks like the ARS Center must host a lot of weddings in the gardens.  Angie thinks I should look for a retirement position where I could officiate the weddings and tend the gardens in exchange for living in a small house on the grounds.

Here is Evelyn blooming in the English Rose section.  The English Roses were almost all six to eight feet tall, a height I do not mind but larger than many people like.

The Event Center and reflecting pool has chairs set up for what looks to be a small wedding. 

Our next stop on our trip was Chamblee's Rose Nursery. You only get one picture because I quickly became engrossed in the examining roses.  I was blown away by the quality, size and value of their own-root roses.  Their one gallon plants are significantly less expensive than the much smaller bands I have been ordering.  I think I will be moving them up to my first look when I'm ordering roses.  Just to let you know I was remarkable restrained.  I bought three roses.  I bought Tradescant to replace the one I lost to Rose Rosette Disease (in case the cuttings I took don't make it), William Shakespeare 2000 because I can not resist a nice red rose, and Penelope.  Angie kept saying we can come back next time we come see her dad.  That's not a bad compromise as he is a really good guy.

Making the Move

Back in January I separated two suckers from their mother plants and recently dug them up to move to the park.  The first one is Precious Dream, a Hybrid Bracteata from Ralph Moore.  It has begun to develop some nice roots.

Now the young plant of Precious Dream is making its home in the Prague Rose Garden.  I think it enjoyed the ride in my new Honda Ridgeline pictured it the background.  After 10 years in my Nissan Xterra it was time to pass it along to my son, Thomas. 

The second rose is Reine des Violettes, a Hybrid Perpetual from 1860.  Reine des Violettes is a purple rose that has a strong spring bloom and scattered blossoms in the fall. 

Both are now snuggled in to their new home in the Prague Rose Garden.  The Rose Garden has three beds.  I started working with the South bed and it is now filled with a row of The Fairy, two English Roses in the center row (St. Swithun and Abraham Darby), and a third row with Twister, Autumn Splendor, and Seattle Scentsation.  Now I am filling in the North bed and these two join an originally planted lavender Hybrid Tea, two plants of Popcorn, two Graham Thomas, and one DayDream.  I still have the front row to complete with several more minis to flank the two plants of Popcorn.