This beautiful classic from 1996 is just the thing to inspire rose-gardening dreams on a frigid winter’s day in the Snow Belt, or anywhere else for that matter.
Written and photographed by the husband and wife team of John Scarman and Teresa Scarman, Gardening with Old Roses is a work that masterfully blends informative text and evocative pictures. The many photos of glorious roses and lush gardens draw the reader in, while the conversational chapters—which provide more information and explanation than comparable books—allow the reader to believe he or she could achieve similar results at home. A blend of romanticism and practical advice should be expected from the Scarmans, who opened their nursery in 1983 and write from both personal and professional experience. As an Old Rose specialist, John Scarman is able to easily explain the history, classifications and characteristics of these old-fashioned roses, which are famous for their strong fragrances, romantic colors, and full blossoms. Among his topics of discussion are the large Rambler New Dawn, the summer-blooming Shrub The Fairy, and the thornless Bourbon Zephrine Drouhin. In addition, this book displays a deft balance of information and visual aids. For instance, the chapter “Designing with Old Roses” describes using structures like pergolas or planting near water features and then offers plans and drawings for several different sized gardens. Another chapter, “Planting with Old Roses,” discusses color schemes, plant structure, and planting choices to embrace (such as annuals, herbs and vines) as well as invasive plants to eschew. Here, one of the lovely photos shows the light pink Bourbon rose Souvenir de la Malmaison planted with pale purple campanula. Teresa Scarman’s photographs also include an inspirational mix of vigorous rose bushes in various garden settings and stunning beauty shots of individual rose blossoms, as well as useful pictures of rose bushes before and after pruning and specimens when they are dormant and bare, then verdant and foliated. The captions, too, are noteworthy because many of them not only identify or describe the subject of the photo, but they also are unusually instructive and provide suggestions about things like creating focal points or pruning precisely. The longest chapter, entitled the “Directory of Old Roses,” reviews the history and classifications of these old-fashioned beauties (with helpful photos showing both flower and foliage) and offers specific suggestions about placement, companion plants and care. Here we learn more about the pink Polyantha Cécile Brunner, the fragrant Modern Shrub Constance Spry, and the Shropshire Lass, another Modern Shrub that could also be grown as a Climber. The best part may well be that John Scarman identifies a number of repeat-flowering varieties, such as the Bourbon Louise Odier and the Rugosa Fru Dagmar Hastrup (also known as Frau Dagmar Hartopp), which are generally unusual among Old Roses like the once-flowering purple shrub Cardinal de Richelieu. The most useful section may be the detailed pages about pruning, which not only cover how and when to trim each classification (since their needs differ), but also describe some aesthetics of pruning to achieve the appropriate look and desired growth of the roses in question. With its blend of beautiful images and practical information, Gardening with Old Roses allows readers to both imagine the rose garden of their dreams and find advice to help those dreams bloom into reality. We’d appreciate your feedback. Please leave a comment if you found this book review useful or if you can recommend other helpful titles, and we’d really love to hear from you if grow Old Roses. What success (or disappointments) have you had?
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In honor of the season of giving, and with much appreciation to the Irondequoit Public Library, where we’ve held our rose show for the past two years, here’s our gift to you: the books part of this Books & Blooms blog.
The members of the Greater Rochester Rose Society have drawn on their knowledge and experience and compiled a list of their favorite books about growing roses. A few of these titles have already been reviewed here, and more will be reviewed in the upcoming year. Many of these titles are available through the Monroe County Library System, and all of them will provide inspiration and suggestions for gardening with roses in 2018. Happy Holidays, Happy New Year, and Happy Gardening to Everyone. May 2018 be a rosy year for us all. Recommended Reading for Rose Lovers 100 Old Roses for the American Garden, Clair G. Martin David Austin’s English Roses, David Austin Gardening with Old Roses, John Scarman Growing Roses Organically, Barbara Wilde Heirloom Roses, Rayford Clayton Reddell Miracle-Gro Complete Guide to Roses, Michael McKinley, editor Modern Roses 12, Marily A. Young & Phillip Schorr Old Roses, Andrew Mikolajski The Random House Guide to Roses, Roger Phillips & Martyn Rix Right Rose, Right Place, Peter Schneider The Rose Bible, Rayford Clayton Reddell A Rose by Any Name, Douglas Brenner & Stephen Scanniello Rose Companions, Stephen Scanniello Roses for Dummies, Lance Walheim Roses without Chemicals, Peter E. Kukielski Taylor’s Guide to Roses, based on Taylor’s Encyclopedia of Gardening Twentieth Century Roses, Peter Beales A Year of Roses, Douglas Brenner & Stephen Scanniello A Rose by Any Name, published in 2009, is a lovely little book filled with an encyclopedic amount of information. While the art on the dust jacket may look romantic, the content inside is fact-filled and fast-paced. Douglas Brenner and Stephen Scanniello have compiled a digest that not only lives up to its subtitle (The Little-Known Lore and Deep-Rooted History of Rose Names) but also provides something for every kind of rose-loving reader. At first glance, the book seems to be about only 48 roses including Blaze, the Green Rose, and the Yellow Rose of Texas; however, each chapter discusses many more varieties than its eponymous rose. The chapters vary in length from three to seven pages of information, and their content ranges from full discussions to mere mentions. Some chapters convey a brief history of the rose, including its hybridization and its naming, while others also catalog a few similar varieties or reference numerous related roses. The chapter on Barbra Streisand, for instance, includes a who’s who of other celebrity roses, while the chapter entitled “Gourmet Popcorn” tells little about that yummy variety but mentions some three dozen other delicious roses named for food or drink. Most chapters also feature reprints of vintage artwork or interesting photos from days gone by along with extended sidebars or fascinating tidbits about topics like patriotic rose names, such as Lady Liberty, or royal ones, like the Duchess of Windsor. With such a range of content, A Rose by Any Name offers something for everyone. If you like to curl up with a good book, you can easily become engrossed in one captivating story after another. If you crave obscure history or enjoy amusing trivia, you can quickly flip from one snippet to another and satiate your need to know more. Whether you’re sitting down to plan a theme garden of fairy tale-inspired roses or looking for some background on a rose you already grow, such as New Dawn, this little giant of a book offers it all for readers and rosarians alike. Please comment and let us know if you found this book review helpful or if you have any gardening guides that you recommend. If you know anything about David Austin roses, you’ll know exactly what to expect from his book, David Austin’s English Roses: Glorious New Roses for American Gardens, and your expectations will be graciously met.
Deeply cupped, many petaled, and highly fragrant, English Roses epitomize the image we have of old-fashioned roses: lush, romantic, and beautiful, and Austin’s text is accompanied by lush photographs of beautiful roses and romantic rose garden settings. The photo of a voluptuous bouquet of English Roses on the dust jacket suggests that this is a coffee table book; the contents, however, offer so much more. Austin tells the story of how he came to create this new class of rose and describes exactly what constitutes an English Rose. He provides an overview of 15 groups of roses and “detailed portraits” of 80 or so of his English beauties. He devotes a chapter to the nuances of fragrance and another to the lengthy process of hybridizing. Not only does he offer suggestions for using English Roses in the garden and for the care they’ll need; he also discusses bringing roses into the home. Throughout this lovely book, Austin’s writing is also what one would expect: His vocabulary is educated and descriptive; his style is sophisticated yet eminently readable, and his tone is cultured while remaining conversational. The chapters are filled with his interesting story as a rose hybridizer, his practical advice as a gardener, and his thoughtful observations as an aficionado of the world’s most beloved flower. If you don’t know David Austin’s English Roses, this book will inspire you to become acquainted quickly. There are at least two kinds of gardening books – coffee table tomes and practical guides – and the Miracle-Gro Complete Guide to Roses is surely one of the best handbooks on our favorite flower. To say that it’s comprehensive is undoubtedly an understatement. The large paperback book, which came out in 2008, appears much like similar references, which belies its extraordinary content: There’s no identified author; the publisher, Scotts, is a commercial one; its unassuming cover seems to have been designed by a graphic artist, and its content runs the usual gamut from choosing, planting, tending, and describing roses. This ordinary framework of a handbook, however, has been developed and designed to include an extraordinary amount of information and number of visual aids. This guide goes into far more detail than usual on the necessary subjects like those listed above. In addition, it includes substantial sections on the varieties of roses, the better choices for around the country, and gardening with roses in a range of settings. For example, the book not only provides a full page chart about the types of roses, but it also follows up with a half-page of description of each glorious variety. The lengthy chapter on designing rose gardens covers virtually all options, such as mixed beds, mass plantings and hedges, and provides numerous photos that illustrate the different layouts and effects. Surprisingly, the section on creating formal rose gardens and the one on planting in containers are about the same length, which suggests the editors of this guide know the range of interests rose lovers have. The chapter on choosing roses concisely explains a number of regional climates and conditions as well as a variety of situations (like light and soil) that are present anywhere. The chapter on basics not only covers all that beginning gardeners need (like soil amendments and planting instructions), but also discusses equally important but often omitted topics like shade, microclimates, and air circulation. The section on pruning is also quite detailed and instructive. In addition, the Miracle-Gro Complete Guide to Roses includes a number of graphic organizers that include both explanations and illustrations, so they tell us something and show us examples. For instance, a timeline with photos explains the history of the rose; a chart with photos depicts which roses bloom to what degree in which months, a color wheel of open blooms shows the range of hues developed; and a mono-chromatic drawing shows the shape and size of various rose bushes growing in relation to one another. There’s also a year-long calendar identifying which tasks should be done at what month around the country. The guidebook’s gallery of roses is organized by type, with introductory descriptions followed by beautiful photos of and facts about scores and scores of both favorite and newer roses. Throughout, useful information is also provided in brief tips, and sidebars provide longer explanations of related topics. The photographs are also highly helpful and include both close-ups of blooms and other items like prickles and mulch as well as larger images of rose bushes in a variety of lovely garden settings. With so much detailed, useful information and such a variety of illustrations, it’s appropriate that the book’s cover bears the “endorsed” emblem of the American Rose Society. The Miracle-Gro Complete Guide to Roses is comprehensive in both its scope and content and belongs in the library of all rose gardeners. Whether they are novices or experts, they will certainly find valuable information and illuminating illustrations in this impressive guide. Please comment and let us know if you found this book review helpful or if you have any gardening guides that you recommend. Please also feel free to attend one of our meetings for more useful information about roses. |
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Patti Dee, Archives
December 2018
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