In the Garden Articles

Best Roses for 2008

by Joan S. Bolton

Talk about a challenge. Visit any local nursery this time of year, and the choices in bare-root roses are overwhelming.

Row upon row of beautiful glossy labels promise months of incredible bloom. Yet you may hesitate, reminding yourself that roses can be difficult and time-consuming to care for.

Fear of roses is very real. Some folks swear they'll never grow them, saying roses are too fussy, too demanding. In today's world, all many people want are easy-care, low-maintenance plants.

Rose growers have devised a plan to combat that fear. All-America Rose Selections, which has been evaluating the best roses nationwide for 70 years, has begun creating custom lists of widely grown, no-brainer roses for specific climates.

"We just wanted to help people succeed with roses. We considered disease resistance, floriferousness, overall vigor and ease of growth," said Tom Carruth, AARS president and research director at Weeks Roses. "The thing we're trying to tell people is that roses are not the finicky creatures that you might suspect them to be. There is no more rewarding plant in the garden. They give you so much color, repeat so much and come back every year."

He added, "It was a monumental effort to get this list compiled down. You know, you ask five different people what their favorite roses are, and you'll get five different lists."

Three panels of 50 to 60 rose experts took a year to cull through previous AARS national winners to nail down the first three regions: northern California and the Pacific Northwest; southern California and the Southwest, and the Mountain states.

Because our climate straddles both California regions, we lucky gardeners on the Central Coast get to pick and choose.

Our only filter is powdery mildew -- that dusty gray fungus that can coat foliage. At its worst, it distorts the leaves and buds.

"It always surprises people that we get more mildew here than in the Pacific Northwest," Carruth noted. "But powdery mildew prefers milder, dryer conditions."

Northern California & Pacific Northwest Roses

The top 10 roses for northern climes include three grandifloras, three floribundas, two hybrid teas, a landscape shrub and a climber. The years noted are when each rose received its AARS national award.

About Face, 2005, is a tall, upright grandiflora. Its formal, golden-orange flowers bear 30 to 35 petals and measure up to 5 inches across.

Carefree Wonder, 1991, is a landscape shrub that grows 3 to 4 feet tall and wide. Its loose, pink flowers bear 18 to 24 petals and measure up to 4 inches wide.

Cherry Parfait, 2003, is a stately grandiflora that grows 5 feet tall. Its bicolored flowers are composed of 35 to 40 petals, and are white with red edges.

Crimson Bouquet, 2000, is a grandiflora that grows 4 to 5 feet tall. Its classic, rose-red flowers are composed to 20 to 35 petals and measure 4 inches across.

Day Breaker, 2004, is a floribunda that measures 3 to 5 feet tall and wide. Its yellow, pink and apricot flowers bear 25 to 30 petals. Unfortunately, it may get mildew on the Central Coast.

Fourth of July, 1999, was the first climbing rose to receive an AARS award in 23 years. Its eye-catching flowers are flat, red and white striped, bear yellow stamens at the centers and are composed of 10 to 15 petals. Its climbing canes reach 12 to 14 feet.

Gemini, 2000, is a long-stemmed hybrid tea that grows 4 to 6 feet tall. Its white flowers are daintily edged in coral pink, bear 25 to 30 petals and measure 5 to 7 inches across.

Honey Perfume, 2004, is an upright floribunda that grows 3 1/2 feet tall. Its spicy-scented, apricot-yellow flowers are composed of 25 to 30 petals and measure 4 inches across.

Marmalade Skies, 2001, is a rounder floribunda that grows 3 feet tall and wide. Its smallish, tangerine-orange flowers bear 17 to 25 petals and measure only 2 1/2 to 3 inches across.

Sunset Celebration, 1998, is an upright hybrid tea that grows 4 to 5 feet tall. Its creamy apricot and amber flowers are composed of 35 to 40 petals and are moderately fragrant. It's susceptible to mildew.

Southern California & Southwest Roses

These top 10 roses for dry heat include five hybrid teas, two grandifloras, two floribundas and a climber. Of them, three are top 10 performers in the north as well: Cherry Parfait, Fourth of July and Gemini.

Elle, 2005, is a hybrid tea that grows 4 1/2 to 5 1/2 feet tall. Its classic, shell pink flowers are composed of an impressive 50 to 55 petals and measure 4 to 5 inches across. Mildew can be an issue.

Hot Cocoa, 2003, is a medium-tall, upright floribunda. Its unusual, ruffled flowers are best described as a smoky chocolate orange. They're composed of 25 to 30 petals and bear what might politely be called an "old rose" scent.

Julia Child, 2006, is a rounded, bushy floribunda that grows 3 feet tall and wide. Its prolific, buttery-gold flowers are composed of more than 35 petals, measure 3 to 4 inches across and smell like licorice. It's my current favorite rose for outstanding flowering and health.

Opening Night, 1998, is a hybrid tea that grows 4 to 6 feet tall. Its parents are long-time favorites Olympiad and Ingrid Bergman. Its bright red flowers bear 25 to 30 petals and measure 4 to 6 inches across.

Secret, 1994, is a hybrid tea that grows 4 feet tall. Its cream-colored flowers are edged in pink. They're composed of 30 to 35 petals, measure 4 inches across and produce a nice, fruity scent.

Tahitian Sunset, 2006, is a hybrid tea that grows 5 feet tall. Its orange-yellow buds mature to peachy, apricot-pink flowers with yellow highlights. The flowers are composed of 25 to 30 petals and measure up to 5 inches across.

Wild Blue Yonder, 2006, is a bushy, upright grandiflora. Its flat, ruffled, reddish-purple flowers are reminiscent of a camellia, with white centers and yellow stamens. Each bears 25 to 30 petals that smell of citrus.

# # #

2008 Winners

Along with its new Region's Choice campaign, All-America Rose Selections will continue its annual program to promote new roses that grow well across the nation.

For 2008, Mardi Gras is best for the Central Coast, according to Tom Carruth, AARS president and research director at Weeks Roses.

"The color is wonderful and it keeps its dark foliage all season," he said.

Bright, multi-hued flowers on the upright floribunda start out yellow orange, then shift to pink as they mature. The plants grow in an upright "V" shape, reaching 4 feet tall and three feet wide.

The other 2008 winner, Dream Come True, is a bushy grandiflora that bears yellow flowers edged in pink.

But Carruth prefers Mardi Gras for the West Coast.

"To be honest, Dream Come True will get some mildew," he said. "Its regions are really more the Northeast and upper Southeast and Midwest."

For more information, visit AARS at www.rose.org.

# # #

Seeds of Wisdom

If you buy your roses bare-root, be sure to keep them moist until they've been in the ground for a few months. At planting time, cover the canes with a mound of loose mulch to conserve moisture and provide protection from the wind. Or cover your plants with large brown paper bags. Remove the mulch or bags once a couple of inches of new growth has sprouted from the stubby canes.