These hips are more ghosts of flowers past, from the beautiful rugosa rose 'Hansa'.
I tried rugosas in my garden as an experiment, after receiving Rose rugosa alba seeds in a trade. I actually expected them to melt down, because when I thought of rugosas I thought of Maine and Alaska. However, the species do beautifully here. Not a speck of disease and they bloom all season. They've only been completely covered in blooms one spring, interestingly enough in a drought year -- it would seem too many calories equals less flowers. But they always bloom enough for me and I love them.
I first saw 'Hansa' at Witherspoon Nursery in Durham. Witherspoon sells a lot of roses I don't care for -- hybrid teas, grandifloras, and floribundas, roses that for the most part die like crazy here, or worse, hang about looking sickly and reproachful -- but their Hansa was drop-dead gorgeous. What is that purple rose?!?!?! I must have it!
'Hansa' isn't really purple, it's magenta, but it does look purple in low light, and the coloring and texture of the petals has a very rich and velvety effect. The fragrance is strong, a mix of damask and cloves.
I love your pictures of Hansa! And I do love rugosa-hybrids! I haven't got Hansa myself, but I've got Moje Hammarberg, which probably is a seedling of Hansa. Its colour is a deeper magenta.
ReplyDeleteThanks for joining in Blooming Friday- I wish you a lovely weekend!
Katarina
Wonderful photos. I don't have Hansa, but I do have other rugosas. A wonderful, carefreegroup of shrubs. As you say, they bloom all season.
ReplyDeleteMarnie
I collected those hips from Hansa -- it will be interesting to see how like Hansa the seedlings are. I will have to look up Moje Hammarberg.
ReplyDeleteHello Sweet bay, very nice to meet you, thank you for your comment at Tyra's Garden.
ReplyDeleteYou have my favorite Rose! I know it's very common etc. but I love it, especially the double magenta coloured, I have planted 6 of them last year so perhaps 2009 will give me a lot of fragrant flowers.
Love Tyra
the scent must be heavenly!... i love fragrant flowers!... and your hansa looks so healthy and beautiful... i can almost feel its soft petals... and of course, the scent!
ReplyDeleteHi Marnie and thank you. The rugosas are wonderful aren't they, it's been a pleasant surprise that they've done well here.
ReplyDeleteTyra, welcome! Hansa is one of my favorites too -- there's something about that color... This rose stole my heart from the first time I saw it.
Hi lareine -- yes the fragrance is heavenly. A rose the color of Hansa needs a heavy dose of damask to the scent and Hansa does not disappoint -- she has many wonderful qualities.
Sweetbay,
ReplyDeleteThey are luscious and I do wish we could smell their fragrance! There is something wonderful about braving thorns to reach into a rose bush to get a better look and sniff of a fragrant rose. Lovely photos.
Gail
Your Hansa is superb! I would love to have more rose hips with substance for winter interest. I have several of the hybrid musks, they do well in our SE TN garden, but the hips are tiny and sparse. Yours look wonderful and after reading your glowing review, might add this to the want list. Thanks!
ReplyDeleteFrances at Fairegarden