A Rose by Any Other Name......

As you could probably tell from some of my posts here, I am very partial to flower blossoms.

Over the years we have planted all sorts of varieties of shrubs and perennials. Some have survived and thrived while others didn't.

As I am sure you are aware, this is the nature of gardening.......you win some, you lose some.

On that note I want to share with you my favourite summertime blossom. It comes from a very hardy, pest-free, and self-contained/easy-to-care-for rose bush.

It is called Rosa Rugosa. I grew up knowing this shrub as the 'Wild Rose'. It is very prolific here in Nova Scotia.

I have tried a number of 'fancy' rose bushes but they proved to be too much work and needed a lot of care to keep them alive. We decided way back that our garden would be one filled with plant species that are hardy and not finicky.

The fragrance from these roses is intoxicating........in a good way. I love driving or walking past them and getting a whiff of their very distinctive scent.

The ones I have featured in this post all have a similar fragrance but with varying degrees of strength. The white rose has the strongest scent and the pink single has the most delicate, with the full-petaled pink in between.

These flowers remind me of my grandmother. Not sure why other than she must have had cologne or dusting powder with a similar scent.

Ours are in full bloom now and will continue to be so for the rest of the summer........another good reason to have these in your garden.

To really keep this guys blooming, I 'dead-head' them after they are finished. This almost guarantees lots more to come. Otherwise you won't get as many.

So if you are looking for that 'easy' shrub to grow in your garden I would recommend the Rosa Rugosa.....you won't regret it.