"lANDSCAPE ROSES: COLORFUL, HARDY, FRAGRANT, AND LOW-MAINTENANCE" -

Photographers: Lee Lageschulte and Lorelie Olson

Text: Lorelie Olson

RICHMOND BEACH ROSE GARDEN

I have always loved roses, whether they are in bouquets, gardens, or along fences and roadsides. My first rose garden was in Richmond Beach, where I carefully selected my grandifloras for their big sprays of blooms and the hybrid teas for their long single stems. I carefully fertilized, sprayed, and pruned each of my roses.

SHADY GROVE GARDEN

When Tim and I moved to the Cascade foothills in Central Washington, my garden increased to nearly a country acre. I needed a different kind of rose garden. I planted cold-hardy roses, miniature roses, and shrub roses. These required minimal care and adapted to our informal variety of plantings including vegetables.

We had a high fence around this area to protect the roses from the nibbling deer!

The many bouquets we enjoyed came from our own rose garden.

STROLLING WITH LEE IN EDMONDS, VIEWING ROSES

After World War II, traditional roses gained popularity with the rise of suburban landscaping.

With the current increasing density, many gardeners love roses but don’t have space or time for growing their own. If you are in this group I invite you to stroll with Lee as her camera captures the many landscape roses in Edmonds public areas. You too may be tempted to look and sniff the full blooms!

DAMASK ROSES

These are among the oldest roses and known for their fragrance and often used in making perfumes. Damask roses are widely used to soften fences and provide color along boundaries.

SWEET BRIAR ROSES

Often thought of as “wild” roses, these grow along roadsides untended, but appreciated for bountiful color and fragrance.

An English native, they are a favorite in cottage gardens on both sides of the Atlantic. Known for their hardiness, they have apple scented leaves, and can climb to 10-15 feet.