Everything's Coming Up Roses

Love, beauty, and romance are all symbolized by the rose. Plant a bare-root rose bush now in order to have beautiful flowers in your garden in the summer, advises Saturday Early Show Gardening Contributor Georgia Raimondi.

Sometimes, you just can't find that "perfect rose" at your local nursery. Roses from catalogs will come to you bare-root; knowing how to properly plant your new bare-root rose will improve your chances for success.

Raimondi demonstrates how to plant a bare-root hybrid tea rose called "Peace," a multicolored pastel. It was voted the Best Rose in three countries, and it's the most popular hybrid tea in the world.

The Queen of Flowers has been an object of affection and a symbol of love throughout history. Cleopatra scattered rose petals at the feet of Mark Anthony. Shakespeare wrote of its heady fragrance in Romeo and Juliet.

Roses originated in Asia over 3,000 years ago and were brought from the Orient to England. During the Middle Ages, roses were cultivated for medicinal purposes. Monks considered them invaluable in healing all sorts of ailments from toothaches to stomachaches. Roses were also compressed and made into rosary beads.

In the early 1800s, the French were smitten with the rose, but it was Empress Josephine, wife of Napoleon, who made them the darling of high society by growing over 250 species and varieties in her garden at Chateau Malmaison. Her passion for roses even temporarily halted a war. During the Napoleonic blockade, fighting ceased between the French and English so that the empress's nurseryman could carry out his mission and safely deliver roses from China to Malmaison

Why Buy Bare-Root Roses?

Bare-root roses are just that: bare roots on a cane. You can save up to 30 percent if you buy bare-root roses opposed to container grown roses. Selection is also an advantage. Rose catalogs offer a much larger assortment of bare-root roses (container roses which are generally obtainable later in the season at garden centers are available in far fewer varieties.)

"HOW-TO" FOR PLANTING:

WHEN:
Early spring is the best time for planting bare-root rosebushes, when bushes are semi-dormant and have not leafed out.

WHERE:
Plant in a spot in the garden where roses will receive approximately 6 hours of direct sunlight.

SOURCE:
Bare-root roses are available through Jackson & Perkins. Phone number: 1-800-292-4769.

© MMI Viacom Internet Services Inc. All Rights Reserved