Sunday, July 1, 2018

The Wild Rose

People often ask me about the use and care of the wild or rambling rose.  I have photographed them in their natural habitat to illustrate their attributes.  They are small of thorn, bloom and leaf, running from pink to pale pink to white and often tangled bramble-like.  They are not climbers and don’t grow very tall, preferring instead to spread.

In the high country of the Rocky Mountains they swell into the shade of great trees or in the sunlight along trails and walkways.  They bloom once a season, leaving behind luscious hips to turn red or red-brown in the fall and winter.  Their scent is subtle but carries well on mountain breezes. As Shakespeare said, “The rose looks fair, but fairer we it deem for that sweet odour which doth in it live.” 

In my estimation the wild rambling rose is not a garden rose.  Popping up where ever it pleases along its extensive root, this rose is very difficult to contain. It is best left to the wild places its blossom grace so beautifully in spring. 






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