| My first consideration when choosing roses is to find the most disease resistant cultivars with the largest, most fragrant blooms. I checked for favorites with the American Rose Society and here are their picks for 2009: 'Pink Promise': Large hybrid tea with long stems and classic tea form in a clear pink. Highly fragrant. Because of the strong straight stems 'Pink Promise' makes a nice cutting rose for bouquets. Representing the National Breast Cancer Foundation this year. 'Cinco de Mayo': A floribunda rose with excellent disease resistance with clusters of color in a deep smoky rose. Medium fragrance. Parent roses: 'Topsy Turvey' and 'Julia Child.' 'Carefree Spirit': Landscape rose in hot pink with white eyes and yellow stamens, this single petal rose is somewhat scented and a prolific bloomer. 'Sweetness': A lavender grandiflora is Jackson and Perkins' rose of the year for 2009. Their web site says this rose packs a powerful scent, enough to fill a garden. 'Sweetness' was chosen for ease of care and disease resistance. Maybe one of these will appeal to you! |
