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sweetannie4u

Climbing Old Blush and Floribunda Cherish - pics

Annie
11 years ago

Rosa, 'Climbing Old Blush'

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'Cl. Old Blush' - close-up

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Rosa, 'Cherish' - bloom bud of this fragrant Floribunda

Cherish has huge, fragrant blooms, like a Grandiflora.

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Rose, 'Cherish' - 3/4 open

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~Annie

Comments (23)

  • Sandi_W
    11 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Just beautiful! I'm really getting excited about growing roses again.

  • mandolls
    11 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Lovely, I have been wanting some climbing roses. I have done a little research, but not sure what will really work well in my zone 4 Wisconsin garden, so I keep putting off buying them.

  • schoolhouse_gw
    11 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Nice. Your roses are so healthy looking. Climbing Old Blush is thornless? beautiful.

  • Annie
    Original Author
    11 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Climbing Old Blush is not thornless, but her thorns are small. I would call it prickly, unlike a monster rose like New Dawn that is armoured with thorns from hell. I would think it would be okay to grow against a building or house because the thorns are not going to puncture your roof or siding. But they will grab you and your clothing too, so you should still wear leather gloves when handling her.
    Grows 12-20 ft tall.

    I ordered mine from 'Countryside Roses' in Mississippi. (Sadly, I'm not sure they are still operational. They seem to be having some problems.)

    The first two years the blooms were rather smallish and certainly nothing like the pictures I had seen of it, but now they are just lovely. Of course last summer's inferno and drought didn't help them any, that's for sure. I am following the recommendation of my local nurseryman to feed my roses - at least - once a month using either Jackson & Perkins or MiracleGrow Rose Food, and BOY HOWDY what a difference it has made! (and all the moisture we are getting too, I might add)

    I'm training it up onto my new arbor. I tied the main canes to the arbor but the terrific winds we had in March blew some of the smaller ones down. Today I will get out the ladder (if it ever warms up above 55 today) and reposition her and secure the canes on top. If I am successful, and don't fall off the ladder, I will take new pictures to show you.

    ~Annie

  • crackingtheconcrete
    11 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Lol, Annie @ thorns from hell. That is a very healthy, happy-looking climbing rose and it already looks so full- bet it will be amazing
    when totally shaped to fill arbor. I saw one called Grace that I wanted so much, but roses don't get enough sun here and I didn't want to make it unhappy - but a gorgeous, gorgeous deep yellow.

  • organic_kitten
    11 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    That is just gorgeous, Annie! I do love roses, and Old Blush is just the picture of an ideal rose. Cherish is a beauty too, but Old Blush reminds me of my Granny's roses, and I am always trying to buy that kind of rose. Yours is the prettiest picture of it I've seen. thanks so much for posting it.
    kay

  • organic_kitten
    11 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    CTC, Annie is accurately describing the thorns on New Dawn.

    I had the unique (one can but hope) "privilege" of digging three clumps of daylilies that had been overtaken by that gorgeous but thug-like rose just yesterday. The thorns grab you, I swear they reach OUT and grab you and they are serious thorns.

    And I believe that Antique Rose emporium has Old Blush. I may just have to find out. thanks again, Annie.
    kay

  • mantis__oh
    11 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Impeccable blooms. I'm sure you welcome the moisture this year. Old Blush, I suspect, may be more difficult in the North, but I may give Cherish a try. It certainly is a full bloom. Thanks for posting.

  • schoolhouse_gw
    11 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Speaking of thorns, I was pruning my Henry Kelsey that grows against the old outhouse and got a thorn in the thumb of my right hand and the middle finger of the left. That was nearly 2.5 weeks ago and just now I can touch those areas without pain. The thorns were deep so I had to let them try and work their way out but boy was that painful in the meantime. Finally I took a needle and did minor surgery a couple days ago and whatever I managed to do brought some relief. I thought maybe the wounds were swollen with infection but none came out. And I had gloves on while pruning that rose!

  • girlgroupgirl
    11 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Beautiful Annie! I just replanted my Cl. old blush. It's been in a pot for 3 years and it seems so happy to be home! She's full of buds!!! Your picture makes me really long for her to open soon!

  • Annie
    Original Author
    11 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    I wonder if you Northerners mulched around your roses deeply with hay and leaves or pine straw, maybe even heave the dirt up high around your roses at their base, if that might protect them enough in winter??? When spring arrives, remember to pull it all back away from the roses to normal levels. I read about doing that in an very old rose book I bought from a second-life book store. It's about 70+ years old. All the old photo images are in black and white, but it contains a wealth of information about growing roses - the old way.

    Just a thought.
    ~Annie

  • organic_kitten
    11 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Just so you know Annie, I did order the Old Blush climber from ARE.
    kay

  • bart_2010
    11 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    I love Climbing Old Blush and now have three plants.I would like to encourage them to get as big as possible. On HMF, they say that this rose can grow to be 9 or 10 meters tall; I would love it if I could get mine to grow so large,but I'm afraid that this claim might be exaggerated.I'm in Italy, at the foot of the Appenines; probably around a zone 8 climate, very, very dry in summer. Do any of you gardeners out there have any comments/ advice/opinions for me? thanks in advance, bart

  • Annie
    Original Author
    11 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Hi Bart,

    So, you're saying that if your roses aren't that big, you seriously doubt anyone else's are. We are talking about roses here, aren't we? (lol)

    Okay, I live in Central Oklahoma. Normally this area has always been zone 6b, but over the past ten years it changed to zone 7, and last year dramatically changed to 7b or 8a. Climate Change is happening here.

    In addition to our zone changes, we have been in a severe drought for several years. No rain at all from late spring until early fall and then not even measurable amounts. There has also been little or no winter precipitation in the form of snows or rainfall, etc. We are very dry and that spells yet another very terrible summer for us with high temps again this year. Not looking forward to that.

    In summer, the temperatures have been record breaking above normal highs, both day time temps and night temps - triple digits temps ranging from 105-127 all summer long. Southerly breezes blow and it feels like stepping out in a furnace! Takes your breath and withers everything on the vine. I have to irrigate all day long all summer long just to keep things alive. I mulch deeply with chipped wood, leaves, grass clippings to help keep the soil around their roots cooler and help retain moisture. But despite all my watering and hard work, there have been many losses in my gardens. However, this sweet little rose has not shown to have suffered like some of the fancier teas and hybrids. She kept on growing.

    The biggest flush of blooms for my Old Blush Climber is in the springtime, when the air is cool and moist and we get the most rainfall. After that, the blooms produced are smaller and fewer. Then there is one last flush of blooming in the fall when temps are again cooler and there is a bit more moisture in the air. This flush, however, is not as bountiful as the first one in spring by any comparison. I understand though, that she blooms longer and more frequently in milder, moister climates.

    As for growth, I trained it up onto a Roman-style iron arch last spring, which stands approx. 12 feet at the center top and this rose has grown up and beyond that and is now trailing over the opposite side. It amazingly has continued to grow all through the fall and winter, increasing by one third the length of her canes. So, yes it does grow to 20+ feet, at least mine has.

    I will post new pics this spring when it is once again in full bloom. Wish I could post her "old-rose" fragrance for you all to enjoy. *She was not reported to have any scent whatsoever, so I am overly delighted by this wonderful rose and HIGHLY recommend it for any Cottage Garden.

    For me, I am willing to take what I can get and have my magnificent spring gardens with abundant flowers and sweet fragrances in order that I may have the cottage garden of my dreams, even just for a brief season in this formidable region of the country, than to not have one at all and miss out. It's all a matter of what you are willing and able to deal with to have what you want.

    Hope this answered any questions you may have had concerning growing Climbing Old Blush Roses.

    Chow!
    ~ Annie

  • bart_2010
    11 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Thank you, Annie! What you say is very encouraging to me.My climate has horrible summers, too; anymore they are terribly hot,with no real rain at all,for 4-5 months of the year. This creeps me out a lot, because my garden has to rely on rainfall for irrigation basically (there is no water source there;I can only water new implants, and those not very much either!)So I worry a lot about that.
    My garden is very young; only in the last few years have I really started to get the hang of soil improvement, etc.Information on the size that roses achieve and their growing habits is so important to deciding where to place them in the garden, but sadly can be much more difficult to come by than the simple "cheesecake" photos of the individual flower. I put one of my Climbing Old Blushes under a large tree, in the hopes that eventually it may actually obtain the height claimed on HMF of 10 meters,but I may have been too optimistic; on an Italian site it's listed as only reaching 3 meters in height. Many people seem to find Austin's Gertrude Jeckyll a very vigorous rose, that climbs to 3 meters; I have two and both are very slender plants, no more than 4 feet high!On the other hand,my Ingenious Mr. Fairchild has gotten so big that I'm trying to train it as a small climber on a tripod. I put the tea rose Mme Berkeley in a spot adapted for a smallish shrub (on HMF, stated to reach max 120cm x 60cm), but it got so big I had to move it, and in fact I'm rather shy now about getting shrub Teas, just because it seems hard to predict how big they will get. I wonder where HMF gets their info as to sizes of roses, in other words, because I don't think it's necessarily true at all that warm climate equals bigger rose.
    I'm also beginning to investigate the part that support has on eventual rose size. This is another peculiarity of my garden, since it's out in the country, with no buildings or structures other than trees and whatever I can concoct.Again, on an Italian site, Baronne Henriette Snoy is claimed to get to be 250 cms x250cms, or even go up to 4 meters tall if supported!!!so I put mine on a tripod (it's already about 5 feet x 5 feet,and does seem to perhaps appreciate support in my windy garden).I see similar things said about Lavender Dream (on HMF stated as going from 120 cms to 245 in height and width) and Lavender Lassie; both of these I'd like to encourage to get as big as possible! I was wondering if maybe HMF was basing some of their info on how large roses get in warm climates with ample rainfall in summer as well as in fall/winter, so I'm encouraged to hear that your summer climate is at least as lousy as mine, and yet your climbing O.B. is flourishing! regards, bart

  • plantmaven
    11 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    The roses in my back yard and one in the front have looked terrible for almost a year.
    After reading Roselee's post, I am pretty sure that chilli thrips are the problem.
    Annie, remember how pretty the heritage was? Since it (and others) leafed out last spring, the stems were long and had very few leaves and small, small buds tat don't open.
    We did not have a killing freeze last winter and as of yet none thus far this winter.

    Here is a link that might be useful: Chilli thrips

  • reginaz
    11 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    What a beautiful shade of pink, reminds me of my Constance Spry. I cannot grow floribundas or grandifloras in my garden. I always enjoy your garden pics. Regina

  • Annie
    Original Author
    11 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Bart,

    Absolutely the results of how roses grow (or don't) depends upon climate, and even just an isolated locality.
    The soil that one rose thrives in, another rose may not do as well growing there. Some roses need more shade, even though they are all labeled to prefer "full sun" - not so.
    In your particular climate and situation not having access to water, I cannot suggest anything - I really don't know how you grow anything without access to ample water. I run water from my well from sun-up to beyond sun-down every day, all summer long. I am glad to live in the country and have my own well. I could not afford the water bills in town or the city. Also, with our drought, many cities are rationing their water, so I probably couldn't have the gardens I have out here if I lived in town. So, I don't know how you do it without a source of running water! You must be a miracle gardener!

    Many things can be a factor in how a rose performs and grows, and there may be reasons we don't attribute to that success. For instance, I planted a Columnar Juniper on either side of the Roman arch with the rose next to the arch, so the Junipers provide shade for the roses roots all summer and helps hold the moisture in the soil. Also, my soil is mostly alkaline, so the Junipers make the soil more acidic and the roses like that. These may be a factors for why mine is doing so well despite my climate changes and ensuing drought conditions.

    I am constantly moving my plants around in the garden, changing things around in design or just trying to find a better place for them to grow. If a plant or rose outgrows its boundaries, I cut it back and move it to a new location. (I save the prunings and root as many new roses as I can too).

    I had a lovely small climbing red rose that was not growing very well where I had it planted, so I dug it up and moved it to a new location with more sun. The major difference in the two locations was that the new spot was more acidic. There is a Black Japanese Pine nearby and I had added lots of leaves to the growing bed around it. It thrived in the new location and grew up onto a small wooden trellis. I was so pleased with it. It thrived and put on a mass of blooms. One morning, I found its leaves shriveled up. Upon inspection, I discovered that its roots had been chewed or eaten off by a vole. I dug up the rose plant (top) and stuck it in a large pot and placed it in semi-shaded area, and it actually rooted and has grown back bigger than ever! Now I can replant it back out into the garden. But this time, I will sink a bottomless plastic pot around it to protect it from any more voles seeking a meal on its roots.

    Bart, I hope you will post pictures on here of your Italian garden and share with us what you are doing. I for one would love to see your flowers and plants. I'm sure others feel the same. You live at the foot of the Apennines Mts. How awesome! Show us photos!

    ~ Annie

  • Annie
    Original Author
    11 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Kathy,
    Here is my Heritage Rose last year (2012) that I grew from the cutting that you and Diane sent to me years ago.

    Do you need a new start of it Kathy? If so, I will gladly send you a few cuttings. Heck! What are friends for?

  • Annie
    Original Author
    11 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Regina,

    Yes, the Climbing Old Blush has what I would call the perfect pink rose color. Although it wasn't listed to have a fragrance, mine does and it is heavenly. The honeybees loved it last year too. When they are happy...I am happy.

    Here is another view of the Cl. Old Blush. You can see the 'Blue Spire Juniper' behind it. The Junipers are much taller now. I am liking how it is beginning to look now that the plants are getting closer to their full stature.
    As I mentioned above, the roses are clear up and over the top now, promising a fuller, more spectacular display (I hope) come this Spring.

    And now that I added the Corkscrew willow branches and twigs into the fence along the front to match the back fence, it has really taken on the "Cottagey" look that I wanted.

  • Annie
    Original Author
    11 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Here it is again, but this view was taken from inside the Rose Garden looking outward. You get a better look at the Blue Spires Juniper. It will stay fairly narrow in girth, but get much taller - I believe around 15 feet eventually. I think that will create the look I wanted.

    Where you see the little white wire fencing in the pictures above, there is now a higher wire fence, into which I wove Corkscrew willow sticks and twigs to create a faux wattle fence along the front of the Rose Garden like I built across the back of it. That really gave it the "charm" it lacked. Now I just have to finish the gate so I can keep my hens out.

    ~Annie

  • Annie
    Original Author
    11 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Here is a glimpse of the new twig Wattle Fence I built along either side of the Roman Arch that the Cl. Old Blush is growing upon.

    Anyway, I like it, and I guess that's what counts.

    I have yet to complete it along the western end. The fence is up along there, just not the twigs woven into the wires. I ran out of Corkscrew branches and twigs! Now, I'm on the lookout for another dead corkscrew willow tree in someone's yard as a source for more branches. :)

  • plantmaven
    11 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    My heritage is still alive. But thanks anyway. Unless we get a hard freeze the chilli thrips will do more damage.

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