That rain two nights ago gave me today these two open blooms on my China Rose from 1832 called 'Cramoisi Superieur.

My main rose seed parent in Tampa, the old Wichuriana hybrid 'Francois Juranville' begins in about a month its 6 week spring bloom....a true "once-bloomer". But most of its "children" I produce with it are repeat blooming seedlings. Since 6 weeks per year is short, this year I've begun saving and drying almost open buds of various parents I use as the "Dad". I've done this for years by accident whereas this year it is my main focus. Here is the 'Francois Juranville' in full bloom some years back, as are three sacks with buds dated and labelled, each bag half open for a week or two to dry the pollen. I will also use all these pollens on my seventeen year old 'Seagull' rambler in spring.

Hopefully these new cuttings of central Florida's iconic "Pink Cracker Rose" will root to share with friends. I am making a LOT of them this spring to get this rose I fell in love with in the 70s in Seminole Heights is again widespread in our community.

http://www.helpmefind.com/gardening/l.php?l=2.40071&tab=1

After a very thunderous night's rain, how wonderful to wake up to this very fragrant bloom on my 'Eugene De Beauharnais' rose from the year 1838.

About ten days ago Debbie helped me to train the canes of my favorite breeder rose, 'Francois Juranville', up off the ground where they naturally grow and up onto a span of rebar on the west side of my front door. But this new shoot is what emerged a few years ago after the original, planted in 1999, succumbed to the huge (now gone) climber-from-Hell 'Mermaid' rose. I trained that original UP onto the trelis, believing the writings that it was sterile, but in 2003 I found it to be a VERY fertile seed (Mom) parent, so I trained this new shoot to span the rebar trelllis downward to encourage blooms THIS spring due to a geotropic response. It does not look like much now, spanning perhaps eight feet, but after having fed the roots with fish emulsion, Epsom salts, and a few handfuls of Dad's chemical fertilizer with trace elements, followed by a deep watering, the newly trained canes and their white clothesline training wires, should be fully clothed by abundant new growth in a couple of months. First pic is of the newly trained plant...the others are of the original some years back before being consumed by 'Mermaid'. It is the seed parent of my for-Florida climbing rose 'Gainesville Garnet'.