Sunday, April 24, 2016

Just before sundown I took pics of the Mystery Rose I bought YEARS ago in Thonotossassa, before I knew this house existed, while here from Denver landscaping for my customers. LONG story so I'll just say it grew in Denver, then Tampa, then gave it to my neighbor Shirley one winter when I stayed here a few months. No thorns on new growth, BARELY blooms here, and just in spring but the fragrance is simply incredible. I also took 4 cuttings and stuck them at sundown in a pot. My best guess all these years has been 'Reine des Violettes'.....study name is "Shirley's Pink". In JUST the right conditions in Denver, 'Reine des Violettes' can be amazingly purple, but is usually a shade of pink. This own root one has been in Tampa for 15 years. I gave Shirley a gallon of an awesome organic feeding solution, and after she waters it a second time I will give it a deep mulch for better health and to see if it can bloom more often.








2 comments:

  1. Hi John,
    I just found your blog through GardenWeb--another rose lover in Tampa-

    On your rose, my first impression was Zephirine Droughin, but the blooms look tighter and less frilly. I've had so many pass-along roses like that. People find in them in their yards or pastures and name them, but that's the beauty of roses, isn't it? All those mysterious, sassy ladies with their alternate identities.

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    Replies
    1. Indeed! This is not Zephirine but two folks at ChezVibert group suggest a Hybrid China.

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