Here we have our Gertrude Jekyll climbing rose, a hybrid that was named after the famed garden designer of the early 20th Century.
It makes us wonder why we don’t see more roses in gardens these days. We mean the ones that symbolized beauty with their balanced features, arousing scents, and softness to the touch – the roses of William Shakespeare, Robert Burns, Emily Bronte, Robert Frost, and many others who wondered with words.
Perhaps roses are out of favor because they have a reputation for being difficult to care for, although newer hybrids seem to be very hardy. Perhaps we’ve been desensitized by the South American rose farm products that arrive embalmed by preservatives and a scent that is a vague guess at what could have been. If these had been the roses of Shakespeare’s time, we never would have heard Juliet say, "A rose by any other name would smell so sweet." (Brooklin, Maine)