Festival of Roses

The Hampton Court Rose Pavilion Marquee
Outside the Festival of Roses Pavilion

The Festival of Roses packed 19 rose exhibits into a single pavilion. Shrubs, floribundas, climbers, English roses, and more big name roses and growers than I'd seen before under one roof.

The Rose pavilion was rectangular with the exhibits evenly spaced throughout. A ceremonial area at one end of the festival was for demonstrations and awards. Several rose varieties were launched at Hampton this year.

I recognised some of the nurseries and roses from Moosey's garden. I'm sure I recognised several of Moosey's 'Unknown Pink Rose' series as well. When the head gardener loses many of her labels, the webmaster tends to become a colloquial rose lover; I learnt a lot in the Rose Pavilion...

There really is no time for 'unknown pink rose no.16' at an RHS event like Hampton Court. David Austin and Bill Le Grice do not lose plant labels. Every rose is labelled and all the exhibits were fill of information about rose growing, breeding, upcoming varieties, disease and pest control and much more.

Most of the exhibits charged a small donation for their catalogues - they were well worth it. We bought rose catalogues from Moosey's favourite growers to send to her. Giddy with new found rose education, I thought of a song (sung to the tune of 'Every Rose has a Thorn'):

"Every rose has a label...

Every Unknown-Pink-Rose, sings a sad sad song."

Enough silliness, on with our Festival of Roses Tour...

Marry Me Patio RoseMarry Me Patio Rose...
This patio rose had a mild fragrance but clusters of beautiful apricot pink blooms. 'Marry Me' was a few days away from revealing its pale yellow center. This rose is highly thought-of and has a reputation for lots of long lasting summer blooms.
Iceberg RoseIceberg Rose...
Iceberg (Rosa 'Korbin') has become the de facto standard in ice-white roses. Available as a tall shrub rose and a climber, Iceberg has a light frosty fragrance and a prolific flowering habit. Moosey has a reputation for rescuing iceberg seconds from bargain bins.
Iceberg RoseIceberg Rose...
Iceberg's petals and buds trap varying amounts of ice white light. Some of Iceberg's petals a have a slight translucency and glow different shades of white under strong light. Maybe this is why Iceberg is also known by US gardeners as 'The Snow Fairy Rose'.
Marry Me RoseMarry Me Rose...
Marry Me' (DICwonder) rose was introduced by Dickson Roses in 1998. Named for the lucrative matrimonial market, this rose is aimed at early-30s webmasters that have lived with their partners for several years. Style Roses won a Silver Guilt Floral Medal.
Tequila Sunrise RoseTequila Sunrise Rose...
Introduced in 1989 by Dickson Roses, this faintly-scented hybrid tea rose has masses of golden yellow blooms and has amassed several Gold Medals. The older growth and burnt scarlet petal edges make this rose resemble a treasure map.
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