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Friday, May 02, 2008

city girl goes wild

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This is what happens when a city girl goes to a roseraie.Wild in the park.
i spent May day at the Cervantes Park in Barcelona.
The day was glorious and i made some interesting discoveries.

There was a David Austin in the 1950 who was responsible for the English rose varieties. That in itsef did not call my attention. What i found interesting was the list of names he had called his flowers. Lots of Shakespeare characters, literary heroes and heroines, English expressions such as cottage house and country living8 i could almost see the chintz LOL!) and one that made me think that he was putting his botanical expertise to the service of patriotism ;This scepter'd Island. i am aware it is a poem, but a highly patriotic one isn't it?

i love climbers most of all, and the chinese and noisette varieties are my favorites.
The flowers are small and in clusters and remind me of the roses that embellished walled gardens in the early 1900's.
i also like single roses.

When in presence of a rose bush everybody young, old, male, female stoops to smell it. A Pavlov reaction.
Also in presence of roses everybody acts as a retired golden ager :) :)

There are roses that mask themselves in to something else. i saw a cabbage wanna be, a clematis wanna be and a peony wanna be.

i found a rose darker than Guinee which was the darkest i had ever seen and i also found a violet blue one. Almost like a jackmanii clematis.

Roses need sun. Provided it is northen Europe sun. They fry on the plant over here.
Speaking of sun, i need to go back in late afternoon as the sun was too bright and the photos didn't come out to my liking. Not even after Photoshoping them to death.

If you ever come to Barcelona and like roses plan your trip for late April or early May and save half a day for the park. You will not be disappointed.


neki desu

7 comments:

  1. Anonymous10:53 PM

    Roses were first thing my husband planted in our garden when we moved to this house (nine years ago) - reading the David Austin catalogue is now an annual ritual. As well as the varities he developed himself they have lovely old roses like the Albas which date back to the middle ages. And the smell! Mmmmmm... Your post has made me come over all summery, though we still have a way to go up here.

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  2. glorious - I love old roses and 'new' old roses - and the names! Great Maiden's Blush, Zephirine Drouhin, they're like little poems all by themselves.

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  3. Thanks for sharing the roses, they are beautiful to see. Here in northern England they will not flower for a few more weeks - we have the early spring flowers still, primroses, bluebells, wallflowers, and my favourite Camellia japonica, as beautiful as a rose but no scent, she is the "Lady Vansittart".

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  4. i need to plant some roses.

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  5. gorgeous Neki! I think their names are so lovely also - how could an Albertine be anything but beautiful, big and blousy?

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  6. Oh, sh... i've missed it. But i've made a note for another trip to Barcelona. On the last one, we went to the botanical gardens in Monjuic. Lovely too.
    Drop by my blog, I too have visited some roses, in Avignon, in the Palais des Papes (popes's palace).
    Thanks for the pictures.

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  7. Neki, I live just outside Barcelona and I have 2 David Austen roses - the blooms are cooked by 1PM! But Lord do they smell beautiful. I have had more success with roses bought in France from Delbard and André Eve.

    I'm also a crocheter and designer!

    We should meet up some day!

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