RE: bumper year for roses (and carnations)

[Guest guest]

Janita wrote:

>This has been a bumper crop for roses here in my part of the woods.

>We have had a lot of rain during the season intermingled with sunshine and

>for whatever reason the roses are fantastic....

Hello Janita,

I, too, have had a bumper crop of Roses here in Chicago. We had a Winter

with a record amount of snowfall, a very rainy, cool Spring and a Summer

which, thus far, is very wet and cool, also. This must be the reason for

the bumper crop - weather more like Britain than Chicago! (It should be hot

and humid with our usual summer drought.) In fact, all my flowers are

blooming in abundance this season: antique Pinks, Lavender, Mock Orange,

antique Carnations... Most of my Roses are done blooming except for two

late ones: an Alba - Konigin von Danemark; and a Bourbon - Madame Isaac

Pereire which some rosarians consider the most fragrant of all Roses. I

must say, its fragrance is superb. I do have a few roses that recurr such

as the Four Seasons Damask and some Bourbons and Portland Damasks.

Right now, I am harvesting and stripping (removing petals with scissors and

discarding the rest) load upon load (out of curiousity counted 500

carnations in yesterday's harvest!) of Fenbow Nutmeg Clove Carnations whose

seeds I buy from England and grow here in Chicago. They can be traced back

to Tudor England (16th century) and were floated in wine to mull it (scent

it with spice). The fragrance is strong and spicy and smells more of

Allspice and Clove rather than the Nutmeg. They are blood red and smaller

than a florist's Carnation - the size all Carnations used to be before being

hybridized for Florists and losing their scent genes. In fact, virtually

all the flowers I grow for moist-method potpourri are heirlooms/antiques

because they are more fragrant than modern cultivars though, usually

smaller.

Mark

[Guest guest]

> >This has been a bumper crop for roses here in my part

> of the woods.

> >We have had a lot of rain during the season

> intermingled with sunshine and

> >for whatever reason the roses are fantastic....

>

> Hello Janita,

>

> I, too, have had a bumper crop of Roses here in Chicago.

> We had a Winter

> with a record amount of snowfall, a very rainy, cool Spring

> and a Summer

> which, thus far, is very wet and cool, also. This must be

> the reason for

> the bumper crop - weather more like Britain than Chicago!

> (It should be hot

> and humid with our usual summer drought.) In fact, all my

> flowers are

> blooming in abundance this season: antique Pinks,

> Lavender, Mock Orange,

> antique Carnations... Most of my Roses are done blooming

> except for two

> late ones: an Alba - Konigin von Danemark; and a Bourbon

> - Madame Isaac

> Pereire which some rosarians consider the most fragrant of

> all Roses. I

> must say, its fragrance is superb. I do have a few roses

> that recurr such

> as the Four Seasons Damask and some Bourbons and Portland

> Damasks.

>

> Right now, I am harvesting and stripping (removing petals

> with scissors and

> discarding the rest) load upon load (out of curiousity

> counted 500

> carnations in yesterday's harvest!) of Fenbow Nutmeg

> Clove Carnations whose

> seeds I buy from England and grow here in Chicago. They

> can be traced back

> to Tudor England (16th century) and were floated in wine to

> mull it (scent

> it with spice). The fragrance is strong and spicy and

> smells more of

> Allspice and Clove rather than the Nutmeg. They are blood

> red and smaller

> than a florist's Carnation - the size all Carnations

> used to be before being

> hybridized for Florists and losing their scent genes. In

> fact, virtually

> all the flowers I grow for moist-method potpourri are

> heirlooms/antiques

> because they are more fragrant than modern cultivars

> though, usually

> smaller.

>

> Mark

Hi

I am delighted you are also enjoying this abundant rose season.. I have just got

back in from another foray of picking out in the garden and.. digging out now

old victorian bowls and ousted my large wooden fruit bowl of fruit in favour of

another bowl to hold yet even more rose petals :-D My roses are still going and

I still see buds so I just keep going!

The carnations sound divine... 500 wow that's a great harvest !...are they the

dianthus type ... old cottage pinks is another name for them.... they are

wondrous and very fragrant and the variety that you are harvesting sound truly

excellent.

Your abundance as you observed must be all that snow and now rain conditions you

have had. I totally agree everything is full on! I do love Mme Isaac Pereire

and have her here and agree whole heartedly about what is said about them. Her

fragrance is really superb. She is hidden behind the alba...

I have just taken a look at the gallicanae 'apothecary's rose' tincture which is

a beautiful ruby colour and def jammy hints ! interesting..

The alba petals are on the table drying and wilting a bit before I recharge the

existing tincture.

Over here I tend to just take the petals straight off the bush.... and leave the

rest for hopefully hips (if the species offers that) It works for me well as I

tend to add to the dried petals later.... like you the moist way ....

BTW , the project is still going ..... and I feel will be on going for a

long time as progress is good but slow.... now at the maths stage of working out

size of embroideries to found out the size of piece... and still cojutation on

the background .. but other decisions organically come when the time is right.

BTW folks here reading when I first started looking into scent longevity for

this project.

(Flowers of Myddfai://www.flowersofmyddfaiproject.blogspot.com. Mark was

incredibly helpful with suggestions for which I am most grateful indeed.. Plus

reading up and various experiments I am feeling positive although my pallette

for this is rather small of fragrant plants (Physicians of Myddfai) and will

take a lot of lateral thinking on my part for the appropriate perfume...As usual

I shall enjoy the challenge

I think we're all looking forward to your work when you're ready, ... I

know it will be divine :-D

I think it is a very enjoyable time harvesting the naturals and working with

them from there... I always feel at peace. I remember,, gosh quite a few years

ago giving an interview for the then Pure magazine and talking about my rose

collecting harvest then... for which that year is sitting in an old Hereford pot

(moist method) and smells beautiful... I tweak it now and then... My customers

in the gallery over the festival, thoroughly enjoyed my offerings this year and

the gallery smelt beautiful.....(from last years harvest at Botanic Gardens,

lemon balm with additions) it gave me the opportunity to see where I was

going....

anyway enough of my meanderings LOL back to work...

Always good wishes, Janita

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