The sister roses along the split rail fence at Cedar Bluff lake house are beginning their weeks of bloom. These roses, all Dortmund climbers, are settled in to their location and have canes that are several years old. The Carla Rose and the Mary Rose are the overachievers this year. Both have multitudes of buds set onto canes that twine under and over the fence.
I pruned all of the plants aggressively in April and even transplanted the Penny Rose from the back side of the fence to the front. All six beauties have red rosettes with single petals surrounding a white center with yellow accents. The foliage is a deep, shiny green. The Dortmund is a stunning rose.
Named for the six sisters in our family, the roses are a constant reminder for me of how important my family is. And yes, I have a brother, whom I also think about often, especially when I'm caring for the miniature roses that he sent me for a February birthday several years ago. Those roses arrived via air mail, survived the winter in the house, were planted outside and have stayed there ever since. Two of those roses are are blossoming now right outside my kitchen window.
From time to time, as I consider adding another rose bed, I think about planting roses for more of the women in the family -- my daughter, my mother, my mother-in-law, sisters-in-law, nieces, my daughter-in-law, my granddaughters, grandmothers. Oh my, it would be quite a garden, filled with rose upon rose, all planted to honor the many strong and beautiful women whom I admire.
Sister Roses June 29, 2013
The Dortmund Roses in June 2010
Copyright 2013
Wanda Hayes Eichler
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