New Fragrant Landscape Roses

Over a century of rose breeding has rewarded gardeners with so many gorgeous garden roses: hybrid tea, grandiflora, floribunda and shrub types. Rose breeders have concentrated on plant vigor, flower color, disease resistance, and greater numbers of flowers over the growing season. Over the years, floral fragrance has been mostly ignored.

In the past two years Brindabella rose series have arrived at garden centers with incredible fragrance along with improved disease resistance.

Brindabella™ roses is a series of shrub roses from Australia. They exhibit a bushy habit, 3-4 feet  tall and wide and possess excellent disease resistance to black spot and powdery mildew. Their colorful blooms are doubled and highly fragrant. Blooms are produced in flushes from spring into fall, and no deadheading is required. The plants have a bushy, upright and sometimes semi-weeping habit. They reach at maturity, making them ideal for low hedges, spots at the edge of a mixed border, and containers.

Brindabella® roses are low maintenance and vigorous in a small package. They are well suited to home gardens and commercial landscapes. For beauty and fragrance Brindabella roses know few rivals. Roses are selected for their beauty, disease-resistance and vigor. Roses require 6 or more hours of direct sun per day and fertile, reasonably moist soil. They benefit from an occasional feeding during the growing season. Extra hardiness (Zones 4 – 9). Introduced by Suntory Flowers.

Currently (May 2021), six Brindabella varieties are available:

Dawn™ - fragrant salmon colored blooms with hints of apricot. 

First Lady™ - lavender pink double flowers  

Purple Prince™ - purple double flowers 

Pink Princess™ - frosted pink double flowers 

Red Empress™ - crimson red to dark fuchsia double flowers 

Touch of Pink™ - pale pink centers & white outer whorled doubled flowers

Venus® Is A Unique Flowering Dogwood

7" Bracts of Venus® dogwood (C. kousa x C. nuttali)

Spring flowering dogwoods (Cornus spp.) are back in vogue again (USDA hardiness zones 6-9). A better understanding about growing dogwoods coupled with improved resistant disease varieties have seen the return of dogwoods to landscapes again.

If you want to plant a variety with the largest flowers, no question it is Venus®. This hybrid dogwood (Cornus kousa 'Chinensis' x Cornus nuttalii 'Goldspot' x Cornus kousa 'Rosea')  was developed at Rutgers University by Dr. Elwin R. Orton (now retired). The tree's large bracted blooms measure 6 - 7 inches across in April and May. 

Venus dogwood grows vigorously, 15-20 feet tall (slightly greater in spread). It is a small deciduous tree forms a dense, low-branched, spreading habit.

Venus is resistant to anthracnose and powdery mildew diseases. It has clean dark green foliage and large flowers. Red dogwood fruits attract lots of birds in early fall. Fall leaf color is red to orange.

This dogwood grows in average, medium moisture, well-drained soils in full sun to partial shade. In southeastern U.S., morning sunlight and afternoon shade is best. Summer leaf scorch may indicate too much direct sunlight and/or exposure to hot, windy or dry soil conditions. The tree benefits by applying 2-3 inches of a wood-based or needle mulch that keeps tree roots cool and moist. For the first 2-3 summers, a young dogwood should be irrigated during dry periods.

Venus dogwood, when properly sited and cared for, have few disease and insect problems. Stressed trees become vulnerable to stem cankers and insect borers. Deer are usually not troublesome.

Dogwoods are planted on urban and suburban lawns and around patio areas. Venus dogwood needs to be special ordered from garden centers or purchase from e-commerce nursery sources.

Best of the Climbing Roses So Far-- 'White Dawn'

Since its introduction in the rose world over 60 years ago, 'White Dawn' has proven to be a top garden performer among climbing roses. The dark green, glossy foliage is very blackspot disease resistant. This very vigorous climber (hardiness zone 5 – 9) grows to 12 to 20 feet. Pure white double flowers are medium-sized (2-1/2" to 3"). 'White Dawn' tolerates poor soils if drainage is good. It blooms best in a bright sunny spot.

'White Dawn begins blooming in mid-May in the southern Appalachian region (Zone 6-b to 7-a) and repeats, off and on, through the rest of the growing year. Feed roses starting in early April and monthly to early September with Miracle-Gro®, Schultz®, or equivalent water soluble rose food @ 1 tablespoon per gallon.

Prune climbing roses in late winter (March) when new growth begins. On young climbers, simply remove all diseased, dead and tall nuisance canes. On older climbers, cutback the oldest rambling canes, favoring strong healthy one-year shoots which produce most of the rose blooms in May.

‘White Dawn’ is the first climbing rose to earn the University of Tennessee “No Spray” designation.

Angelonia in the Summer Garden

Tired of marigolds and petunias? Angelonias (A. angustifolia) are superior summer garden annuals. Angelonias require very little care. They possess superior heat and drought tolerance.

I prefer the Serena series (seed produced type) because local greenhouse growers produce and sell them more cheaply. Vegetative (cutting) type angelonias grow taller, are heavy bloomers, and are more pricey at garden centers.

Varieties of 'Serena' angelonia come in white, pink lavender, lavender, and purple flowers. Plant them after the danger of spring frosts in your gardening area is low. After planting, follow-up with a few early waterings. Then, sit back and enjoy angelonas in constant bloom from late spring to the first hard frost of autumn.

Serena angelonias grow 12-15 inches in height and 14-16 inches in spread in my zone 6-b garden.

photo: pentas (front) and 'Lavender Pink Serena' angelonia (rear)

Dogwoods for Spring

More available in 2010 are 5 new disease resistant dogwood varieties from the University of Tennessee. Supply should be better than in past years, but order from your local garden center early before the spring sales rush.

Powdery mildew resistant varieties: 'Appalachian Snow' (pictured), 'Appalachian Blush' and 'Appalachian Mist'

Anthracnose resistant variety: 'Appalachian Spring'