15/03/2014

Roses really are fabulous, aren’t they? Fabulous and fantastic.

Bare, thorny, whippy sticks at this time of year, there isn’t a hint of the magic and glamour to come when they emerge from twig to bud to full bloom.

Their soft, sensual petals, stunning colours and scent (and they aren’t the same without it) make the contrast between a rose in limbo and a rose in flower all the more dramatic, don’t you think?

We’re really rather good at breeding them here in Northern Ireland.

Dicksons of Newtownards, the world’s oldest rose breeding company, was established in 1836 and Colin Dickson continues to produce award winning roses today. McGredy Roses of Portatown, established by Sam McGredy in 1880 is another famous name synonymous with rose breeding excellence and McGredy and Dickson Roses are grown, celebrated and loved by gardeners all over the world today.

You don’t have to travel the globe to delight in them en masse though.

Make a date to visit The International Rose Trials at Sir Thomas and Lady Dickson Park this July.

Every summer International Rose Growers and breeders showcase their latest lovelies with delegates coming from far and wide to compete. It’s a big year for the Rose Trials who celebrated their 50th Anniversary just last week, marked by a delightful civic luncheon, hosted by Belfast City Council in the City Hall.

Reg Maxwell, Chairman of The Rose Society, stepped away from the festivities for a minute to talk to us for this week’s programme and we’ll be continuing the conversation later in the year with a special programme dedicated to this quintessential summer flower.

To get them summer ready, now is the time for pruning and St Patrick’s Day is often used as a handy marker to remind us to wield the secateurs.

So this week, just ahead of the Saint’s Day, Averil Milligan and Rachel Martin from Rowallane Gardens talked us through some of the do’s and don’t’s.

The day of our visit was a nippy, bright and breezy early spring day and a small posse of gardeners were happy at work in the walled garden. Rachel was about to get to grips with the skeletal framework of an established shrub rose.

So, good gloves and clean sharp secateurs were essential to remove the old dead wood and the spindly growth from the heart of the plant. The ground around the rose was then dressed with a good layer of mulch, ideally well-rotted manure, and then it’s a case of step back and wait for the magic.

I must get some local roses for my own garden. I love the idea of a collection of plants with an Irish connection. Already the ornamental quince “Rowallane” is taking over the fence and elsewhere (and a lot easier to manage!) are some tiny native primroses given to me by a friend.

Maurice Parkinson is a primrose fan too and he popped in to the studio with a little collection for this week’s programme. From diminutive little natives to elegant candelabra to pretty pom-poms and showy bedding plants, there is a primrose for every garden.

Every time we hear a piece from Brendan Little’s garden, I can picture it in my mind’s eye. Helen Mark was there for real this week to talk to Brendan about potato planting and getting the plot ready for this year’s crop. You’ll hear lots of great “how- to” practical information and for good measure, the odd reference to naked farmers checking the weather.

You’ll just have to listen to hear more.

So with thoughts of planting potatoes, picking primroses and pruning roses, till next time, Happy St Patrick’s Day from all of us at Gardeners’ Corner.