I am a big fan of roses, though not all roses,
my heart is with the modern versions of those lovely, old English roses that have a seductive scent and the colours of fruit, deep blackberry, pale apricot etc.
The Rose Marquee at Hampton Court is a wonderful place, though quite overwhelming at first sight, so much to take in. As well as the lovely displays, there’s lots of useful information and people who are more than happy to chat about roses and advise.
As usual, I spent most of my time in the marquee ogling the roses on the David Austin stand.
I was drawn to Gentle Hermione, lightly perfumed and named after the wife of Leontes in Shakespeares’ The Winters Tale.
I’m wondering where I can fit this climbing rose, New Dawn, into my garden, it’s a manageable size at 15 feet/4.5m.
although Frances E Lester is a rambling rose it also grows to 15 feet/4.5m.
Graham Thomas is a favourite, deep custard coloured buds open into a lovely warm shade of yellow.
The rose marquee is always in a different place in the show-ground so it’s hard to compare, but it seems much smaller than in previous years, I hope I’m wrong about this.
David Austin roses are available here and you can see some of the roses in my garden here.
Happy gardening, Jill
all photos: Jill Anderson
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