The History of Roses

By David Wall

Guest Colunmist

 Roses, according to fossil evidence,  how been around about as long as any current plant; somewhere around 35M years.  Despite such historical longevity, it's thought that active cultivation began approximately 5K years ago most likely somewhere in Asia (China).  In fact, roses are considered to be one of the "original" garden plants.  There are some 150 species in nature, but man's ingenuity had considerably raised this figure to several thousand due to extensive hybridization. They range from miniature, compact roses shrubs to climbers that can reach over 21'.

 A couple thousand years after cultivation began, the Romans "found" and began spreading them throughout the middle east.  Nero was said to spread tons of rose petals on honored dinner guests, and women threw petals from balconies to welcome returning armies.  Then, until the late 1700s, roses were up or down depending on how the rulers felt about them.  At that point, they were introduced in Europe.  Today's modern day roses pretty well start at this point.

 Today, roses are one of the most popular plants in yards and flower gardens.  Yet, with all the hybrid species available, many landscape gardeners still prefer the old heirloom species.  Basically, they want rose shrubs that of high quality, but are not as demanding, have better disease resistance, handle winters very well, and fit well into almost any garden situation.

 Today's roses grown for sale are usually harvested while still in the bud stage.  Then, they're refrigerated to slow any growth while awaiting final sale.  They are often grown in greenhouses or at least under some sort of cover to prevent damage from weather events.  Though majestic and sweet smelling as they are, honey bees typically pay little attention to red roses,  as they have little to no nectar, and Bees aren't attracted to them.