This rose is my favorite of all the flowers in my gardens. It’s also the one that causes me the most concern.
The rose is a family heirloom, and it’s been called “Grandfather’s rose” for I don’t know how long. It was given to my grandmother by my great-grandfather when my mother was born in 1929. At some point, the plant was moved from Missouri to Illinois.
I started gardening about 15 years ago. Mom gave me the rose the next summer. It was getting too much shade in her garden, and so I inherited it. One thing my yard has is plenty of sunshine, which works good for me because my main focus in gardening is to attract butterflies.
We have no idea what kind of rose it is. The flowers are 1 1/2 inches wide when fully opened, and they have no scent. The plant is about 4 feet tall. I propagated the rose one winter and now have a second-generation one that’s about the same size as the parent plant.
I’m honored to have the rose and do have to admit I’m more comfortable with it now than I was in the beginning.
The flower’s center in full bloom
Flower’s center past bloom
