Mary, Mary, Quite Contrary...or CMBG, Part 5

I should have been named "Mary", but as far as I know, that was never on the list of possibilities.

I remember, when young, loving so many different kinds of flowers, and being even a little indignant of the exalted position of the rose.  

I had the same reaction to diamonds, and gold jewelry, satin and lace and eventually champagne.....  Perhaps I was a champion of the underdog?  It just bothered me to have the beauty of non-roses be overlooked, even slighted.  I made it up to violets and daisies by cherishing them all the more, while secretly wishing they had fragrance like the lush lilacs outside my parents' bedroom window. 

While Lady's Mantle can stand on its own, it makes a gorgeous backdrop for ....

...Pink Roses!

 Eventually, my mother began to improve the row of arbor vitae and yew shrubs across the front of our ranch house by ordering roses from Jackson & Perkins.  First, the catalogs would come to the house in late January, along with Burpee's, Gurney's and Park Brothers.  J&P knew how to win me.  Their catalog came in a sealed envelope, which when opened released the glorious fragrance of their latest rose.  Over the years, Mum planted some lovely roses*:

Peace

Sterling Silver

Fragrant Cloud (!)

Irish Gold

Abraham Lincoln

Angel Face

are the names I remember easily, but there were more.  All so lovely, how could I not love them?

I was so happy to discover that Coastal Maine Botanical Gardens had a Rose Arbor.

And no doubt in years to come, there will be climbing roses making use of the wooden structure.

For now, clematis is doing its best.

And now, having allowed myself to fall head-over-heals in love with roses, I admit to having found the rose garden a bit sparse and actually diluted by companion plantings, however lovely in their own right. I hope to see, in time, an ever-growing variety of types and colors, and intoxicating perfumes!

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"We can complain because rose bushes have thorns, or 

rejoice because thorn bushes have roses."

-----Abraham Lincoln

* The images of the roses were borrowed from various sources, as identified in Google searches.