Wild Roses

"Some people grumble that roses have thorns. I am thankful that thorns have roses" - Alphonse Kerr

Overnight, yellow roses burst into full bloom - as fleeting as lilacs and just as fragrant. This big, pretty bush reminds me of my Mom - because I snitched it from her garden! It's been transplanted twice, but here it will stay. At six feet, she's too big to survive another move.

Unlike hybrids, wild roses bloom a very short time, just long enough to be pollinated. After flowering, a red bud (called a hip) appears, filled with seeds. Start new roses with these seeds - but be quick about it. Rose hips are tasty treats for local birds.

Wild roses fit my garden because they've got what it takes to survive. They hold up to high winds, are pest free and drought-tolerant. This bush is thriving in a fairly inhospitable place. It grows in ordinary soil, without compost or fertilizer, and they live forever.

The parent of this pretty rose has bloomed every spring, for 40 years, at my Mother's home in South Dakota.