roses for the organic gardener

Hello everyone, this is my first post so please bear with me.
I am interested in your thoughts on ground cover roses and quite frankly, roses in general that are particularly frequented by all/any forms of beneficial insects and perhaps good for birds too. My current interests lie in ground cover - as mentioned - but also rambling. Filipes Kiftsgate would be a super rambler for the garden as its populated by many large trees but would Kiftsgate attract bees etc?
Many thanks for your help!
Roy

 

Hi Royster and welcome. Best thing is to look for roses that are as close to the wild forms as possible. You can buy eglantine with its wonderful flowers and apple scented leaves - it makes a scrambling shrub that can look good in the right place, but will not appeal to the tidy gardener. Single roses and anything that bees can actually get into are the ones to go for. The ones to avoid are the highly coloured hybrids teas that have no scent or pollen

 

Hi Royster For good ground cover have a search for Rosa Kent, and I have a beautiful Rambling Rector which is alive with insects and the scent is over powering on a warm day!

 

Hi Hornbeam, thought I would take some time away from work this morning so checked out the Gardeners Corner website for any answers to my query. Many thanks for your reply! So, would Eglantine be good for ground cover? Regardless, its a pleasant looking flower and with apple scented foliage I would think it to be lovely for this particular garden (not my own I must add). The owners already have Rosa xanthina "Canary Bird", which is one of my all time favourites, for its beautiful flowers and wonderful foliage. Is "Canary Bird" good for attracting bees etc? I really should know but have been away from horticulture for quite some time.
I also found from my internet searches that roses have been around on this planet for over 30 million years!! Amazing!!

 

Hi Paladin, many thanks for your reply!
Rosa Kent - its a beautiful looking species indeed! Prolific in flowers and also suitable for larger pots. I will add this to my list of "wanted".
What do you reckon to "Nozomi"? Its been around for a long time and it is thoroughly beautiful! Does it attract bees etc?
Kind regards
Roy

 

No, Roy - eglantine grows into a rambling shrub - not good for ground cover - sorry. I never think of roses as ground cover, but go for old fashioned roses and use hardy geraniums beneath then as ground cover.

 

Hi again Roy..Have just spoken with ny nephew who is a Wisley student and GC member,and he says the Nozomi is a very tolerent rose,excellent cover,strongly scented with good looks too.
Edit;..He suggests pruning to keep it more dense as it spreads as the ones he tends in private gardens near here.

[ 19. August 2006, 10:58 PM: Message edited by: Paladin ]

 

HI PALADIN, GOING TO AN ORGANIC farm tomorrow, lots to see .

 

Not in my experience Paladin. It is tough and spreads, but is far too thin to supress weeds if that is what is required here. The probably wildlife unfriendly german ground cover hybrids would be good for that. Don't forget the hips Royster, and R.moyesii is one of my favourites there. Rambling Rector is always smothered in bees when in flower, and in a friends garden the aphids are cleaned off it by blue tits that seem to love it.

 

Hi Jazid, Fancy, Paladin and Hornbeam - many thanks for all replies!
I seem to remember Nozomi from years before being a thoroughly beautiful rose, albeit from Japan (meaning not native to UK so no disrespect intended). But back then I could not remember if it was frequented by bees etc. Wisley Paladin - I have a great friend who worked/studied there for some time and I was fortunate to be able to taste one of the apples from the Wisley collection and by eck, it was the best I have ever tasted in forty years! I have to presume it was entirely "chemical" free. Good luck to your nephew! I studied at Auchincruive in Ayr and with Strathclyde Uni. Best years of my life!
Jazid, in the garden I mentioned there is a ground cover of Galeobdelon (not sure if this is the correct spelling, but I guess you get my drift?). Personally I really like this plant and I do not wish to eliminate it. As such perhaps ground cover roses with some 'spaces' would be the ideal. I really wish to encourage wildlife, even though the garden is extensive and has masses of Buddleija, apple trees, plum trees etc etc.
Once again, many thanks for your thoughts!

 

I like it too Royster, and I wish you luck in your friends garden. Someone suggested roses for shrubbery above groundcover and I think that must be good advice. Wild native roses in the background can only help local wildlife - and don't forget to check out the wildflower section of GC for alternative plants that will add to the richness of the space.

 

Thanks Jazid, I'll just pop over to wildflowers right now!
All the best
Roy