June is known as ‘Rose Month’ in our part of the country. It is the time of year we rosarians have been waiting for, especially after the exceptionally long winter we just slogged through.

Our blooms have been a long time coming this year… my gardens are at least a couple of weeks behind schedule… but they finally started to open. Now I am in the midst of a particularly lovely first flush!

I take a lot of pictures this time of year. I shot some of the same spot three days in a row. It’s amazing to see how the garden develops in that amount of time. I love watching my roses go from bud to exhibition stage to open blooms. The colors are always changing and it’s always a delight to walk outside and see what’s happening at any time of the day! I have a lot of trouble getting regular chores done this time of year, because if I’m home for the day I want to be in the garden.

Judging Roses

I became a Horticultural Judge a while back, and I am always delighted to accept an invitation to judge a rose show. Last Saturday, I went to judge the Rhode Island Rose Show and it was a work of art. I am not an arrangement judge, but the Rhode Islanders are wonderful designers and I thought their work was just amazing! Last week was a rainy washout; I got 3″ of rain in my yard…never good news on rose show week. The rain nailed Rhode Island, too, but they still managed to load the tables with really good roses! The colors and fragrances were just wonderful. Judging their show was a pleasure.

The next day was our turn: The 33rd Annual Connecticut Rose Society Rose Show. It is my job to letter the awards cards with my calligraphy, so that keeps me busy most of the day. This year, because my gardens were slow due to our overcast, unusually cold spring, I actually had roses to bring to the show! It is fun to be able to show off some of my beauties with the rest of our rose friends’ offerings. I won best Floribunda bloom for ‘Lime Sublime,’ and best ‘Cycle of Bloom’ for ‘Sunset Celebration.’ I love the cycle of bloom class as that is my favorite thing to see in my own gardens.

American Rose Society

If you don’t belong to your local rose society, you really should think about joining. There, you will meet folks who love roses, just like you do! If you are a beginner, you will find out how to grow better roses in your area. Joining the American Rose Society will help you move forward in the rose world, as well. Your membership fee brings you a fabulous ‘American Rose’ magazine that is chock full of information. There is also a fantastic pages-long Beginners article for newbies. I have saved all the magazines from my many years as a member of ARS, and they are wonderful references. I still read the magazine cover-to-cover whenever it arrives.

You need not be a member of your local society or the ARS to participate in a rose show, but being a member gives you a day-long celebration of friendship as well as rose loving…think about it! I would love to meet you, and my roses would love to meet you, too!