Pink Centifolia

Climber Rose

This is a pink centifolia rose on the grounds. Two specimens are on the north side of the cemetery. Its flowers are double, medium pink which fades to pale pink as the blossoms age. The bush is vase-shaped and large, fully six feet tall and spreading wider. The one closer to Pershing gets more sun and produces a larger crop of blossoms. It was cut back mid-season; the other is producing large round hips.

One rose which is struggling to survive is this climber rose planted on the north side. Its foliage indicates severe chlorosis and it is continually cut back because of its location. It did produce some flowers which were double and shaggy, light pink in color. This rose will never do well in its present location. If possible, it should be moved where its climber tendencies can be used to best advantage.

Alba "Celestial'

Gallica rose

Moss Rose

Far left - Bees certainly found this rose interesting; there was no way to get a picture without them. It was about 3 feet tall and wide, double blooms with shadings of pink from very light to medium tones. It appears to be an alba hybrid, perhaps Celestial. There are hips forming on the plant; not many though.

Center - Another bush has an interesting layered deep pink double bloom. This appears to be a gallica rose with a compact bush (3'x3') and some chlorosis evident in the leaves. It is also forming a few hips; whether this is characteristic of the type of rose or of inadequate feeding and/or light is uncertain.

Right - This specimen is a moss rose, as can be seen from the fuzzy growth on the sepals of the unopened bud to the left of the flower. It is a blush pink in color, double petaled and quite aromatic. There are three of these on the grounds; the bush is not tall but spreads rather wide. The leaflets showed chlorosis in some cases and there appear to be no hips.

Harison's Yellow

Persian Yellow

Peach English Rose

Far left - No garden should be without the Harison's Yellow Rose, a hardy and beautiful survivor of the plains. Several of these plants are scattered about the cemetery. Those deep in the shade are doing very poorly; others which get enough sun bloom spectacularly. Semi double blossoms of clear yellow will cover the plant, which is known for its tendency to sucker. Small dark green leaflets flourish even in drought conditions.

Center - Another yellow rose is this deep yellow full double blossom. This may be Persian Yellow. It is shaded quite a bit, so is not performing as well as it might in a sunny location. The bush is leggy and thin, yet it produces spectacular flowers. It also has the small dark green leaflets of foetida hybrids, which tend not to produce hips.

Right - Repeat bloom and beautiful peach coloring are the characteristics of this rose. The flowers are fully double and fade to white as they age. The bush is small; less than three by three feet tall and wide. It produces clusters of flowers and then produces them again and again. It appears to be an English rose type. This is an amazing plant for Wyoming.

Blush Centifolia

Henry Kelsey

Eglantine Magnifica

This is a light pink centifolia with beautiful cupped blooms. It showed chlorosis in the leaves but produced spectacular blossoms. Most of the roses in the cemetery die to the ground and come back each year. The large numbers of dead canes each year show the harsh conditions the roses endure, yet survive.

This next rose appears to be Henry Kelsey, a Canadian rose with the petals in the flower forming points at the outer edge. There is a small amount of white at the center of the petals and is characteristic of this type of rose. It reblooms later in the season, so must have some china rose ancestry as well.

This appears to be an eglanteria hybrid, with white in the center of the petals and very cupped. It only blooms once in the spring and is very fragrant. This may be the hybrid called Magnifica.

Pink Rose

Yellow Floribunda

Hybrid Tea?

This next rose is on a bush which showed severe chlorosis and came up completely from the ground. There were several canes left over the winter, none of which showed growth in the spring. Its difficulty in opening the flowers show stress is affecting this plant severely.

This is a floribunda which had clear yellow buds open to a creamy white blossom. It repeats its bloom over the season, but the plant is very short and took a long time to come up. It has a good position behind the headstone which may act as protection over the winter and adds warmth when there is sun.

This rose took awhile to leaf out, and longer still to bloom, but it formed perfect hybrid tea rose blossoms. They don't hold a good shape, but get an A for effort. There are too many hybrid teas on the market to make a guess which one this is, but its ability to survive at the cemetery is astounding.

It is difficult to grow roses in Wyoming without experiencing cane dieback, but this often helps limit the size of the plants. That said, the centifolias are quite large. There is a wonderful variety of roses at the cemetery which are worthy of notice and preservation for gardeners who are looking for roses which will survive, even with minimal care. All of the roses at the cemetery could do with mulching in winter and applications of soil acidifier and rose food throughout the growing season.

Cheyenne, Wyoming