Mrs Reynolds hole

A very special Tea this Mrs Reynolds hole. Bred by Paul Nabonnand in 1900 she was the result of crossing the famous Tea Archiduc Joseph with another Tea Joseph Schwartz.

This cross resulted in an upright growing shrub of approx 200X150 cm or 6X5 feet. She can easily be trained as a pillar or obelisk rose. Foliage is very healthy

Flowers are carmine pink, cupped and very full. They make a very baroque impression and due to their weight the flowers nod towards the spectator. There's a moderate fragrance. 

Reblooming is very good and she's rain resistant. Zone 7b to 10b

A lush beauty that needs more attention 

Ley's Perpetual

Ley's Perpetual remains a mystery. Discovered by Ley in 1937 and brought onto the market by Sunningdale nurseries in 1958 this rose hasn't yet revealed its origins.

When we look at the flower we see a kind of Maréchal Niel like bloom with the same light, Sulphur yellow color. The shape is cupped at first but opens into a rather flat, quartered rosette. Flowers are big and very full. The fragrance can vary between moderate Tea to strong fruity depending on the weather conditions. 

Foliage is dark, leathery green and the wood is Reddish bronze colored. The shoots are rather stiff and must be trained immediately before getting too hard and too difficult to master.

This is not a very tall climber. She'll reach 3 meters or 9 feet. Very beautiful when trained around an obelisk.

For a Tea she's remarkably Hardy zone 6b to 9b but she'll always need a sunny, warm spot to thrive. She is susceptible to Blackspot as so many yellow roses are. She reblooms several times in the season. Every flower is a piece of art... 

Since it's introduction people have been brainstorming about her parents and often Gloire de Dijon has been mentioned so this would make her a Dijon climber but her petals are remarkably leathery and very rain proof. So doubt always remains. 

It's a rare rose in gardens and only for that reason it's good to buy her but she has so much other qualities. The pictures are the best selling point... 

How to fertilize Teas in pots

Roses in pots are totally dependent on us so it's crucial to treat them the right way.

Providing water and food is our main concern regarding potted roses. Because excess water drains away from our pots a lot of nutrients drain away too so we need to give something extra to our roses in pots. 

Just like their brothers and sisters in the ground we give the potted roses a good handful of granulated organic fertilizer each month starting in March. We keep doing this each month including August. Because potted roses loose more nutrients we give them an extra amount of fertilizer: Each week we give them a feed of liquid organic fertilizer. I use organic liquid tomato fertilizer and organic liquid seaweed. Follow the label for the right amount of fertilizer and dissolve it in your water. Now you give as much as water till it drains from the drainage hole. So we do this weekly. 

Recap:

As of March: Monthly, a big handful of organic granulated fertilizer. We repeat this till August 

Weekly: An extra liquid feed with organic tomato or seaweed fertilizer. 

IMPORTANT: Roses in pots are totally dependent on us for water. In spring and especially in summer we need to check our pots regularly and in summer this will mean daily. We use the finger test to determine if water is needed. We stick our finger all the way into the soil and if it comes out dry we start watering but when it comes out moist we don't need to water. In fall and winter we don't need to check each week but every few weeks. Roses can die very quickly from lack of water so be watchful!

Organic tomato or vegetable fertilizer is ideal as extra food for potted roses 

Seaweed or Kelp liquid fertilizer is also ideal as an extra food source for our potted roses. You can also use it as foliar spray. Always follow the manual closely 

How to fertilize Tea roses?

All roses are greedy feeders, it's rather difficult to overfeed them but still there are some necessary guidelines.

Never use artifical fertilizers. They are man made chemicals, empty calories destroying our soils quite rapidly. It's important to know that chemical fertilizers destroy mycorrhiza fungus and all the benefits attributed to them. Also they make the soil very salty and they will kill our beneficial microorganisms. 

No, we only use organic fertilizers originating directly from nature. They stimulate the life in our top soil, the humus layer. 

When you buy organic fertilizer is important to take a look at the package itself. It has to be clearly visible it's organic. Once you see that it's important to look for the NPK levels. NPK stands for Nitrogen, Phosphor and Potassium (Kalium).

Nitrogen for growth, Phosphor for a healthy and big root system and Potassium gives our roses a good resistance against diseases. Often the NPK on rose fertilizer is followed by another element, Magnesium. Magnesium is responsible for big, many, healthy flowers.

It's easy to check if the fertilizer you wanna buy is really organic. Don't just believe it because it says so on the plastic package. No, just look at the NPK levels, they always have to be lower than 10, especially the Nitrogen. So when the NPK for example reads: 6 - 8 - 7 it really is organic and safe to use. You won't be able to burn your roses with these levels even if you give your roses the triple amount of fertilizer. Organic fertilizer slowly releases the elements into the soil without the risk of burning the roots. Don't worry if the amount of Magnesium is higher than 10. Magnesium doesn't burn roots, Nitrogen does when it comes in high amounts. You can easily compare the organic fertilizer with a chemical one in your garden center. Immediately you will notice that the NPK levels on the chemical fertilizer are always higher than 10, especially the Nitrogen. You don't want that. It's poison for the soil and it can burn our roots very quickly.

So now you have the right fertilizer it's good to know when to apply it. We start in early spring which is March in the Northern hemisphere. A good handful of granulated organic fertilizer is spread in a circle around the roots of each rose. We repeat this each month till August so in September we stop giving fertilizer. Why? Because we want to give our roses the opportunity to stop growing so the new wood of summer can get hard enough to withstand frost in late fall and winter. The wood needs to ripen. If we keep giving fertilizer the roses still think it's summer and they'll keep making new shoots. Shoots this late won't get the time to become cold resistant enough and it increases the chances of frost damage. So that's why we stop giving food in September. 

We also give a handful of volcanic rock dust in March. Just spread the powder onto your soil and work it in a bit. 

IMPORTANT: Fertilizer needs water to dissolve and to be transported to the root system so if it doesn't rain when you apply the fertilizer it's mandatory to give plenty of water. Always keep that in mind. If it doesn't rain your fertilizer will be useless.

An organic rose fertilizer always has low NPK levels. In this case 4-8-4

Another example of a good organic fertilizer with NPK 5-6-3

Chemical fertilizer always has a very high NPK. In this case 20-20-20. Never buy a fertilizer with N(nitrogen) higher than 9. It can burn roots and makes your soil sick 

Are Teas suitable for growing in pots?

Tea roses are, as children from the China's, ideal for pot culture. Of course we can't expect that Teas, climbing Teas or Tea Noisettes will reach the same proportions or magnificence like their counterparts in the ground but the results are very satisfactory.

The Victorians often didn't have the mild winter temperatures of the Mediterranean or California or Australia so they were often forced to plant their Teas in pots so the plants could be brought indoors in conservatories or Orangeries. Often the Teas kept blooming during winter in these mild, bright structures. 

Having read the writings or handbooks from the great Victorian rose connaisseurs I can certainly say that growing Teas in pots can be highly successful. 

We need to pay attention to the medium they will get planted in. A good peat free potting compost will have to get mixed with a few handful of volcanic rock dust (Lavameel in Dutch). 2 parts of your potting soil needs to consist of good compost such as leaf compost or composted farm manure or mushroom compost. All is good as long as it's high in humus. Worm castings are also very useful.

What intrigued me was the active charcoal they used to mix in the mixture. Today this can be bought as "Biochar". A few handfuls of this material will enhance root quality immensely.

If you are planning to use bare root Tea roses for planting in pots you can treat the roots with mycorrhiza spores to give the roses an extra good start. Make sure to buy the mycorrhiza spores especially suited for roses.

I always use the "Rootgrow" brand and it's very good. If you're planting container roses in pots you can sprinkle some mycorrhiza spores in the bottom of the pots and place the rootball on top of them so the spores touch the roots.

Size of the pot is always important and if you're planning to grow your Teas at least 3 years in the pots a volume of at least 20 liters is a minimum and more is recommended.

Pots come in all kinds of materials but I prefer terracotta. Yes they are more expensive but they look as if they were made for the cause. They add to the beauty of the roses. Don't forget to cover the drainage hole with a piece of broken terracotta, this to ensure the hole won't get clogged and won't be able to drain excess water. 

When I plant bare root Tea roses in pots I take my wheelbarrow and fill it up with a bag of 70 liters peat free potting compost. I add 20 liters of compost and in my case that's composted farm manure. 1 kg of Rock dust/flower goes in together with 5 liters of Biochar. Now I hustle it together till all is mixed well evenly. My potting medium is now ready to use...

Before planting bare root roses I always allow the roots to soak in a bucket of water for six to 12 hours.

Now I take my terracotta pot and put an old terracotta shard onto the drainage hole. I add some soil to cover the bottom and I take my rose. I inspect the roots, are they broken somewhere? Yes? Then I prune those away. Are they too long? Yes? Then again I shorten them a bit. When that's done I sprinkle them with the mycorrhiza and because the roots are wet the stuff glues on immediately. I grab the rose at the graft spot and I spread the roots evenly in the pot. Now I start to add my potting soil mixture while keeping the rose steady and in the middle. When you almost reach the graft spot you press down the soil a bit. Now you can add more soil till the graft is covered with 5 cm of soil. I then put a last layer of pure compost on top.

Now I need to water the rose. I always use rainwater because it doesn't contain calcium and this will prevent chlorosis or leaves turning light Green. Too much calcium blocks the plants ability to take in iron which results in an iron deficiency. It's clearly visible because the foliage turns light green and you can see the leaf nerves. So use rainwater if you have it. You add water to the pot till it drains away from the drainage hole. Now your rose is ready and you can put it in the spot of your choosing but remember that Teas love a sunny and warm spot.

Don't let your potted Teas dry out. In fall, winter and early spring you probably won't have to water the pots if they are kept in the garden. But checking them every two weeks can't hurt. When temperatures start to rise in April and May it's crucial to keep the pots moist. Never put watering plates underneath the pots. Roses hate wet feet and roots can start to rot very quickly. A good tip to use is the finger method: Stick your finger all the way into the soil of the pot. If it comes out moist you don't need to water the pot but if your finger comes out dry it's time to give water. How much? Till you see water draining from the bottom.

During late spring and summer it's really crucial to keep your pots well watered and to check your pots daily, yes daily! 

In another Q&A we'll discuss feeding potted Tea roses.

Volcanic rock dust provides vital minerals and trace elements

Biochar is active charcoal which improves the soil 

Mycorhizza will provide your Tea roses the best start 

Why do Teas bloom more and longer than other roses?

Tea roses are known for their excessive blooming season. To know why we have to look at the origins of the Tea roses and they begin in China. Our Teas are the result of crossing R. Chinensis (The China rose) with the more tropical R. Gigantea which can be found in eastern India, Burma, the Himalayas and southwestern China. Because both parents originate from warmer regions than the European roses the result was an almost perpetual (all year round) blooming period. Of course Europe isn't the warmer part of China so here the Teas would stumble on winter boundaries. In the warmer parts of Europe and America but also Australia the Teas could flower almost year round but in most parts they did go dormant when temperatures dropped below 5 degrees Celsius.

For our Teas today it means that they start to grow much earlier in spring. When temperatures permit they wake up and start to grow. In my garden in Leuven, close to Brussels, it means that when there's no frost and winter temps are mild the Teas start to grow resulting in early blooming. This year some Teas had flowers in early April and they will continue to flower till the first frost will silence them. This can be in October or November or yes, even December. So depending on the region you're living in Tea roses will have a much longer flowering season. 

This has one significant downside: It makes them more vulnerable to frost. Teas have less hardiness than let's say Hybrid Teas or Bourbons and certainly less than the Alba's. Frost won't kill them (as long as temps don't drop lower than -12° Celsius) but it can severely damage fresh new growth. That's why it's so important to keep in mind the hardiness zones. If you're in zones 8b and higher it's unlikely your Teas will get killed during winter but zone 7b can sometimes cause trouble when severe frost is predicted.

The bottom line is that Teas don't go dormant entirely. They go in standby mode and when temp rise they react immediately and start to grow. It's only normal they can face some frost damage when late spring frost occurs.

Devoniensis: A magnificent Tea blooming well into autumn till first frost forces it to stop 

Are Teas more difficult to grow than other roses?

The answer is a 100% NO

Teas look a lot like their direct parents the China's. They make new growth from every leaf axle if they get the chance. It was the first thing I noticed when I purchased my first Tea, Rêve d'or. She came to me (from Lens) as a container rose and was 1 meter (3 feet) tall. After two weeks she started to make new growth but not only from the leaf axles where I deadheaded them. No she made new shoots from leaf axles much lower. The result was a twiggy rose with plentiful of thin shoots which kept on growing. If we compare this to our modern roses such as HT's and Floribundas it's certainly different. These modern roses normally only grow new shoots at the deadheading spot or from the base (at the graft). The result is that Teas are much quicker packed with wood giving a fuller appearance.

Due to the rather twiggy, thin shoots Teas don't get the massive, top heavy flowers from let's say the Austin roses or so many HT's. No, the Tea rose flowers are well in proportion although there are exceptions to this rule such as Baronne Henriette Snoy, she has big, heavy flowers but her wood is also stronger. 

Tea flowers always tend to nod their head a bit and in rose circles we call this the "weak neck syndrome". I find this a wonderful feature as the flowers look more at us. Combined with the thin growth it always seems as if the Tea flowers float in the air, they dangle down gracefully. 

Another big difference with modern roses is that Teas really HATE pruning. They just don't like it and they will let you know. Growth and blooming will go stagnant and in some cases they can even die. So always resist the urge to prune in early spring. It saves time and effort. 

Are Teas weaker? Less healthy? Again the answer is NO. In the extremely wet spring and summer of 2024 nearly all my remaining modern roses got defoliated due to Blackspot but many of my Teas didn't get blackspot. Some powdery mildew can occur but often it's nothing serious.

As with all roses you have to give Teas time to develop, to prove themselves. Normally it takes three to four years for a rose to develop itself and to start performing at its best. So be patient, don't intervene to quickly and yes... don't prune 

If you live in the right hardy zone (normally between 7b and 10b) Teas aren't more difficult to grow. Always remember that they need a warm, sunny and rather sheltered spot especially when you live at the boundaries of the right zones.

Rêve d'or, a typical example of a twiggy Tea climber