Roses and Their Meaning

Roses and their meaning can be summed up in one word- Love!

Love and roses- legend says Aphrodite, the Greek goddess of love, created the rose.

As unique as her creation, Aphrodite is the only Olympian who had neither a mother or father. Her origins remain unknown.
The Wind saw her first in the early dawn when she emerged from the sea on the white of the waves. Mighty Aphrodite’s rose recipe was simple: drops of her blood and the tears she shed over her fallen lover Adonis. Her creation became the breathtakingly beautiful iconic flower that fills our gardens, is part of our world history, and adorns our museums and daily lives.

For Garden Tips your roses will love...

Roses, Roses Everywhere

Love and roses still go hand-in-hand in these modern times.

While never leaving their association with romance and illustrious beginnings far behind, roses and their meaning have become part of our everyday life.

Look for them beyond the garden walls and you will see them everywhere in a myriad of things: famous paintings, the weave of fabrics, the frame in a foyer hotel mirror, the legs of a café chair, the front buttress of an old building on Main Street, and maybe even at the bottom of your soup bowl.

Pink roses have even been seen in the distant cosmos, such as The Pink Rose Bud Nebula.

May the time of love and roses continue for many years to come.

Roses are More than Just the Pretty Flowers in the Garden

While love and roses have fed the soul and been together for millennia, roses first provided early humans with nourishment and, eventually, with fragrant oils.

The Rose of Attar, which is oil extracted from rose petals, has been the heart of the most famous perfumes.

Rose Water, also made from rose oil,is used in special Asian and Middle Eastern cuisine. The French are known for their rose syrup used in their delightful rose scones and marshmallows.

Rose hips are still harvested and eaten alone or used in jams. Some rose hips have exceptionally high levels of Vitamin C and are brewed in teas.

Botany Talk: About Roses In the Beginning

Roses and their meaning have an archetypal and prominent place in our collective history. Their botanical story is no less impressive.

Roses belong to the botanical family 'Rosaceae', which includes more than 5000 woody plants including strawberries, and apple and cherry trees.

Their genus is "Rosa". There are 3 groups of roses within the Rosa genus and thousands of varieties within every group. The groups are wild roses, also called specie roses, Old Garden Roses ("OGR") and Modern Roses.

Your garden may have a place for one variety from every group or you may fancy one above all others.

Wild roses are treasured for their vigor and wild nature. They often flower but once a year;however, the show they give and their fragrant scent are so amazing that once can be enough. Many have vibrant intricate leaves that make thick and wonderful hedges.

Heirloom old garden roses have some of the great features seen in Wild roses and exotic hybrid features: some have 100 petals in just one rose.

Modern roses are repeat bloomers and some are especially disease resistant, breed for the cold or are drought tolerant. All in all, many require less attention and resources than the heirloom old garden roses; modern roses alone can produce hundreds of roses and fill your house with flowers all season long.

No wonder it is sometimes so hard to decide what roses to buy now and which ones must wait for the next season.

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