New roses unveiled
Words: Graham Rice
In the Rose Marquee, Alice in Wonderland is this year's theme, with each exhibitor interpreting the theme in their own way. As ever the roses steal the show, with seven new roses being launched. The focus is very much on smaller varieties – a small climber, smaller Hybrid Teas, and smaller Floribundas and shrub roses.
Moment in Time ('Korcastrav')
The 2012 Rose of The Year, Moment in Time, has so many things going for it. It's an unusually healthy rose, which we all appreciate. The flowers of this neat Floribunda remain almost exactly the same colour from their buds to their mature flowers so the impact is consistently impressive. The new growth has a reddish tint, the leaves are small and a fresh green colour. And it reaches only 60cm (2ft) in height. This is great rose for a mixed border or container and a worthy Rose of The Year. Breeder: Mattocks Roses.
Camelot ('Tan05372')
This unusual new climber, reaching a modest height of about 3m (10ft), features unusually delightful flowers. The buds are soft pink then open to pale pink, open centred, rosette style flowers, each petal prettily freckled in darker pink and with a slim white streak through the centre. The fresh green leaves set off the flowers well and the stems are unusually pliable which makes training this climber especially easy. Breeder: Pocock's Roses.
Katie's Rose ('Horrapture')
This is a neat growing Floribunda rose, reaching about 90cm (3ft) in height, with elegant flowers in the Hybrid Tea style. An intriguing combination. The unusually glossy foliage sets off the blooms beautifully, each bloom is rich dark purplish red with a gentle fragrance. Katie's Rose is named for teenage singing star Katie Thompson, who recently starred in a Norfolk production of Annie Get Your Gun. Breeder: Bill LeGrice Roses.
Norfolk Glory ('Horregina')
Celebrating the 90th anniversary of the Norfolk branch of the Women's Institute, this neat growing Floribunda, bred by Heather Horner, is another of modest size. Reaching just 75cm (21ft), Norfolk Glory is an unusually good grower featuring a generous succession of dark orange blooms, each lightly scented, set off well by good green glossy foliage. Breeder: Bill LeGrice Roses.
Pure Poetry ('Tan04179')
One of this year's new Hybrid Tea roses, elegant green early buds develop a dusky purple colouring and then as they open in their full glory the flowers are revealed as unexpectedly large. In fact they're huge. Then at their peak the old fashioned looking flowers show off their pale purple colouring and also show off their intense fragrance. Held singly or in small clusters on strong stems reaching 90cm (3ft) in height, Pure Poetry is good in the border and also good for cutting. Breeder: Pocock's Roses.
Truly Scrumptious ('Smi35-4-02')
With glossy bronze and olive green leaves setting off the flowers beautifully, this is an unusually long-flowering Hybrid Tea with blooms opening from April until winter. The individual flowers are gorgeous. Each petal is dark pink on the back and pale pink on the front, making an eye catching combination. Disease resistance is excellent, and at a mature height of about 90cm (3ft) Truly Scrumptious is good both in borders and containers. Breeder: Style Roses.
Virginia McKenna ('Harsong')
Reminiscent of the old Musk Roses, pink tinted buds open to small cup-shaped flowers which are creamy yellow and paler at the edges revealing the honey-coloured anthers in the centre. Red tinted stems and small dark leaves set off the flowers beautifully. With hardly a trace of disease over five years before its launch, Virginia McKenna makes a plant broader than it is high, about 1.2 x 1.0m (4x3ft), and is good as a specimen or a hedge. Breeder: Harkness Roses.