Last spring I planted the new David Austin english rose, Munstead Wood, in my backyard garden. I happily looked forward to chocolate-crimson colored flowers.
You can see in the first photo that I did get a few deeply colored roses. But then the flowers lightened up to the same color as 'William Shakespeare 2000', another crimson english rose that I have planted nearby. Above is a photo of the lighter Munstead Wood blooms with a double campanula in the background.
The color remained lighter during the summer months, then darkened again as fall approached. None of the flowers on my bush were quite as dark as the photos in the David Austin catalog. But they were still pretty.
As the catalog says, there is a nice 'old rose' fragrance, though it isn't as strong as Shakespeare's. And the size is very manageable, at 3 ft high and 2.5 ft wide.
Even in its first year of growth, and despite being planted in partial shade (morning sun only), the shrub put out regular flushes of blooms throughout the season. It didn't have problems with disease, though of course a few aphids found their way to the new growth.
If you are thinking about adding this rose to your garden, I'd recommend it. Just don't expect all the flowers to be as dark as the pictures in the catalog - especially if you live in a climate with very hot summers.
Regardless of the color, isn't that a gorgeous flower? I just love these english roses!
What a gorgeous rose. I love that it has flushes of blooms all summer for you. It turned out like my Almost Black rose. No where the dark red that it was suppose to be but a pretty red anyway. Yours looks so lovely with the double campanula.
ReplyDeleteWhat a beautiful rose. She has a very strong color. it's beautiful
ReplyDeleteHI VW, I love the fragrance of the old roses. The full petal count is wonderful. For your rose being in afternoon shade to still bloom throughout the season is great! Gives me hope that I may find a good spot in my new yard to put a David Austin...looking at 'Janet'....go figure.
ReplyDeleteHi VW, I love this color! I want this rose!
ReplyDeleteWhat a beauty! Love that lavender one behind it but can't imagine a lavender rose, even though that is my favorite color. Are they David Austin Roses?
ReplyDeleteI've planted it this winter. I'm happy to read it's worth it. Just hope that my Belgian climate will make the color darker.
ReplyDeleteI've heard that roses tend to a lighter tone in basic soil. Maybe this is why your rose has a lighter tone.
ReplyDeleteI also have a Tess of the D'Urbervilles that is much lighter than in the catalog.
Thanks for passing along that info, Matblogger. I really should have my soil tested for pH. Based on the color of my hydrangeas (pink), it must be at least slightly alkaline, so that might be why the rose color is lighter. Many of my daylilies seem to bloom darker than in other gardens, and I thought that was because our nights get so cool. There are certainly a lot of variables to influence color!
ReplyDeleteMUNSTEAD WOOD. or WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE i had one of them few years back. They were so beautiful. One Bush was like a little Rose Garden. I moved from there and I have been looking for this variety and cant seem to find it. I found the exact picture of the Rose Plant. I had been looking for the name & at last found it. Thank you.
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