My roses are blooming. Most days new buds open, so I stroll the grounds to view them.(It should be more accurately termed: walk the yard…but stroll the grounds sounds so much better suited when discussing rose viewing.)
My climbing Fourth of July roses have finally reached the porch rail (after 3 years in the ground), and are blooming their stripes for all to see. Sally Holmes sits between them getting larger every year and abundant with her single petal hybrid musk blooms. The Black Ice floribunda rose buds really did look black until they opened into a dark rich red color. The rainbow knockout bloomed first and most profusely. The Champlain Canadian Explorer rose is covered in red blooms which I admire from my kitchen window. I saw my first Veilchenbleu flower, a light purple rambler, and I am eagerly anticipating when the hundreds of tiny buds on it follow along.
Blaze travels with me as I walk the yard. He attempts to get my attention by periodically dropping a ball at my feet. If I clip a bloom, he reaches up and bites another bloom off to help me with my task. In a fury, I will throw the ball to get rid of him. This, of course, is exactly what he wants. Biting blooms off plants works like a charm every time. When I take too long to snap a rose photo, he determines that I must be waiting for him to get in the picture as well.
This year, the rose that has won my heart is Sydonie: a pretty pink Hybrid Perpetual with a lovely scent. I checked it each day as its buds formed and eagerly anticipated its opening. Finally, one morning, I saw that it had opened and eagerly walked over to enjoy its beautiful aroma. As I approached, an odor did arise, just not the one I had been waiting for. Having determined that no scent would compete with his own, Blaze had left a fresh pile within inches of the beautiful rose.