Eglantine
I've just been reading about Eglantine - the wild rose that is. Apparently it is vigorous, hardy, compact, almost constantly in bloom, and very forgiving, tolerating poor soils and neglect. It propogates easily from cuttings. It is small but it has very showy flowers, bright magenta with prominent white 'eyes'. For all these fantastic traits it is a very rare rose, not commercially readily available.
All in all she sounds like a great character for a children's book. I already love her (she reminds me a little of Fred). Long blonde hair (that kid blonde that is almost white) and pale blue eyes. She's tough, she can take whatever you throw at her.
Actually, Peter Harkness describes it as growing about 2 meters tall. But the foliage is apple-scented. And Englantine is from the Old French word *aiglent*, which means prickles. If you get one, you could prune it back to encourage fragrant new growth.
ReplyDeleteYou might try to find one for sale. Do a search for "Rosa eglanteria" and that might pull up some vendors. Or you might do a search for "antique roses" or "heritage roses" and see what you get.
Good luck!