From David Beaulieu,
Your Guide to Landscaping.
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When giving cut roses as Valentine gifts, we adhere to a time-honored formula that takes into account rose color meanings. The formula matches a rose's color to its intended meaning as a gift. Valentine's Day is primarily a lovers' holiday, and red roses are traditionally for lovers. "Valentine roses" and "red roses" go hand in hand, even though other colors have their place on the holiday. Our close family members may also be treated to red roses for Valentine's Day, but we avoid giving roses of this color to friends on Valentine's Day -- that would simply convey the wrong meaning. The following are the meanings traditionally attached to the most popular roses, according to colors; use this list as a guide when selecting Valentine roses:

• Red roses mean romantic love; they're the "Valentine roses," par excellence.
  
  
• Purple, coral and orange challenge red as the color for Valentine roses. The rose color meanings for these 3 are as follows:
  • The specific purpose of purple roses is to signify that the giver has fallen in love with the recipient at first sight.
  • Meanwhile, coral and orange roses signal desire.
  
  
  
• The meaning of yellow roses is joy and friendship.
  
  
• We express our gratitude and appreciation with pink roses....
  
  
• While feelings of admiration and sympathy find words with roses that are light pink in color.
  
  
• Peach is more ambiguous, as it can signify either sympathy or gratitude.
  
  
• Their purity naturally enough lends to white roses the meaning of reverence and humility.

What about black roses? Do they exist and, if so, what is the meaning? While no jet-black rose exists, there are some of such a deep red as to suggest black. E.g., Rosa 'Black Magic.' Alternatively, some florists dry fresh roses and dye them black. And the meaning? There is some disagreement on this point. Many say black represents death and can thus be used as a symbol to express vengeance towards a foe. But others interpret that more liberally, suggesting as a meaning for black roses the death of old habits, thus signalling rebirth.

Unless you're a "Goth" or are trying to be funny, I'd stay away from sending black roses: the interpretation is too iffy. But the formula listed above will work for the other colors. Just follow the formula that matches the colors with the corresponding meanings, and you can't go wrong as a gift-giver. But is growing rose bushes in the yard also that simple? Yes, it is. Nor is there any great mystery surrounding it (although pruning roses can be tricky for the beginner, the subject of Page 2). The formula for growing rose bushes is a well-known one, since it is a formula that the average landscape plant lives (or dies) by:

sun + water + drainage + rich soil = rose success

I use the terminology "rose bushes" to refer generally to all roses, regardless of form, which can range from miniature shrubs to sprawling climbers. Once you're committed to following the formula for growing rose bushes, for maximum success you'll simply have to tweak the formula a bit and add some extras. For instance:

• While roses like six hours of sun per day, it does matter what part of the day those six hours come from. Six hours of morning sun is preferable to six hours of afternoon sun, for two reasons:
  1. Rose bush foliage prefers to be dry. The quicker the dampness from the night is burned off the foliage, the less likely disease is to become a factor.
  2. The afternoon sun is often excessively hot. Roses profit from some afternoon shade.
  
  
  
• To keep insect pests off your rose bushes, try companion planting with garlic. And once per week, while watering your rose bushes, mix some dishwashing soap into the water and apply this "insecticidal soap" to your bushes (of course, there are also true insecticidal soaps that you can buy).
  
  
• As always, soil pH is a consideration. Roses prefer a pH ranging from 6.5 to 6.8.
  
  
• For fertilizing roses, a monthly feeding of rose food is recommended.

Care for Rose Bushes on the Landscape: Overwintering, Watering:

• In cold climates roses can be mulched, but if you really want to make sure your bushes are protected, practice a winterizing method called the "Minnesota Tip."
  
  
• Roses need a lot of water (how much "a lot" is will depend, of course, on many factors). As in the case of sunlight hours (see above), not all rose-watering methods are created equal. On the average, it is best to water rose bushes twice a week -- and to water them thoroughly. It would be better to water twice per week deeply than to apply four shallower, less thorough waterings over the same time period.

These are some of the basics of rose bush care. Not too difficult, right? In fact, since there's a logical reason behind all these tips, they're probably easier to remember than the rose color meanings, which would seem to be rather arbitrary. On Page 2 we'll look at pruning techniques, as well as selecting a rose bush and getting it into the ground properly in the first place....