Daniel Hanna wrote:
I shouldn't have leaned on poor Dr McLeod at his
heritage Honeysuckle Cottage nursery to send me some.

Actually this reminded me of something I keep meaning to ask you. I will be
going through Sydney on my way to Canberra at Christmas. I've already told
my husband that we will be spending time at the National Rose garden in
Canberra and that I want to stop at a rose nursery in Sydney on the way
through.

I was originally thinking of stopping at Swanes but now I'm not so sure. I'm
getting more interested in the OGR and Swanes don't list that many
different/unusual roses on their web site (if I want to see a Mr Lincoln I
can see one in Brisbane) and certainly no OGR . I've seen you mention
Honeysuckle Cottage nursery a few times and wondered whether it might be a
better choice.

I'm also interested in seeing a rose display area if possible at the
nursery. I realise late December is not the ideal time to see roses but it's
the only time I'll have.

So, if you had the choice of stopping at one rose nursery in Sydney, which
one would you choose?

Thanks,

Kirra
Brisbane, Australia

In Kirra wrote:
So, if you had the choice of stopping at one rose nursery in Sydney,
which one would you choose?

That's a hard one. I actually like Swanes, notwithstanding the modern-
only emphasis, because their gardens are truly magnificent. So much so
that international tourist buses make it part of their circuit. There's
not too many nurseries you can say that about. And even for an OGR fan,
it's at least a basis for comparison.

Honeysuckle Cottage, on the other hand, is a diametric opposite. I
doubt you could even get a bus up there at Bowen Mountain. The nursery
is the most higgeldy-piggeldy place... narrow dirt paths leading through
pots of roses placed any old where, in almost totally random order.
Some have handwritten tags, others have commercial labels. The whole
effect is like an overgrown cottage garden, only potted and with pieces
of incredible rose history for sale.

Probably the best bit about Honeysuckle is meeting the man who owns it,
Keith McLeod. He sits amongst his roses, many of which he grafted
himself, drinking his tea and smiling contentedly as he dispenses advice
to beginners and experienced gardeners with equal patience. He's a true
gentleman, a true historian and he also has to be one of the best
rosarians in Australia, period. And he definitely doesn't do this stuff
for financial reward.

So you have a hard choice... both places tend to leave you feeling that
you should have paid an admission fee when you went in. Especially at
Honeysuckle. I haven't been there without buying something, and I
certainly don't have room for any more!

So there is your choice. Good luck. I'd do both if I was you!

In Kirra wrote:
What's scary is that I can only stop on the way down and not the way
back (rushing back for a wedding) which means any purchases will have
to travel to Canberra, stay there for several days and then travel
back. They are going to be some well travelled roses! Not to mention
trying to fit potted roses in between luggage and Christmas presents. (
For non-Aussies it is approx 10hrs travel to Sydney then another 4hrs
to Canberra)

Kirra, I'm happy to baby-sit for you.

"Daniel Hanna" wrote in message
home.com.au...
In Kirra wrote:
What's scary is that I can only stop on the way down and not the way
back (rushing back for a wedding) which means any purchases will have
to travel to Canberra, stay there for several days and then travel
back. They are going to be some well travelled roses! Not to mention
trying to fit potted roses in between luggage and Christmas presents. (
For non-Aussies it is approx 10hrs travel to Sydney then another 4hrs
to Canberra)

Kirra, I'm happy to baby-sit for you.

That's very generous of you, Daniel. I'll send you an email to your yahoo
account a little closer to Christmas.

Many thanks,

Kirra
Brisbane, Australia

In Kirra wrote:

Many thanks

You're welcome. I actually visited Honeysuckle again last weekend -
it's about an hour and a half northwest of Sydney by my reckoning. I
took a few photos and I'll post them on the website within a day or so,
under my October diary.

They still have a lot of potted old roses there, and a sprinkling of the
better new ones too. Plus loads of Austins, including the older ones
like The Squire and Peach Blossom. Their 2003 catalogue has some 'new'
old rose discoveries like Vestey's Pink Tea. I wish they published it
online, each description is wonderful - written by Dr Judyth McLeod.

Display bushes in the middle of the nursery include a Monsieur Tillier
which is 10 feet high, with a trunk literally a foot thick. There's a
Mrs B R Cant almost as big.

Another highlight was the climbing deep red HT, Alister Clark's Countess
of Stradbroke. This Australian bred climber was hailed by the 1939
American Rose Annual to be the best climber in the world at the time.
By the size and smell of the blooms, I reckon it's held its own!

The in stock varieties left after the mail order season tend to be the
less well known ones. I picked up Mme Antoine Mari (a tea from 1901). I
also gave in and got a Souvenir de la Malmaison (a very common bourbon
that needs no introduction).

I nearly got an Octavius Weld too.... a very strong looking bush. It's
a tea that was discovered on a tombstone in South Australia, probably a
chance cross between two other early teas. They gave it the name on the
tomb! Botanica's Roses says that it's very beautiful but not grown
outside Australia. Pity.

Anyway, if you like Old Roses and you prefer to buy from true experts,
this is the place. I have no affiliation other than as a very happy
customer.

"Daniel Hanna" wrote in message
home.com.au...
So there is your choice. Good luck. I'd do both if I was you!

OK, you twisted my arm - not that it takes too much effort to persuade me to
go to two rose nurseries rather than one. We'll just have to allow some more
time to stop on the way down. The rose gardens at Swanes sound like they'll
be magnificent and I'm looking forward to chatting with the owner of
Honeysuckle nurseries. Hopefully he will still be there/open Monday of the
week of Christmas but I'll call before going out there.

What's scary is that I can only stop on the way down and not the way back
(rushing back for a wedding) which means any purchases will have to travel
to Canberra, stay there for several days and then travel back. They are
going to be some well travelled roses! Not to mention trying to fit potted
roses in between luggage and Christmas presents. (For non-Aussies it is
approx 10hrs travel to Sydney then another 4hrs to Canberra)

Thanks,

Kirra
Brisbane, Australia

Hi Everyone,

Has anyone heard of these new delbard french roses or where I can get them?

Allan

In m allanbugg wrote:
Has anyone heard of these new delbard french roses or where I can get
them?

They intrigue me too, I must admit. Delbard is a French rose breeder,
and has been for many decades. I grow La Passionata, one of their roses
released in 1969.

However, there has been a recent fuss over Delbard roses, on gardenweb's
Roses in Oz pages (and other places). Presumably they have some new
distinctive range out there.