it’s time to order your David Austin roses

No, this is not a sponsored post.

Golden roses tumbling over the arch, luscious bouquets on my kitchen counter, cutting bloom after bloom for my friends, tossing petals onto the grass whenever I walk across the yard– you know I love my roses.

But why David Austin roses?

• they’re extraordinarily healthy and easy to grow
• you can find roses that bloom in almost any climate and in sun, shade or poor soil
• most perennials and bushes only bloom once, but David Austin roses bloom three or four times a summer
• David Austin roses have more blooms, with more petals and incredible scent
• dollar for dollar, there’s nothing you can plant in your garden (or in a pot on your patio) that will produce more blooms for years and years and years

I know, I know. I’m practically an evangelist for David Austin (and you should definitely go read this post). But I meet so many people who are afraid of roses, who think they are too expensive, who think they are hard to grow or too much work.

And about this time every year, I get dozens of emails and messages looking for recommendations. March is the perfect month to order (before they sell out). Depending on where you live, your roses will ship between March and May.

I am SO happy to recommend my favorites, but first, you’ll want to check out your plant hardiness zone. I live in Zone 7A (and all these photos are from my yard). Next check out your hardiness zone on the David Austin site. If you live in the Dakotas, you’ll have a little less variety, but still 30+ varieties to choose from.

In fact, you’ll probably have too many to choose from. So, I’d go to Highly Recommended Roses. These are the healthiest, easiest roses to grow with the biggest roses and the most repeat blooms. You can search by zone, by color, by height, by climate, etc.

I like to take a walk around my yard and decide where I really want/need new roses. You can definitely go with the this-is-so-pretty-I-don’t-even-care method of choosing roses (I have definitely done that). But it’s actually smarter (learned from hard experience) to choose your spot and then choose the rose.

Choose the height; choose a climber or a shrub or a hedge and then… color! I’ll admit. I always choose by color: apricot and orange, pure white, every shade of pink and yellow, deep rich reds.

I love to shop the rose bundles for their lower cost per rose and free mycorrhizal fungi. This year I ordered the Roald Dahl 5x (three for my yard, one for Xander and Madi in a patio pot and one for a friend), the Alnwick Rose 5x (all for me– that color!), and one climber The Generous Gardener (I already have three and I need one more).

Really, here’s my advice: find your zone, find what you need, find what you love and order before it’s too late.

Want to know my dream? Someday I’ll buy a plot of land, plant a gorgeous rose garden, build a white farmhouse/reception/event center and you can come and look at every rose in person and we’ll host weddings and retreats and gardening classes, and take photos and search for fairies in the garden. Right? You coming?