Climbing rose 'Garland'

The Garland Rose is a wonderful pale pink flowered version of the famous Garland of Love. It has the same qualities of floribundity and disease resistance, but has more flexible stems, like those of climbing roses. This large, robust and repeat-flowering rose displays exuberant and ramified growth, with vibrant green foliage. It is covered in long bouquets of small semi-double to double roses that exude a delicious carnation scent. This splendid variety also produces decorative small fruits at the end of the season.

This large Garland Rose 'VELwichba' is a creation by Louis Lens dating back to 2008. It is a hybrid of the Rosa wichuraiana, a botanical species native to East Asia. The plant can easily reach 3 m to 4 m (13ft) in height with a spread of 2 m (7ft). Its long stems are very flexible, thorny and covered in abundant and very healthy foliage, a bright green with a slight sheen. The flowers of this repeat-flowering variety form abundantly, first in June-July, then in September-October, sometimes until November if the autumn is mild. Gathered in long pyramidal clusters along the stems, they are also particularly resistant to rain. They emerge on short shoots of the 2nd year, as pale pink buds. Then, they open up into small semi-double to double roses measuring 3-4 cm (1-2in) in diameter. Coquettish, simple, charming, they are surrounded by a gentle scent of musk and cloves. Their color changes from light pink to white over the course of hours. Pollinated by bees, they transform into small fruits that delight birds in the colder months. These are actually fleshy false fruits called hips. They contain a large quantity of single-seeded achenes. 

'Garland Rose' is an enchanting, generous and robust rose, which can be invited into a romantic or English-style garden. Like other climbing roses or ramblers, it is incomparable for covering walls, fences, arbors and pergolas. Its dense habit also allows it to be used in a flowering hedge against which it can lean its long stems. To accompany it, consider for example a vigorous clematis of the terniflora type or belonging to the 'montana' group. It is an ideal companion for small trees that it will invigorate, or for cabins to which it gives a charming touch. Trained over an arch, it will create a romantic and perfumed passage.