A Rose by Any Other Name would Smell as Sweet

My mother had an amazing rose garden in England and I planted mine to celebrate her. I have roses of all kinds but I mostly concentrate on bush roses. I have peach, red, yellow, purple and white roses. I also have a remarkable orange and gold rose bush which is right outside my kitchen window, and which I keep an eye on in all seasons, including winter. Once Spring comes I fertilize the rose bushes and then I mulch them. I spray them with a light spray for bugs and fungi. I can’t use anything too poisonous because my husband’s bee-hive is quite close, and I don’t want to hurt the bees in any way.

I am a science fiction writer who is interested in quantum physics and thus I spend a lot of time researching this subject and also living in my head. It’s therefore such a joy to go outside and spend time in the garden. To put my hands in the deep rich soil and feel it nourishing me. I also love to be with my trees which are so many colors of green at this time of year, and who sing to me as I work, their leaves rustling in every passing breeze.

I am intrigued by the idea of fractals which are in simple terms infinitely complex patterns in nature which repeat themselves no matter how large or small they are. Rose fractals resemble "the golden spiral". Because of the need for compactness rose buds must contain all parts of a fully opened bloom.

Now a brief jump with me into the rabbit hole I live in. Far from being just a pretty pattern, the petal formation of roses follows a scientific formula based on a special sequence of numbers known as the Fibonacci numbers. Named after a 13th century Italian Mathematician, Leonardo of Pisa each number in the sequence is created by adding the previous two together and they go on forever. Fibonacci numbers can be applied to all the structures of the natural world, from the spirals of a pinecone to the seeds in a sunflower.

With late spring come the wonderful garden birds such as orioles and indigo buntings, and they flock to the bird feeders which I’ve placed around the garden. The hummingbirds love the feeders on my windows too, and they add the rose nectar which is close by to their menu of sugar water.

One of the subjects about which I am passionate is climate change. Because I love the planet on which I live I hope that we will do whatever we can to preserve its beauty. This is something I appreciate when I am gardening, and also every day of my life.

To be a good gardener you need the right tools. I have a wonderful old wheelbarrow that I purchased from a yard sale thirty years ago and is still going strong. I also have an excellent pair of scissors for cutting roses, and some pruning shears. The roses appreciate the soil around their roots being loosened with a set of sharp well designed trowels, as well as the cedar mulch which I work in and which adds to their well being.

I have to be careful of the deer which love the new buds just before their first blooming in June, and I have a non-poisonous spray which puts them off because it smells so bad.

Fossil evidence tells us that the rose could be over 40 million years old and that deserves respect. China was the first country to deliberately cultivate roses. Worldwide there are 30,000 varieties of roses. Some of the most common are hybrids and floribundas, and these are the ones I grow.

Because I love roses I use rosewater and many rose scented oils just like the Romans. Roman emperors valued roses and used rose oil in their baths, and sprinkled fragrant rose petals on their guests. They especially liked white roses because they believed they were the tears of Venus when she mourned the death of Adonis.

Another wonderful story told by the Romans is about how Venus’s son Cupid shot arrows into his mother’s white rose garden, causing them to grow thorns. When she walked in the garden later she pricked her foot and her blood turned the white roses red.

Rose hips contain more vitamin C than any other fruit or vegetable. Also rose petals can be used as a sedative, have strong anti-inflammatory properties, and can help with lowering cholesterol. The best part of rose petals is they are antiseptic and can effectively treat wounds and rashes.

The red rose has been associated with love since Greek and Roman times because it was tied to Venus. Two of my favorite poems on roses and love are Shakespeare’s sonnet 54, and Getrude Stein’s poem Sacred Emily, which contains the famous lines, “a rose is a rose is a rose.” Roses magically come in many shades of red, and they all mean different things such as bright red for romance and burgundy for a love that you still yearn after.

My passion for science, gardening and roses has been an endearing and long lasting part of my life. It is something along with my creative writing which has brought me a great deal of joy and fulfillment.

As I listened, I heard

our children’s voices moving

through the long grass.

The ghost of a grandmother

stooped to gather roses

along the path.

Last night I heard

A lone coyote howling.

Long mournful sounds

in the predawn rain.

So close to my roses,

wild thing, untamed ,

brown fur, dark eyes

remarkable being.

We're at the edge.

Slow down.

Defining moments

are few, I know

I’m older.

Take time

to breath the earth.

Ask questions,

wait for answers,

and don’t forget to howl

at the moon.

.