Some days I expect the greeting, even look forward to it. With a spring in my step, a lilt in my voice, and a smile on my face, I look them square in the eye and greet them back with a big "hello!" Other days, I am preoccupied. My face down, my mind on other things, their cheerful greeting takes a few seconds to get through the fog in my brain where it finally registers. "Oh, hi", I'll say, with a slight wave of my hand. Not so much a wave of hello, but a wave of dismissal.
Even on the days that I dismiss the greeters, I would miss them if they were not there. They probably don't realize just how much I appreciate a cheerful greeting.
I have my own greeter in the garden. Like the greeters in the retail shops here, Gruss an Aachen consistently sings out its cheerful "Hello!" when I walk into the garden, always greeting me with numerous stages of bloom. I appreciate it more than it will ever know.
Gruss an Aachen literally means 'Greetings from Aachen'. The city of Aachen was a favorite of the Emperor Charlemagne, and where he was buried.
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| Gruss an Aachen |
At first, you might think that Gruss an Aachen would be a bit inconsistent. After all, it has been put into almost every rose class one can think of: hybrid tea, polyantha, china, shrub. Usually, though, it has the distinction of being classified as the very first floribunda. The color is also a bit inconsistent. Its blooms are a blend of pink, apricot, and cream. The intensity of the color changes with the weather, and as the bloom opens and ages. I find that quality charming.
But there's one quality Gruss an Aachen is very consistent with: blooming. It has such a sunny disposition it will even grow in part shade! Plus, it's very disease resistant, fragrant, and grows to around 3 ft by 3 ft. It grows in zones 5 through 9, some say zones 4 through 10.
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Want to be greeted with a handful of rosy blooms in your own garden? You might want to give Gruss an Aachen a try!
a very interesting post. i do like it when shops have "greeters" though over here Down Under we don't seem to have very many of them, when i walk into a shop and they welcome me i always tell them i appreciate it and wish them a very happy day :)
ReplyDeletei have a couple of greeter in my garden, they would probably be the big gum tree at the gate, the aloe vera growing at the bottom of it and then there are those with the flowery disposition in the garden too :)
I am so glad you wish the greeters a happy day. I think it helps their disposition and outlook, and I believe it certainly helps ours!
DeleteThat's my kind of a rose! Roses that happily bloom in the shade are few and far between so I like this trait. If I ever see it I will snatch it up. All the years I loved in Germany I never visited Aachen:( It was too far north and west so out of my range. Though I did visit all around it. It would be nice to have a German named rose though.
ReplyDeleteYou are right - most roses have French names, so the German ones are not as common. I hope you will add a German rose to your garden sometime. I think it would be very fitting since you lived there for a while.
DeleteHolley, if you are sure that Gruss an Aachen is hardy in my 5a zone I will try to get it and to grow the next year. Thank you!
ReplyDeleteNadezda, no guarantees! ;) But, I think it would be worth a try. I really do believe it should be hardy in zone 5. Zone 4 would be rather iffy. Of course, if it comes a hard freeze and doesn't make it, please don't blame me! :) Good luck. If you can find a place that shelters it some from the northern wind, I think you would have very good luck.
DeleteThe greeters really does put you in the right mood and frame of mind, even on days you don't acknowledge them back or even look at them, the subconscious effect is still there.
ReplyDeleteAnd such is the case with the garden, a lovely plant that cheers you up as you enter the garden, or the first plant you see really does have a positive effect on the gardener. Lovely post Holley, and lovely rose too! :)
Yes, I can't imagine anyone going into a beautiful garden, or seeing a plant blooming cheerfully, and not be a bit happier than when they arrived!
DeleteMy garden is entered through two off-set panels of fencing that are overgrown with honeysuckle. In summer the smell is wonderful, and a great greeting to the garden and a place that is somehow not like my everyday life in the city.
ReplyDeleteOh, that sounds wonderful! I would walk there back and forth, just luxuriating in that fabulous scent!
DeleteVery pretty Rose. I like the ones that tend to be very resistant to problems also and tend to be rebloomers.
ReplyDeleteCher Sunray Gardens
Those are the ones I like, too. Sometimes it takes a little trial and error, but I believe there is a rose that can meet those challenges for almost every garden!
DeleteA very clever topic, Holley! You've got me thinking about the 'greeters' in my garden and the message they give. P. x
ReplyDeleteI'm certain you have some fabulous greeters in your garden, Pam!
DeleteKind of a hippy!
ReplyDeleteYes, don't you just love how the petals get loose and long and shaggy? :)
DeleteI don't grow roses, except for an old northern Maine variety I got many years ago from my grandmother's very old bush. (See how little I know?) I probably never will grow them, and that's why gardeners like you are so important to gardeners like me. Thanks for beautiful posts!
ReplyDeleteAnd I'm certain you have garden qualities and knowledge I don't know, either! It seems these days we all need each other to know about gardening in full.
DeleteYou made me thing about what greets visitors to my garden. I guess I have to say a view down the hillside rather than a plant. But you are right that first greeting sets the tone for the visit.
ReplyDeleteOh, a lovely view is a wonderful greeting! And what could better set the tone? Nothing!
DeleteDepending on the time of year, my greeters are false indigo, cup plant, sunflowers, and Joe Pye weeds - whatever is the most striking thing I see when I open the front door in the morning.
ReplyDeleteI guess we gardeners search for greeters in our gardens year 'round!
DeleteHi Holley, I tried Gruss but the blackspot in my region turned me off. I probably should have given it more time. I've since learned that after a few years, Blackspot usually isn't an issue anymore. I love the flowers!
ReplyDeleteI'm sorry I've been away so long. Your banner photo took my breath away. Just stunning. I'm a little jealous that my roses don't look that good.
Have a great weekend.
Every area is different. The blackspot pressure here is lower, so it usually looks good for me. I think in those areas, having a cutting garden for roses to bring inside where the foliage doesn't matter so much might a good idea.
DeleteWhat a fabulous 'greeting' for those entering your garden... WOW---beautiful!!!! Our Roses are still trying to bloom --but the weather is supposed to turn COLD here this weekend...
ReplyDeleteOur Walmart Greeter is GONE... I miss him.. Don't know what has happened, but the friendly older man who used to greet us is no longer there. AND--they have not replaced him.... Dang!
Hugs,
Betsy
The weather here is going to turn cool - not too cold -here. It's always a sad time when the roses freeze. :( Sorry to hear about your Walmart greeter. I hope he comes back or they replace him with someone equally as sweet.
DeleteYou got me thinking about the garden greeters that I often rush past on my way to the door. Maybe we'd both benefit from a little more time spent with each other. :)
ReplyDeletehaha - yes, be sure to slow down and say hello! They'll probably grow bigger and bloom more! :)
DeleteHolley, I'd hate to be a greeter at Wal Mart because I take rejection so badly, lol. I try not to take them for granted, even though they are paid to say hi to me. (This is fodder for another goofy blog post, I can see it now.)
ReplyDeleteAnd what greets my garden guests this time of year? My trash cans and a bunch of empty pots waiting to be hauled to the potting shed. Oh, you have given me a wake-up call! I don't have your talent with roses, but I can try to do something, right??
Karen, you are so funny! I imagine you have some wonderful things greeting your guests. Your place is so impressive. But, you are right in some respects about the trash can, and those other things we would like to hide. There's just no good place for them!
DeleteI've thought about "thresholds" in the garden before but not cheerful greeters so much. It would be nice to have something like that at the front of the house, too! I love the colors in the 4th photo--hard to believe they're all on the same flower!
ReplyDeleteThis rose really does change color, and form! I love it when it's full of blooms and they are all a little bit different!
DeleteCute post lead in and a nice way to tie in the greeting plants. I have to say I really like roses that will take some shade, but assume this rose would suffer from all the rose maladies that would affect other teas and floribundas in out area.
ReplyDeleteIt probably would. Some areas just are prone to certain diseases. If you can identify exactly what it is, sometimes you can find a rose that laughs that particular disease off. Blackspot is the big one here, so I look for that, but the three big ones are blackspot, powdery mildew and rust. Usually an area will be affected by one or two, but not usually all three!
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