'Harlow Carr'

One simply can't deny the beauty of roses. I've become a collector of sorts and look forward to seeing them come back to life again every spring. Each year, I go in search of the perfect new rose to add to my garden. Some of my favorite plants and most prized plants come from David Austin Roses. For almost 60 years David Austin has been breeding English roses. These classic flowers have become a huge part of finding my own garden style. They have brought so much vintage charm and interest to my backyard.

Michael Marriott in the Renaissance Garden of David Austin Roses Ltd in the village of Albrighton in Shropshire, England.

Michael Marriott is the technical manager and senior rosarian of David Austin Roses. He has been one of the world’s most respected rose experts. Michael is well-known for his rose garden design and his common sense approach to looking after these timeless beauties. He is an advocate of practical gardening techniques and organic methods for rose gardeners. He has a vast knowledge of roses, especially for the old roses, the ramblers, the best modern roses and, of course, David Austin’s English Roses.

Michael was an integral part of David Austin Roses for 35 years at the firm’s headquarters in Albrighton, where he was the expert of all matters relating to roses. He has played an important part in the development and popularization of English Roses and, therefore, has intimate knowledge of all the 200 plus English Roses bred and introduced by David Austin Roses.

I was honored to be able to ask Michael some questions including what goes on behind the scenes at David Austin Roses to how home growers can design a successful garden. We discuss the best scented roses and which varieties you can grow in a container or small spaces. Please enjoy the Q&A below as Michael shares with us his passion for roses and his practical gardening techniques we can all learn from. 

'Vanessa Bell'

Q & A With Michael Marriott

Q: As someone with over 30 years of experience growing roses, how did you first discover you had a passion for this classic flower?

A: I've always been passionate about plants but never took much notice of them because, generally, they looked awful in my parent’s and grandparent’s garden. It wasn't until I came to David Austin’s in 1985 that I realized how amazing and wonderful they could be. I think just looking through the David Austin catalogue immediately sparked a greater interest in them.  

Q: Can you share some of what goes on behind the scenes at David Austin Roses when choosing new varieties? What kind of traits are you looking for in these introductions? 

2021 Introduction 'Eustacia Vye'

A: The first selection goes on as very young seedlings in the greenhouse – they're only about 3 months old and they're already starting to flower. Just the ones with attractive flowers are selected and budded onto rootstocks, the rest are chucked out. About 10,000 are kept, 140,000 thrown out!

Out in the field, nearly all get very bad diseases, and they're rejected. They just keep those that are both healthy and beautiful and will stand up to rain. Gradually, over the next few years the number of selections are reduced, and the number of plants per selection increased. After about 10 years, we have chosen the final three we want to introduce. We then increase the number of plants per variety to around 15,000.

At the end of the process, we will have chosen a variety with what we regard as the most important trait - beauty. With that, of course, must come fragrance, health, freedom of flowering and reliability in different weathers. English roses come in a very wide variety of guises - be they short or tall, upright or bushy with flowers that are 5 or full petalled.

Q: What advice would you give to a beginner gardener who is looking to keep their roses healthy using organic methods?

A: The most important thing is to choose varieties that are naturally disease resistant. Some varieties will get disease at the drop of a hat and others are super healthy - so try and go for the latter. Prepare the ground really well using lots of well rotted organic matter and mulch regularly with the same to maintain a rich active soil and help retain moisture.

Keep them growing as well as possible by feeding well but certainly not excessively and watering well. An occasional foliar feed can also be very valuable. It doesn’t really have much of an effect on the nutrient level in the soil but will help to boost the resistance on the leaf. If any variety is particularly unhealthy, then dig it up and replace with a healthier variety. Disease prone roses will simply spread spores onto their neighbours and look unattractive.

Q: Has your gardening style been influenced and shaped by any of your past travels? If so, which locations have inspired you the most?

A: Yes, definitely. I love to see roses mixed with other plants so gardens like Sissinghurst, Coughton Court, Rosemoor, Powys Castle and Wollerton Old Hall all in the UK have very good examples of that. I also get inspiration from very full perennial borders with no soil visible. I think the original wild rose are very beautiful, so seeing them growing in the wild is very important. I've seen these in various spots around North America as well as Europe and Asia.

The Lion Garden, David Austin Rose Gardens at Albrighton, UK 

Q: You have such an impressive background in garden design! Can you share some of your secrets for designing a successful rose garden with us home growers? 

A: Plant them close enough so that they join up and hide the soil from view - in other words imitate what you see in a well-planted perennial border. If the border is small, then planting a single specimen of each variety will be fine. If it is a bigger border, then plant each variety in bold groups and plant them quite closely so that each group ends up looking like a single specimen.

When it comes to a colour scheme, you need to choose whether to include the whole range of colours or limit it to say pink, red and white. Both, I think potentially work very well, especially as the English Roses tend not to clash at all. Perhaps, the smaller the border the narrower the colour range. Include height in the garden by using arches or obelisks. Plant the most fragrant varieties close to the edge so that they are easily accessible for sniffing on a regular basis.   

'Gertrude Jekyll'

Q: Many of us look for a variety of different fragrances when choosing roses. As an expert, what are your top three scented favorites we should all add to our lists?

'Darcey Bussell'

'Golden Celebration'

A: I'd choose varieties whose flowers last well when cut – these include Boscobel, Charlotte, Darcey Bussell, Golden Celebration, Jubilee Celebration, LDBraithwaite, Molineux, Munstead Wood, Queen of Sweden, Tess of the d'Urbervilles.

Q: Do you have any thoughts on possible future trends in the rose growing industry?

A: The trend is increasing to introduce varieties that are as healthy as possible. More people are wanting fragrance in their roses. They are wanting the more informal shrub type roses that mix in well with other garden plants, especially those with fuller flowers like the English Roses. They want beauty in their garden.

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'Constance Spry'

I want to thank Michael for being kind enough to share his impressive rose gardening secrets with us gardeners. Visit his website Michaelmarriottrosarian.org and also find him on Instagram @michaelrosarian. Also, make sure you check out some great advice and inspiration over at Davidaustinroses.com. 

Do you grow roses in your home garden? Are you planning on planting any new roses this year? Tell me about it in the comment section below. Stay tuned for some fun, upcoming posts on the blog where I'll be sharing what new blooms I'm excited to be growing this year. Until then, thank you all for reading. Happy growing!

 

 

 

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*Photos in this article courtesy of David Austin Roses - all rights reserved.*