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in praise of Martha's Vineyard

15 years ago

One wouldn't expect a rose with this name to thrive in Texas (Any Weather Extreme Except Frigid), but this one is a real workhorse. I've grown it for years and moved it once---it never defoliates its small foliage, covers itself periodically with small bright pink blooms, and becomes a bush about the size of a washing machine if you DO trim it. Now I've got a second one where a branch touched the ground and rooted, by surprise. If you need a tough cheerful bloomer that laughs at heat and is NOT the ubiquitous knockout, consider this one. (Now that I think of it, mixing it with knockout could be real pretty.) Only drawback is hypodermic thorns; one needs gloves.

Laura

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Comments (7)

michaelg
15 years ago
Yes, we planted MV in a park here where conditions for spot disease are very bad, and it has thrived for years with no care. Basically it is a super-sized 'The Fairy' in deep, hot pink. A traffic-stopper.
olga_6b
15 years ago
Unfortunately here it does get BS, but I keep it anyway. I love fragrance and it is pretty. In this respect it is much better then Knock Out, of course. But resistance is not as good, if you live in climate that is optimal for BS development :(
Olga
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Martha's V had no blackspot, it had. . .
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Seems to be a lot of that RRD in those warmer zones, esp eastern coastal states, and I feel just terrible for the people stricken with it. It is in my state, but the only multiflora I found about a mile away has been given the Roundup treatment. Somebody has one in a garden not too far away, nice area, it looks suspiciously like multi, hope it is something similar. It was such a pretty thing, the one growing by the cemetery. Not knowing the troubles it could cause, it was my first propagation attempt. Luckily that failed. The blooms were just charming; they all aren't quite the same. I won't let my guard down though. Trying to dig 6' horiz roots would disturb lots of things even though shallow. Glad you had the persistence to get them.
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The latest UMass Landscape Message says that: "Oak Die-back on Cape Cod and Martha's Vineyard: Numerous calls continue to be received concerning die-back of oak trees with the pattern often being death from the tree top downwards. At least one cynipid gall-forming wasp has been identified in some areas as being the likely culprit. Other areas appear to have one of the lecanium scales while other tree die-back is believed to be caused by repeated defoliation from winter moth caterpillars. UMass and Barnstable County Extension are investigating this problem. MDCR and university researchers are being consulted for a possible treatment strategy. Historically, these cynipids that cause galls to form on the stems of the host plant pop up unexpectedly, create die-back and sometimes complete tree death, and then disappear due to natural controls within 3 years. The use of certain systemic insecticides early in the infestation may prove to be effective and much focus is being put into that subject at this time. " Thanks for bringing this to our attention, kt, I'll keep an eye out here. Claire
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IIRC when that and the other "National Park" series roses were introduced, it was a very limited distribution and they were more expensive than many other new introductions. Not many people had seen them growing so there wasn't much to say about them. Your pictures are lovely. Are these growing in Florida own root? If so, could you have found a rose with some nematode resistance? That could be very important.
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what is the name of this beauty? Found on Martha's Vineyard Island, MA
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Catalpa.
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michaelg
15 years ago
Olga, I'll take a close look this year and see if it has picked up a strain of blackspot that affects it. I had seen only a bit of cercospora on it previously, a lesser disease which we also see on The Fairy here.
prairielaura
Original Author
15 years ago
Olga, I have a certain grim, negative pride in our blackspot conditions---I think we may be the worst in the USA...but so far, knock on wood, Martha just doesn't seem to get it. Is yours a mature bush? Seems like mine gets stronger with age, like most roses.
Laura
olga_6b
15 years ago
My is 6 year old bush. I see here quite often lists with roses that are doing well in TX. Perle d'Or, Marie Pavie, Belind's Dream, many Teas (not HTs)vand Chinas, etc. They all defoliate here from BS and not in just my garden ,so it is not my cultural conditions or something like this. So I challenge you, I think our BS is worse :). This is all about optimal temp for BS spore development, especially at night when the leaves are wet. We have it from spring till fall, 65-70 deg at night are the areas with the worst BS. You are warmer and this helps. Contrary to commpon believe "very hot and huumid" is better then just hot and humid. You should have more BS in spring and fall then in summer.
Michael, yes it gets Cercospora too, but BS is another story and it certainly gets it bad (naked) here.
Olga
michaelg
15 years ago
Sorry, Laura, central Texas has sissy blackspot compared to Appalachia and the Chesapeake region :)
prairielaura
Original Author
15 years ago
Who you callin sissy?? Remember how many guns we got in Texas! (I am kidding, except the gun craziness is no joke.) If your blackspot is truly worse than ours, I have two words of advice. Move now.
Laura

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