Once your roses have started to set buds for spring, you can expect to see your first blooms within three weeks. This is a joyous time in the garden that reflects the work and dedication you put into your plants, and you can finally bring your roses into the home. Whether you harvest blooms for a simple arrangement or plan a rose-centered tablescape for a summer dinner party, there are many ways to transport the rose garden to your daily moments, celebrations, and everything in between.
SUMMER PASTELS
When I think of summer, I think of an array of pastel colors mingling in the garden. For an arrangement with a more modern look, combine purple- and pink-toned roses in a low, bowl-shaped vessel. Wild-looking accent flowers will help the arrangement dance cheerfully, as will any pretty seasonal foliage that you can snip from the garden.
ELEGANT BLUSHES AND CREAMS
If I had to gather up a bouquet of classic roses that still make me swoon after seeing them countless times over, this would be it. Francis Meilland and Clouds of Glory are known showstoppers with large, breathtaking blooms, and serve as the elegant anchors of the arrangement. Tranquillity and Iceberg provide tonal shifts and different petal counts in their smaller blooms, adding variety. A sprinkling of jasmine vine and astilbe give the whole arrangement movement and the perfect touch of green.
MONOCHROMATIC ARRANGEMENTS
While mixing different colors and varieties is beautiful and a fun exercise in creativity, you can’t go wrong with a monochromatic arrangement. Come harvest time, cut multiple stems from the same variety to make a simple yet stunning arrangement in one hue. Place them together in a vessel, or arrange them in a grouping of smaller vessels for added drama.
SPRING SHERBET
A floral arrangement that looks sweet enough to eat! Lean into the cheerful, bright hues of rose varieties like Soul Sister, Golden Celebration, Marc Chagall, and Carding Mill to build a vase full of sunshine. These vibrant, sherbet-colored roses are similar in bloom size, so they create a bountiful, satisfying sight in the vase all together. Add a sprig or two of seasonal foliage to give the grouping some additional movement.
Excerpted from Garden Roses: The Complete Guide to Growing & Arranging Spectacular Blooms by Gracielinda Poulson (Artisan Books). Photographs by Georgianna Lane and Marcy Simpson. Copyright © 2023.
