I love reading rose catalogs. I read each from cover to cover, lingering over roses that are new introductions, and plan how to include yet more varieties into a rapidly filling garden. Years of reading and buying from catalogues have helped me realize some useful tips when shopping from a catalogue, or now in the electronic age, from a computer (all major companies have a Web site).

First, it helps to have a little healthy skepticism. No matter whose catalog you read, it seems that each and every rose variety is the very best. Remember, it’s the company’s job to sell roses, and their copywriters are skilled at putting positive spins on each and every variety. Personally, I rarely have met a rose I didn’t like, and I’m ready to forgive many faults. But I do want a rose that blooms a lot, has at least moderate fragrance, and excellent blackspot resistance.

Most catalogs do a good job in describing disease resistance for each variety, but if it isn’t mentioned, beware. Probably the plant is somewhat susceptible to the ust or blackspot. Unless your heart is absolutely set on that particular rose, you may want to select a similar color and shape with better disease resistance.

When it comes to fragrance, it takes careful reading to determine which will have nose allure. Beware of any variety described as mild or light. What little scent there is won’t be discerned in a hot climate and may be faint elsewhere. Look for the adjectives like “heavy” or “strong”. Also, beware of descriptive phrases like smells like bread dough or granny smith apples. The fragrance may be so subtle that you can miss it altogether. Be sure to select varieties clearly described as strongly fragrant.

Catalogs are visual enticements. Keep that in mind when you look over the photographs. It’s a safe generalization that a rose in the garden rarely looks exactly like its depiction in the catalog. Only perfect blooms are selected for modeling, and they are highlighting, groomed, and lit in a way a garden rose never is. Also, catalog photos rarely show the entire plant so you can’t judge a rose bush’s garden performance just by a single depiction.

Now for the fun of trying to judge its height and placement in your own garden. Keep in mind that these catalogs are written for a national market, and in much of the nation, the growing season varies. This means that a rose that’s listed as 3 or 4 feet can grow to six or seven feet in a sunny climate.

In general, it’s wise to see a rose variety growing in a local garden before deciding if you want that same one in your own garden. That sage advice is rarely followed, because catalogs arrive at a time when rose bushes are going dormant or are soon to be pruned. Prudent people wait until spring or summer, then study their chosen varieties in public or private gardens. I rarely have the patience and instead place my order the day I receive the catalogue. Sometimes it’s a happy selection, but other years I replace a disappointment with something even more enticing.

Whether you buy from a catalog or a store, be fair to the new rose and give it at least a three-year evaluation. It takes a year or two for a rose to root strongly and become at home in a garden’s unique microclimate. What may seem a variety with stingy blooms in its first year or two, can turn into a rose factory in subsequent years. Or it may remain a disappointment and a candidate for replacement in the future.

Some catalogs are really informative volumes about how to grow roses and can remain in your rose library for years. Among my favorites are: Edmunds Roses, beloved by rose exhibitors, and Heirloom Old Garden Roses, which offers a large selection of Old Garden roses and some modern varieties. Jackson & Perkins is another well-known rose company that also offers a mail-order catalog. Weeks Roses is a wholesale company with an excellent web site detailing the roses and where to buy them.

For more information try these sources:

Edmunds Roses

6235 SW Kahle Road

Wilsonville, OR 97070

toll free phone is 888-481-ROSE

Heirloom Old Garden Roses

24062 Riverside Drive N.E.

St. Paul, OR 97137

503-538-1576

Jackson & Perkins

PO Box 1028

Medford, OR 97501

800-292-4769

Weeks Roses

www.weeksroses.com

Karen Dardick writes a monthly rose column for The Natchez Democrat.