Author(s): David Austin

Gardening

Major developments in English Roses have increased the number of varieties to more than 80. Forty best-loved and forty recently developed varieties, exquisitely photographed by Andrew Lawson, are at the heart of The Story of English Roses. The book explores the new classifications that David Austin has developed: 'The Old Rose Hybrids' (small to medium-sized shrubs, with the charm of Old Roses enhanced by disease resistance, more continuous flowering and more bushy growth); 'The Aloha Group' (tall, arching growth, mostly with large, deeply cut flowers); 'English/Alba Hybrids' (tall, airy, natural growth, with almost Wild Rose daintiness); and 'The English Musk Roses' (vigorous, bushy growth with reliable repeat flowers of particular delicacy). As the many virtues of English Roses have spread, David Austin has monitored their performance all over the world and offers advice on growing them in different climates. Never resting on his laurels, the English Rose Maestro reveals the refinements he has made to breeding techniques to take English Roses into the future.