Lady Waterlow – proving to be an early-flowering variety here too (as it is at Petersham Nurseries) at Kew Gardens and with the distinctive loose form, pale colouring, streaked with darker stains. Just beautiful. Here it is climbing up the brick pillars supporting the long, gently curving wooden pergola in the Family Beds garden at Kew.
Below – Maigold – another rose blooming reliably in May (who would have thought with a name like that?), with velvet-textured leaves, prominent stamens and a rich scent. This example shining out in the Rose Garden behind the Palm House
Below – Hansa – a rugosa rose with an incredible fragrance
Below – Rosa spinosissima Dunwich Rose
The Teddington Gardener 