Just a quick stroll through the garden....

Abraham Lincoln in Bud
Cluster of Royal Wedding English Roses
But closer on a Royal Wedding blossom as it unfolds
Very close look into Royal Wedding

A camera in the garden is a good way to avoid having to work or do anything constructive in the garden. Its an excuse to just enjoy.

Abraham Lincoln is a hybrid tea I bought when I first started growing roses. Its a nice very deep red variety dating back to 1964. That means its old enough that it still smells like a rose...

The "Royal Wedding" falls into the category of an "English Rose" but actually was developed here in So Cal over in Thousand Oaks by a breeder by the name of Keith Zachary and available through Weeks Roses several years ago. It starts out on the apricot side of pink as it begins to unfold and fades to pale pink at the end of its cycle. It is extremely fragrant and has very large fully cupped blossoms. Outstanding left on the bush or cut and put in a vase. The latter option perfumes the house for days.

English Roses are really the rubenesque variety in my gardens. Big, bold, vivacious, bosomy about as good as it gets in the rose world for me. Walking through the garden when they are all in full flush is like walking through a brothel on bath night...and smells about as good!