Mermaid

The Mermaid rose is a beautiful climbing rose too rarely seen in the home garden.  Mine came from a cutting taken when the neighbour's climber spilled over the fence on to my previous garden.  I had the rose growing in a pot for several years and when I came to this garden I planted it against the north east facing fence. It did not take long for it to shoot up.  I will quote Stirling Macoboy's description (from Macoboy's Roses). "The shining foliage is more or less evergreen, and the huge, perfect flowers are single, softly scented, and of palest yellow crowned with great bosses of amber stamens which remain in beauty after the petals fall."  When I have the cut flowers inside, I would leave them in display when the petals have dropped because I just love the look of the stamens. At this time of the year when I am driving around the suburb I look out for the Mermaid and I have seen a couple draped over the front fence.  I am vigilant in stopping my Mermaid from doing that as I would have to battle with the thorny branches when they get out of hand.  I prune the branches the moment they come up to the top of the fence.