In The Garden
Friday, January 4, 2002
Petals on a pedestal
Herman Davey shares his secrets
for coaxing breathtaking blooms
from almost any rose bush
Asking Herman Davey to name his favorite rose is futile. He doesn't have an answer."It's like asking which child I like best. I like them all," said Davey, who is childless but the caretaker of about 175 rose bushes and an acknowledged master at cultivating the most exquisite blooms.
"I get asked that question all the time, and I never know what to say," said Davey, who has won numerous awards for his perfect blooms. "To me, one rose is just as beautiful as another; each one has something that makes it special."
Raphaela, a variety with a rich salmon color, is a favorite -- perhaps THE favorite -- if he absolutely had to choose. The interplay of subtle color change in the petals --from a pale shade of the underside to a vibrant orangy pink on top -- makes the Raphaela a standout. But the elegant, classic shape of the bloom is its most endearing feature.
"The Raphaela really isn't as showy as some of the other roses. The flower isn't as big and round. It has a nice color, but other roses have a lot of really showy colors. And it doesn't really have a fragrance," Davey said.
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It can't compete with the intoxicating perfume of Barbra Streisand (named after the singer), which sports a large cherry-pink bloom. Nor does it have the unusual yellow-apricot color combination of his wife's favorite, Grand Impression, with petals that flare out like a ballet dancer's skirt. It pales next to Moonstone's huge, round blooms that are pure white with powder-pink edging.But the beauty of Raphaela -- especially when the bloom is about three-quarters open -- is incomparable, Davey said. The center of the flower jets out as each layer of petals recede, creating a distinct rose shape with a towering budlike center.
"The shape is why I grow it. I grow each rose for different reasons -- some for the color, some for the smell, some because I don't have anything like it. I guess that's why I ended up with so many," Davey said.
No matter what the variety, Davey has a knack for coaxing the best-looking blooms out of any rose plant, said Margie Tanimoto, vice president of the Honolulu Rose Society.
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"We don't know what he does to his roses, but his flowers are just so unbelievably beautiful," she said.Davey, as well as other rose experts from the society, will be sharing their secrets in a workshop aimed to help beginners. "Growing Roses in Hawaii" will be held 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Jan. 26 at the Mission Houses Museum, where society members cultivate a rose garden for public viewing. The cost of the workshop is $40, including lunch and informational materials. Call 531-0481.
The course covers the survival of roses from ancient times to the present, the varieties and anatomy of roses. Experts will discuss plant choice, care and maintenance. Davey will discuss disease and pest control, and offer other tips to growing healthy roses.
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The secret to growing roses is proper care, said Davey, who confesses to not knowing the different between a weed and a vegetable plant before he grew roses. He had a rose garden in Alabama at one time, but the constant travels required by his job (which eventually brought him to Hawaii) didn't allow him to maintain a garden for long. He retired from his electrical engineering job in 1993 and began his rose collection in earnest.Hawaii's year-round warm climate -- roses need about five hours of sun every day -- allows the roses to flourish continuously, with new blooms every four to five weeks.
Water and fertilizers are important to healthy plants, which translates to beautiful blooms, Davey said. He has a drip-irrigation system that waters his plants for two minutes four times a day. He uses a fertilizer formulated for roses but dilutes the fertilizer to half of the amount stated by the manufacturer and feeds the plants more frequently. He also sprays for diseases and pests.
Davey said choosing healthy plants is also essential. He orders his roses mainly through catalogues, which guarantee each purchase and offer well-established plants with healthy roots. He never buys unpotted bare-root roses with roots trimmed to a point that is harmful to the plant.
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Davey keeps his rose bushes in large unglazed pottery planters because of the coral rock under his soil. The pots are elevated, sitting on concrete blocks or homemade wood platforms.The roses are lined up neatly in rows, occupying every square inch of usable space in his back yard. A small footpath weaving between the plants is all that's left.
"At this point I really can't add another plant without taking something out, so I have to be pretty choosy about buying anything new," he said.
Nevertheless, he always has an eye out for possible additions. "I can't help myself. This is what happens when you start growing roses," he said.
Growing roses in Hawaii
Place: Mission Houses MuseumTime: 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Jan. 26
Cost: $40, including lunch and handouts
Call 531-0481
Gardening Calendar
Suzanne Tswei's gardening column runs Saturdays in Today.
You can write her at the Star-Bulletin,
500 Ala Moana, Suite 7-210, Honolulu, HI, 96813
or email stswei@starbulletin.com
