A friend who forever points me to interesting sources, sent along the article below. A riveting read. Add to that today’s images: riveting roses.

The Healing Power of Gardens: Oliver Sacks on the Psychological and Physiological Consolations of Nature

This is, of course, the time of year, where everything explodes in the garden, scents and sights mingle, and first and foremost roses rule (just in time for the Rose Festival – which I will report on at some later point.) Well, they rule, if you have sun, and take good care of them, which directly implies that today’s photographs are not from my own garden….

Here are some rosy facts:

The tallest rose bush ever recorded stood 23 feet tall.

A Colorado fossil allowed archaeologists to determine that roses have existed for more than 35 million years.

• Hildesheim, Germany is home to a large rose bush that has been growing on the wall of the Cathedral of Hildesheim for over 1,000 years. I still can’t find the photo that I took of it…..
• People in 15th century England lived through the “War of Roses.” The war got its name after roses were used to symbolize which side people supported or were fighting for. White roses symbolized Yorkshire and red roses symbolized Lancaster.

• There are over 4,000 songs about roses out there. Not obvious I’ll find a piece of music that I like…..

• Roses are one of only three flowers mentioned in the bible. The other two are lilies and camphire.
• For years, breeders tried to genetically manipulate different species and colors of roses to create a blue one. In 2004, the world got its first blue rose.
• After he spent 15 years growing it, creator David Austin sold his Juliet Rose at the 2006 Chelsea Show for nearly $15.8 million.

Why would anyone crowd their brain with facts like these? Why not instead let the flowers speak for themselves? Let’s give it a try.

Then again, we might be distracted by wondering about articles like this which suggest rose water cures about any ailment under the sun – and it must be true because the article was “reviewed” by a person who has 6 titles behind her name….although scientific papers seem to concur – see conclusion below:

The R. damascena is one of the most important species of Rosaceae family mainly known for its perfuming. Its major products are rose water and essential oil. 

This plant contains several components such as terpenes, glycosides, flavonoids, and anthocyanins that have beneficial effects on human health. The pharmacological effects of R. damascene are widespread. Most of the CNS effects are hypnotic, analgesic, and anticonvulsant effects. The respiratory, cardiovascular, laxative, antidiabetic, antimicrobial, anti-HIV, anti-inflammatory, and antioxidant are other effects of this plant.

Here is a Finnish composer’s ode to the queen of the flowers;

And here is a romp through the entire garden: