Hardy Roses: A Practical Guide to Varieties and Techniques. Rev. ed.

Pleasance Crawford is the co-author of The Canadian Landscape and Garden
History Directory and Garden Voices: Two Centuries of Canadian Garden
Writing.

This is the revised edition of Osborne’s Roses for Canadian Gardens: A
Practical Guide to Varieties and Techniques, published in 1991. Its
original subtitle, simple and straightforward, remains; but the improved
title now reflects more accurately the author’s focus on rugged roses,
even “where winter temperatures can freeze spit before it hits the
ground,” to quote one of his characteristically pithy phrases.

All the best features of the first edition are here: the informative,
black-and-white illustrated sections on using roses in the landscape and
on wintering, growing, and propagating them; the emphasis on avoiding
serious problems with insects and diseases; the detailed descriptions of
79 varieties, reflecting the author’s years of experience as owner of
Corn Hill Nursery in New Brunswick; Beth Powning’s beautiful and
definitive color photographs of these same varieties; the “List of
Hardy Varieties” that presents, in matrix format, key characteristics
of 200-plus cultivars (34 more than in 1991); the up-to-date list of
sources and resources; and the helpful index. The book is a good value,
an excellent reference work, and a beautiful thing to behold.