Red roses and dragons in your garden – you may be thinking that that is a curious combination. Until, that is, you recollect that Saint George was a dragon killer and his emblem is a red rose. There’s more, as when I write this, it is also the Chinese Year of the Dragon. you are hopefully becoming intrigued so I shall begin with a little about the saint before moving onto roses, a particular red rose plus other Saint George plants.
Who was Saint George?
St George‘s Day, April 23rd, is celebrated in many countries other than England. In Canada, Hungary, Jordan, Czech Republic, Greece, Serbia, Bosnia and Georgia to name but a few. And it’s particularly popular in Catalonia in Spain where giving a red rose to a loved one has been traditional since the Middle Ages. Although the emphasis is more about the romance of the rose than the slaying of a dragon!
He was canonised (made a saint) in 494 CE, and the first mention of St George in England was in the seventh century by the Venerable Bede, famous monk and chronicler. George’s feast day was celebrated in England from the ninth century.
Saint George was born in Turkey in the third century and was an officer in the Roman army. Whilst he probably slew plenty of Rome’s enemies, whether he rescued a princess from a dragon is not documented! As George was most likely martyred for his Christian faith, it may be that the dragon was a representation of evil. Certainly it figured in the representations of the fighting saint from the ninth century.
From around 1100 St George became linked with protecting the English army and he became England’s patron saint during the fourteenth century. Which is why the audience watching Shakespeare’s play Henry V would have understood the reference “Cry God for Harry, England and Saint George!”
There are many churches named after this legendary slayer of dragons and whether we think the dragon might have been real or a symbol, that sort of makes sense to us. But why does he have a red rose for his emblem?
Red Roses and St George
The red rose seems to have first been connected to the saint during the Middle Ages. However, the red rose as England’s national emblem has more links English ‘Wars of the Roses’ (1455-1485). This civil war between the noble families of York and Lancaster was about who had the better right to the crown of England.
The meaning of the layered red and white Tudor rose was that it symbolised the coming together of these two noble houses in the shape of Henry VII of Lancaster and Elizabeth of York, or more specifically in their son, Henry VIII and his children. So strictly speaking, England’s national emblem should be the red and white Tudor rose. Just saying…
Roses
The rose is an ancient flower; fossil remains in Colorado date back to 35 million years ago. The family Rosaceae contains over 3000 species of tree, shrub and herbaceous plants, including apples and strawberries, so, as you would expect, covers most of the globe in its distribution. Everywhere except Antarctica in fact.
Roses, being pollen bearers, may cause an allergic reaction, as may the perfume, either to nose or skin. Although sneezing is not quite the same as breathing fire.
And Dragon Roses
Yes, I have tracked down a rose named dragon just for you! A real one (rose that is). Rosa ‘Dragon’s Blood’ is a floribunda rose with lightly scented semi double flowers. A good bush shape it gets to about 1.5 m tall.
It was developed by Paul Barden and although it should be available to purchase, I admit I haven’t been able to find a UK grower. But you North American readers should be able to buy one without too many problems. (UK readers – do please let me know if you find a provider)
NB Don’t be fooled into buying black dragon rose seeds. Apart from anything else most of the roses we grow in our gardens are not species roses but hybrids and cultivars. This means they won’t ‘come true’ from seed.
Red Roses and Dragons in Your Garden
Even if there isn’t a Rosa ‘Dragon’s Blood’ for you to add to your garden, it would be possible to have a red rose, dragon and Saint George planting theme for part of a mixed border.
For example, these are the easiest plant varieties called Saint George which you can source, purchase and have flowering on April 23rd.
- Sweet peas, Lathrys oderata, Spencer type, red and white flowers, good as a cut flower
- Nemesia strumosa, red and white bicolour flowers
- Tulip (I’ve grown this, love the red stripe down the glossy white petal)
- Verbena hybrida (white centre to a red flower)
If you’re feeling more adventurous and have the room, you could set a paper birch at the back of the border. Specifically, Betula papyrifera ‘Saint George’ with pale bronze and white peeling bark when mature.
Or if you’re feeling hungry, try growing runner bean ‘St George’ which has red and white flowers so makes a decorative addition to your vegetable plot – and I can confirm it’s a good doer without too much stringiness and plenty of pods.
For plants called dragon see the blog link and plant list below. And for roses, red or otherwise, there are links below for some of the rose themed blogs on Plews Potting Shed.
And finally
As for the link between St George and the red rose, it’s difficult to find anything definitive. I But for those who prefer a link less war-like, we could turn to Catalonia and follow their tradition for April 23rd: to give a red rose and a book to a loved one. Perhaps the book could be about gardens? Or should it be about dragons?
Hopefully this red roses and dragons in your garden has inspired you to think outside the box for planting ideas as well as filling you in with some plant history which may be useful at a quiz night. (Well you never know!)
But if you’d like help with designing a rose garden or dragon themed planting, do get in touch to ask about our design and consultancy services.
For further gardening advice and inspiration, ideas for rose gardens, dragon themed planting designs and more, check out Plews Potting Shed blogs, including the selection below and our monthly Tipsheet You could come and find us on Instagram Facebook and Pinterest too.
And on that note, you can have a peek at my new garden in the (new) Instagram account @spitfiresandslowworms and for those of you who prefer Facebook – Spitfires and Slow Worms
And if you’d like some personal help, we offer a mix of practical sessions and theory in our bespoke Gardening Lessons and Courses. There’s a blog link below plus a pdf download with more info
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Gardening Courses and Lessons
What might a Plews Gardening Lesson be Like?
Plews Gardening Lessons Information
Free downloadable pdfs, a selection, see full list at Gardening Printables from Plews
Plants called Dragon Plant List
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