May 2003
Secret

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Secret
Hybrid Tea

Secret is a Hybrid Tea, registered as a pink blend with 26 – 40 petals introduced in 1992 by D. Tracy. Secrets’ parentage is “Pristine” x “Friendship”. I have grown this rose for the past 6 years and it is one of my favorites. The blooms are mostly white with pink edges, smell wonderful and the canes are big and strong. The blooms are usually of good form and often are perfect. The foliage is a nice dark semi-glossy green, which is a nice compliment to the coloration of the rose. It is a medium sized bush growing 4’ to 6’ in height and is slightly bushy in growth. Regardless of the great looking foliage, this rose will get black spot.

The rose is a heavy bloomer and with proper pruning I can cut an entire bouquet off one bush. The rose does do much better the second year after planting than the first. In the ARS handbook for selecting roses, Secret has rating of 7.7. This rose also was selected as an All American Rose Selection Winner in 1994. It is widely available from Edmunds, Jackson and Perkins and Pickering just to name a few. Other carriers may be located using the FindMyRose website.

Tim Bradshaw