Penelope Lively™ (Ausb18a15): A Rose for a Storyteller
Some roses seem to hold a story in their petals, and Rosa Penelope Lively is one of them. Named for the much-loved writer, this English Shrub Rose carries both elegance and quiet depth, a living tribute to a voice that has shaped contemporary literature.
Bloom and Colour
The rose begins with berry-red buds that unfold into mid-pink, cupped blooms. Each flower is poised and graceful, with layers of colour that gradually fade to a soft lavender hue. Like the shifting perspectives in Lively’s novels, no two blossoms are quite the same. They evolve over time, revealing new tones and subtleties with every passing day.
Fragrance That Tells a Tale
The fragrance, too, tells its own story. A medium-strong scent with the character of a classic rose, it carries threads of raspberry and lemon, lifted by a gentle whisper of myrrh. The effect is bright yet complex, the embodiment of summertime in the garden. Just as Lively’s writing draws readers into worlds of memory and meaning, this fragrance lingers, leaving an impression long after the bloom has faded.
Growth Habit and Garden Use
In growth habit, Penelope Lively™ is a medium shrub, reaching around 3½ feet tall and 4 feet wide. It flowers repeatedly through the season, bringing colour and fragrance to borders, mixed plantings, or shady corners. It is also ideal for cutting, allowing gardeners to bring its beauty indoors, much as Lively brought the richness of gardens into her prose.
A Rose Rooted in Memory
The connection between the author and her namesake rose runs deeper still. In her memoir Life in the Garden, Penelope Lively reflects on how gardens are shaped by memory and history, just as stories are. Gardening was woven into her childhood: her grandmother created a Gertrude Jekyll-inspired garden, while her mother built an English garden in Egypt, complete with lawns, lily ponds, and roses. For Lively, gardens were never simply collections of plants. They were places of inheritance, imagination, and quiet reflection.
It feels entirely fitting that she should be honoured with a rose that captures both beauty and thoughtfulness. Planting Penelope Lively™ is not only a gardener’s choice for colour and fragrance. It is also a way of celebrating a writer who cherished the connections between words, memory, and the natural world. Like her stories, the rose is layered, nuanced, and endlessly rewarding.
A Story in Every Bloom
In every bloom, one finds the essence of Penelope Lively: a storyteller who knew that life, like a rose, is made up of unfolding chapters, each one as precious as the last.
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Penelope Lively™ (Ausb18a15): A Rose for a StorytellerSome roses seem to hold a story in their petals, and Rosa Penelope Lively® (Ausb18a15) is one of them. Named for the much-loved writer, this English Shrub Rose carries both elegance and quiet depth, a living tribute to a voice that has shaped contemporary literature.Read more2 days ago -
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