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'Don Juan' rose Reviews & Comments
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Initial post
8 JAN 13 by
davidmrqtt
I know don Juan is supposed to be fragrant.... but for some reason the one I purchased has very little scent. What would cause this? bad genes? the weather? soil type?
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#1 of 11 posted
9 JAN 13 by
Meryl
I found the same thing but the cause turned out to be my sense of smell. I have no difficulty appreciating the typical red-rose fragrance of roses like Mr Lincoln but my nose seems not to recognise some important chemical component of Don Juan's scent. The flowers of my Don Juan are highly perfumed according to some friends but very indifferent to my nose. Just a suggestion. In your case, the cause may be quite otherwise.
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#2 of 11 posted
9 JAN 13 by
davidmrqtt
thanks for the reply. I also heard "climate change" is causing roses to not be as fragrant as in past decades. who knows for sure?
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#3 of 11 posted
10 JAN 13 by
Kim Rupert
Being oils and alcohols, fragrance can often be undetectable, not only due to the individual nose's ability to perceive them, but also due to climatic conditions. Too hot, too dry, too windy, too cold or too wet and they may evaporate and blow away quickly, or not even evaporate at all. Like when you apply your cologne. Sometimes, you can smell it for hours. Others, it dissipates nearly immediately after you put it on. You might try cutting opening buds to bring indoors to fully open. In the house, the air is much more still than outdoors. Often, the humidity is higher unless you dehumdify it and it can be warmer than outdoors. This has often permitted "unscented" blooms to be appreciated for their scent. Gene Boerner, the famed breeder for J&P, often tested for fragrance in his seedlings by putting blooms under his hat on his head where they would be warm and humid. I grew Brown Velvet for years, never appreciating its scent, until a friend wrote to be brag on what a wonderful scent it had. I opened some indoors and found they did smell quite good. If you still can't smell them opened indoors and in other seasons, perhaps it is your sniffer, allergies or perhaps the effects of some medication you might be taking? Anti histamines knock out my sense of smell and much of my sense of taste. Then, there are some scents and tastes I am simply immune to. Tropicana has been touted for decades as having a rich scent of ripe raspberries, though it is "green and wet" to me. The scent of Tea in roses smells like clean Tupperware with Orthene, definitely not a desirable scent to my nose!
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#6 of 11 posted
9 FEB by
MiGreenThumb
[HMF Editor - Post removed: Different opinions are expected, and welcomed, but a level of civility is always required please.]
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#7 of 11 posted
9 FEB by
Kim Rupert
Scent is due to the evaporation of oils and alcohols. Anything which causes hotter, drier conditions will cause the oils and alcohols to evaporate faster. A climate which is hotter than it used to be could easily cause the roses or any other plant you are used to smelling to seem less scented due to the chemicals you are used to being able to smell evaporating faster. I observed it. I lived and grew roses in the Santa Clarita Valley in So Cal and in Encino where it was warm with marine influence. Before we sold and moved north, "winters" became warmer and the summers became hotter. The afternoon cooling ocean breezes stopped coming. Where it historically was possible to open the house windows between 3 and 4 PM daily to allow the cool ocean breezes to blow through and cool the interior, air conditioning was (and is now) required to accomplish the same effect. Conversely, a climate becoming colder and wetter can inhibit the evaporation of the oils and alcohols, preventing the scent from being able to be perceived. It's literally weather conditions combined with personal olfactory sensitivities. So, feel free to poo-poo "climate change", but increased heat and aridity, or increased cold and wet, will reduce the chemicals which generate the scents you're used to being able to perceive.
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#8 of 11 posted
9 FEB by
MiGreenThumb
[HMF Editor - We have removed this post as political, defamatory or personally condescending posts are not allowed. There are many very popular websites for one to express non-gardening related views and opinions.]
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#9 of 11 posted
9 FEB by
jedmar
Can we please keep discussions to roses and not divert to politics? "You such and such" is inappropriate here.
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#10 of 11 posted
9 FEB by
Nastarana
I second that request. I joined this community for the roses, not rants.
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#11 of 11 posted
12 FEB by
Kathy Strong
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#12 of 11 posted
12 FEB by
HMF Admin
Our apologies to our HMF guests for not noting this earlier.
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#4 of 11 posted
23 FEB 24 by
Jackie13
I can smell the fragrance of Don Juan and Firefighter but absolutely no scent at all from the big reds, Papa Meilland, Mr. Lincoln, Oklahoma,Crimson Glory. So strange!
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#5 of 11 posted
24 FEB 24 by
Kim Rupert
Try cutting them partially open, recut the stems while under water so the siphon is restarted. Lift them straight up out of the water you recut them under, with the droplet of water still on the bottom of the stem to prevent any air from entering the capillaries, then place the stem in a vase of water. Open them indoors where the air is still (compared to outdoors), warmer and moister and check for scent. You may have to manually open some of the petals then gently exhale breath into the bud to warm it and provide the moisture required to carry the oils and alcohols. The big reds you mentioned all have fairly strong Damask type scents. If you are still unable to detect them, perhaps your sniffer is just immune to that type of scent? Some people can't smell certain scents. I was unable to smell or taste natural raspberry flavor for the first five decades of my life. Raspberry tasted and smelled "green", not sweet, not fruity, not floral, just green and bitter. One day, I tasted a fresh, ripe red raspberry and it had a flavor instead of "green and bitter" so perhaps your chemistry is simply not able to perceive that scent? Gene Boerner, who for decades was the breeder for Jackson and Perkins, used to place buds under his had where the heat and moisture from the top of his head would allow the scents to express. He figured if he could smell them after a little while under his hat, they smelled. Hopefully, that helps give you ideas how to test for the scents you haven't been able to detect.
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Initial post
11 MAR 21 by
ParisRoseLady
Available from - Stargazer Perennials www.stargazerperennials.com
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Initial post
31 DEC 18 by
Nola Z5a WI
Heirloom Roses lists Don Juan Climber as zone 5 (-20° to -10°).
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Initial post
29 DEC 17 by
Unregistered Guest
Available from - Burlington Rose Nursery
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