Who hasn't heard of the most popular flowering plant of all time, the rose? The rose plant can spark a quick conversation amongst even the shyest of persons. Almost anyone can tell you of someone they know who has grown beautiful roses or of someone who couldn't. Almost anyone can tell you of someone who got or sent roses, especially around the holidays. Even little children know what the rose plant is.

The local florist most likely has dozens of colors, types, and sizes of rose plants. It would seem to be the best selling flower of all time. The local discount store and even the local grocer carries some sort of rose plant these days.

Rose gardening is sure to involve getting your hands dirty. If you want to truly enjoy the experience, you must dig in with gusto and heartily embrace your adventure. Well, there are gloves, you know; but the earth welcomes the hands-on experience. Some say it is quite gratifying to become like one with the soil.

There is surely an art to rose gardening. The experience can be as simple or as scientific as you so choose. You may want to stock up on things like mulch, a shovel, a hoe, weed-killer, a watering can or hose, and maybe something called Miracle Grow or "food" for your rose plants. Not to mention bandaids if your plants have thorns! You're certain to get pricked at some point if you have the type of rose plant that produces thorns. It's all part of the true rose gardening experience.

Roses have been known to contract diseases, so you want to know your plants well to be able to recognize unhealthy changes in their leaves, color, overall health. Any living thing is susceptible to such and must be monitored.

When preparing your red roses for arrangement, fill a sink or wide container with several inches of warm water. While holding each stem under water, cut about one inch diagonally off the end with a sharp knife or shears. Make sure to place the roses in your container before the stems dry off. Gently remove any outermost petals that may have been bruised during shipping. Removing a few petals will not damage a blossom and will often help it open more fully. Just be careful not to force open or take off healthy petals.

Unsure where to start? The internet has vast amounts of information for rose gardening. There are gardening clubs in many areas. You can search your local library or favored book store for the proper books or magazines. Maybe it would be a good way to meet that neighbor you never knew how to approach. There are also many elderly gardeners who would enjoy mentoring the right student in rose gardening.

Rose plants carry so many different names, it's probably enough to fill a small book! Some of the names include Rose Blaze, Rose Red Eden, Rose New Dawn, Rose Neptune, Rose Zephirine, just to name a very few. If you want a rose that sounds like it belongs in a class all its own, you could buy a Rose Paris D'Yves St. Laurent! That's a mouthful! Happy Hunting!