Photo by Lindsay Pollard of a Belinda’s Dream from Suzanne Longley Farms.
Belinda’s Dream Rose
This voluptuous pink beauty opens to a large double-bloom size with a high petal
count. This low maintenance shrub rose grows fast and blooms repeatedly and profusely
from spring to frost. The ample blossom makes it a popular rose for taking cut flowers.
Because it’s so ideal for Texas conditions, it was the first rose to be
designated a Texas Superstar® by the Texas AgriLife Research and Extension Service,
part of the Texas A&M system. Only the “most reliable and best looking plants make the
cut,” according Texas A&M literature. Superstar plants undergo several years of field
trials around the state with “minimum soil preparation, minimum water, and no
pesticide.”
This was the first rose to also receive the prestigious Earth-Kind®
designation by Texas AgriLife because “their tolerance to pests is so great that they rarely require the
use of chemical pesticides.” They do well in almost any soil type. They like well
drained soils and direct sunlight.
Belinda’s Dream was developed in Texas by Dr. Robert Bayse, mathematics professor at
Texas A&M and released in 1988, named after a friend’s daughter. Although it’s not an
antique rose by definition, it behaves like one.