Though we have several types of roses on our Littleton, Colorado, farm, our wild, yellow roses are, by far, the most abundant. They are, to the best of my limited botanical knowledge, Harison's yellow roses, said to have been brought west on the wagon trains.
When we purchased our property, almost 35 years ago, there were a few clumps of these attractive flowers scattered about the farm. We were energetic enough to relocate some of them, an endeavor that proved to be unnecessary. Aggressive and possessing stems laden with countless small spines, these roses fend for themselves and spread along borders with ease.
Favoring relatively cool, dry environments, this rose species thrives throughout most of Colorado and its dense blooms, occurring in mid May at our elevation, can be spectacular. Efforts to keep them from invading our "lawns" were abandoned some time ago and these hardy plants do just fine without artificial irrigation.
