I have become slightly obsessive about this rose. R. arvensis grows everywhere in Devon, it can be a weed. Flowering in the hedgerows now with masses of R. canina and the occasional R. dumalis, at this time of year a walk along any lane is like a midsummer dream.... I have two big bushes of it in my own garden. Every time I pass the milky white flowers I smell them, I do this in the morning, at mid-day, in the afternoon and evening too, even at night. Regardless of the weather, during a long hot day, after a warm night, in rain or sun, on cold days and humid weather. I must have smelt flowers from a hundred different plants. On warm dry days you can detect the mildest fragrance, after all this is Shakespeare's musk rose, but I have never ever detected a "strong fragrance" as mentioned in this rose's description on HMF. In addition, a rose that has naturalised in Scotland is possibly hardier than zone 6b, it went down to -18 in my garden and was totally unharmed.
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