Considering that material girl Madonna has mad herself famous as a trendsetter, it's actually very likely that she does indeed grow English Roses. That's because, in terms of flowers, English Roses are relatively new to the scene and aren't found in the gardens of most people. In fact, English Roses weren't introduced until around 1969 when roses grown by English rose breeder, David Austin, first began to appear in the flower world.

Austin and other rose breeders developed the English Rose by crossing Old Roses (roses that existed before 1867) and Modern Roses (roses that came into existence after 1867) to achieve the best qualities of both. Specifically, the goal was to create a rose that:

* Generated flowers shaped like Old Roses, like cupped and rosette-shaped.

* Bloom more than once per year.

* Occur in many colors, including yellows that are not common in Old Roses.

* Have a strong fragrance.

The breeding was a success, and the result, sometimes called Shrub Roses, is gaining popularity. In addition to the desirable attributes mentioned above, English Roses can be planted as single plants or in groupings to be used as overall landscape plants. When they are used as landscape plants, it's a good idea to plant them closely together to give a fuller appearance. Also, an odd number of plants rather than an even number should be planted to give the grouping a more natural look.

Another appeal of English Roses is that many varieties are resistant to some of the diseases that are common in other roses. However, they are less resistant when grown in close groupings or in wet climates. Very wet climates may not, in fact, be the ideal situation for English Roses. This is because they often grow very large flowers that, when wet, become too heavy for the stems to support resulting in a droopy plant.

Because English Roses have characteristics of both Old Roses and Modern Roses, they may be pruned using techniques common to either type. If you prefer to keep your rose bushes smaller, you may choose to prune them back sharply every year. Or, if you want more of an Old Rose feel, you may choose to prune them less and allow them to take more of a shrub-like form, allowing the roses' natural forms to take shape.

Clearly, if Madonna is interested in beautiful flower gardens and with her recent tendencies toward all things English, she would be inclined to not just write about English Roses, but also to grow them.