The Myth of the Blue Rose – Growing and Dying Blue Roses

Unfortunately for the gardener there are no naturally occurring forms of the blue rose. Despite this, or perhaps because of this fact, the blue rose has become the wholly grail of the rose world. Despite the nonexistence of natural blue roses there are alternatives to consider.

Why There are no Natural Blue Roses

The answer to this question, whilst a scientific one is a relatively simple one to answer. In order for flowers to produce a blue colour, the plant must produce the pigment delphinidin. The problem is that a rose does not naturally contain the correct gene which will allow the flower to produce delphinidin.

As such the only way to create a living blue rose is to genetically engineer the plant to accept a gene, which will produce the required delphinidin pigment. In 2004 the companies Florigen and Suntory successfully introduced such a gene from a variety of petunia, giving the world the closest attempt yet to a growing blue rose. Whilst this is a significant achievement, one should however be reminded that this is a genetic modification. As such this does not represent the production of a ‚”natural” blue rose. Despite this fact, progress using such genetic modification is beginning to pick up speed, opening up a world of possibilities in the future for the rose community.

What are the Alternatives to Natural Blue Roses – Alternative Colours and Dying Roses Blue

In short there are two possible solutions to the unavailability of blue roses in a natural form. The first method considers the planting of naturally occurring varieties of rose, for which the colour of the flower is an ‚”almost blue ‚”colour. Such specimens often have the name ‚”blue” in the title, although flowers are often a shade of white, purple or red. Well known varieties include, Blue Moon, Blue Peter and Bluenette. Despite the names such varieties are not really a substitute for a blue rose, as such gardeners should not expect the same effect as growing a vibrant blue flower such as varieties of Hydrangea.

The second solution is to consider that of human intervention in the form of dying. The best way to achieve a bright coloured blue rose is to initially grow a white variety. Once cut the flower may then be dyed a bright blue colour. To dye the cut flowers the following steps should be taken:

1. Leave cut stems for two days to dry
2. Cut a quarter inch slit from the base of the stem
3. Fill the stem cut with a blue food colouring agent
4. Seal the cut with a small amount of florists tape
5. Allow the stems to sit for a further two days in water containing the food dye

Sources:

Lindner, S. 2008. A Concise Guide to Roses.