As the rose is called the queen of flowers, it has a long history of interaction with humans and there are now said to be as many as 40,000 varieties. In Japan, there are also native species such as the Noibara and Hamanasu, which are mentioned in the Manyoshu (Collection of Ten Thousand Leaves), but most of the roses seen in rose gardens and elsewhere are Western roses that were introduced after the Edo period. Roses can be classified into two types: once-blooming and repeat-blooming. Once-blooming roses are varieties that bloom from late April to late May every year and reach their peak in May and June. They only bloom in spring. On the other hand, repeat-blooming roses are varieties that can be enjoyed from mid-June to November, throughout spring, summer, and autumn. Since summers can be hot, they are not often seen during that season, but autumn roses, although not as showy as spring roses, have their own charm that suits the season.
In recent news, the blue rose, which has been a dream for rose enthusiasts around the world for a long time, has been created by Suntory in Japan and named “Suntory Blue Rose Applause.” The original species of roses with the blue pigment called “delphinidin,” which is found in many naturally occurring blue flowers, does not exist in roses. Therefore, it was not possible to create a blue rose. However, Suntory successfully discovered and developed a unique blue pigment called “Rose Cyanin” from these roses. The blue rose was introduced to the market in 2009, and “dreams come true” became the flower language of this blue rose.

バラは花の女王と言われる様に、人間との関わりも古く、種類も今では４万種と言われるほど数多くあります。日本にもノバラ、ハマナスといった原種が存在し、万葉集にも登場しますが、バラ園などで見かけるバラはほとんどが江戸時代以降に持ち込まれた西洋バラです。バラには一季咲きと四季咲きがあり、一季咲きのバラとは、毎年４月末～５月末に咲き始めて５〜６月に見頃を迎える、春にしか咲かない品種です。対して四季咲きのバラは、６月中旬から11月にかけて、春・夏・秋と楽しむことができる種類です。夏はさすがに暑さも厳しいのであまり見かけませんが、秋バラは、春バラの様に華やかさはありませんが、季節にあった趣があります。
最近の話題では、古くから世界中のバラを愛する人々の夢であった青いバラが、日本のサントリーによる作り出され、「サントリー ブルーローズ アプローズ」と名付けられました。バラには、自然界に存在する青い花の多くが持つ「デルフィニジン」と呼ばれる青色色素を持つ原種のバラは存在しないため、青いバラを造り出すことができなかったのです。そのバラから独自の青色の色素「ロザシニアン」を発見して開発に成功したのです。2009年に販売が開始され、「夢かなう」がこの青いバラの花言葉になりました。