Roses From Tombstone
Finally Blooming
In December 2021 my lovely wife and I drove to Tombstone from Houston. I was looking forward to seeing the Tombstone Rose, purportedly the largest rose “tree” in the world. The story goes that a box arrived in Tombstone from Scotland with a cutting of a Lady Banksia Tea Rose which was inadvertently planted in a garden above the sewer system of the town. With everyone in town contributing to the rich fertilized bed, the plant was able to thrive in the inhospitable Arizona desert. Visiting the rose being our primary goal so we were disappointed that the Rose Tree Museum was closed when we arrived. We spent the afternoon and evening wandering around the town with its wooden sidewalks, dirt streets and myriad souvenir shops. We finally wound up at Big Nose Kate’s saloon for a bite to eat and a beer for me. A very friendly waiter took the time to give us the story of Tombstone, and interestingly the offer the town got when its namesake movie was remade in 1993. The movie production executives wanted to use the town for filming, and despite concessions and cash, the town said no. Frontier independence and a desire for normalcy are alive and well in the American West.
As we left the saloon and headed southeast on E. Allen Street, something in the sky caught my eye. It was a very dim crescent moon in the early sunset. As I turned to look closer I realized that two planets were also in the soft pink eastern sky. Jupiter and Venus were in conjunction with the moon.
When we got back to the hotel I headed to the east side of the building and realized that Mars was the closest to the Moon, with Jupiter and Venus perfectly creating the angle of the solar system orbits. I came to look at a rose, but the stargazing was just spectacular.
I woke up the next morning and went out to explore the very symmetrical mound just south of the hotel. Perfectly symmetrical I figure it is a tailings dump site for a mine. It was a bit of a hike up the side of the hill, stepping over sage brush, fresh rabbit droppings and wondering if there might be a rattlesnake lying in wait for the rabbit. This mound, the “Comstock Hill” as it is known gives one a spectacular 360 degree view of Tombstone and the vast desert surrounding the town. Once at the summit I realized there was an open trail to the top from the south. Also manmade stacks of rocks that I imagine indicate a ritual or two being performed in this unique, perhaps holy to someone, environment.
Finally, it was time to go to the Rose Tree Museum and visit the courtyard where the famous rose is located. We entered the small lobby/gift shop and perused the postcards, historical photos and read up on the history of the rose.
Entering the shady courtyard its hard to imagine that the canopy is from a single plant, but there it is, as respectable a trunk as any tree might have. Beyond the courtyard there are steps to an obsevation platform from which one might observe tha canopy from above. We saw the cuttings and inquired about them on the way out. Seems like the one gallon potted cutting was $30.00.
Not sure if the cutting would even survive the drive home, we were delighted once it took root and began to grow.
Our Tombstone Rose resides in a patio are we call ”The Jungle”, an enclosed are with a palm tree, lounge chairs and other potted plants. We are looking forward to many more April blooms of this durable, adaptable rose.