Race Horses and Roses

Word play in titles and names has always fascinated me.  "Cat on a Hot Tin Roof,"  "Steel Magnolias" and "Atlas Shrugged" lead their audience into discovery. 

I've wondered why anyone would name streets: Main, Broadway, or by numbers when creative combinations would delight everyone. 

License plates provide opportunities to combine numbers and letters to amuse those driving behind you. I once had a plate with LV2KRE8  and ElkK9s when we showed Norwegian Elkhounds.  I watched in my rear view mirror as drivers tried to determine the meaning by mouthing the letters and numbers.

Race horses have inspiring and fun names but the restrictions list goes on and on. Sea Biscuit, War Admiral,  Native Dancer appeal to me. Many try to get around “suggestive names” with creative spellings like Peony’s Envy and Hoof Hearted.

When it comes to roses, you can name a rose for someone special for a price starting at $4,000 and going to $15,000 or more. 

J.Benjamin Williams and Associates, breeders of many of the world's prize-winning roses, offer new and unusual roses for exclusive introduction to the Nursery Industry. They will provide a rose in color, form, or habit of growth, all based around your personal preference.

Williams started hybridizing roses back in the 1950s. He wanted novel roses - especially striped ones. He had a series named from the Dutch Master painters.

A Tangerine's Dream

Rose names include famous people and creative titles like Knockout or Midas Touch . You could hand-pollinate your own roses, collect the seeds and grow them to develop distinct colors, shapes and growing patterns. It might take ten years but you could name them.

 Tongue in Cheek?

During a visit to Balboa Park’s rose gardens, I noticed: Rock’N Roll, Double Delight, Gemini, Apricot, Burgundy Iceberg, Wing Ding, Love Struck, Brigadoon and Teeny Bomper, to name a few.  Sounds like race horses to me.



I had fun naming the orchids with smiling faces.

Smiley Purple Beards

Mr. Brown Mustache

                                                                             Magenta Hat with Teeth

My favorite - Clown Dancer

Creative Write:   Have fun today and rename streets in your neighborhood. Think up titles for plants and flowers.  Bounce a variety of words for their sounds and textures.