Livin' Easy is one aptly named rose. For it takes almost no effort to keep this rose in top shape, throwing out luminous bloom after luminous bloom. It's color, however, is not for the faint-hearted because this is one hot rose.

Classified as a floribunda, which means that it blooms in clusters rather than single flowers, Livin' Easy was introduced to rose growers in 1992 by that great powerhouse of English hybridizers, Harkness and Sons. It didn't take long before this rose, which is grown in England and Canada as Fellowship, began making its presence known in Pacific Northwest gardens.

This is one of those roses just meant to be grown in a maritime climate. It has an upright, rather spreading habit and generally grows between 3 and 5 feet tall. It can reach 3 to 6 feet wide depending on how vigorously it is pruned in late winter. Grown alone or in masses, it creates a can't-miss landscape accent. It makes a great mass planting providing months of color on a bush which is truly easy care. It is rarely bothered by disease, although because it has a rather dense, bushy growth habit, it can be attacked by spider mites, especially if grown against a south-facing wall.

Livin' Easy also is one of those roses which, for some unknown reason, is just prone to produce blind shoots. Blind shoots are those canes which continue to grow but never bring forth any flowers. They often grow toward the interior of the rose bush and crowd out the center. Some Rosarians feel that blind shoots provide some nutrition to the rose because at least the leaves are green. However, I am of the opinion that blind shoots do nothing but take away from the rose plant's strength.

The plant is spending too much time and energy producing growth, which will never result in flowers. In addition, this crowding in the plant's center provides the perfect breeding ground for spider mites. I've just gone through my garden and pruned away all of the blind shoots, making more space for air and sunlight to reach the plant's center. It is a very important chore that needs to be done just about the time the roses reach peak bloom.

Livin' Easy also has a sport, Easy Going, which is almost identical in all respects except that its color is a rich gold instead of a glowing orange. A sport is when a plant mutates to produce a totally different color bloom.

Both floribundas offer elegant, tapered buds which unfurl to display double, cupped 3-inch blooms of 25-30 wavy petals surrounding a crown of showy golden stamens. Livin' Easy is a fiery apricot orange blend, while Easy Going is a rich, buttery golden yellow. Of the two roses, Livin' Easy is easier to find. Both roses grow better on their own roots than onto budded rootstock. Although classified as floribunda roses, both throw out more single flowers than clusters.

Livin' Easy also has won its fair share of awards including the Royal National Rose Society Gold Medal in 1990, the Portland (Oregon) Gold Medal in 1998 and was the All-American Rose Selection in 1996. It makes a great cut rose. It also garners trophy after trophy when entered in rose shows. Its parents are Southampton and Remember Me, both of which also grow very well on the South Coast if you can find them.

(Corinne Clifton lives near Bandon and grows more than 200 kinds of roses.)