Dad's ashes in the garden....

[AuntieV]

About 14 years ago when dad died mum wanted his ashes in the front garden. We placed the ashes directly in the soil with a lovely remember me rose atop.
Fast forward to today, I am now living in my parents house and we desperately need to create a drive including where dad is.... What do I do??

I do so appreciate where you are coming from.
If the rose is still there, move that to somewhere else on the property.
I imagine the rose is more of a marker than the actual ashes.
If your dad was around no doubt he would want your family to get the best out of the family home and if a drive is needed then so be it.

I don't think this in anyway is disrespectful to your father. Focus on the rose. Hugs.

My aunt did the same with my uncle's ashes when he died.

When she had to go into a care home we took some of the petals from the rose and pressed and framed them. We also dug up a little of the soil and put it in a plant pot with a pretty house plant that she kept in her room. My cousin has the plant and framed petals now my aunt has died.

Thank you, it just seems terribly disrespectful of me.
I think if I dig up the rose with a lot of soil transferring it to the back garden, that should be ok, or should I use a pot? With that be better?

Lovely kind thing to do xx
See my dad loved his garden and roses hence him being here.

It's absolutely fine to move them. If you were just getting rid that might be a different story.

I imagine you scattered the ashes and then placed the rose on top, or mixed the ashes into the soil.
If you dig up the rose, which will obviously have grown in 14 years and take some extra soil that will be good.
I don't know the variety of rose, but if it has been in the ground for 14 years, it is probably better to go back in the ground.

Yes we are going to replant the rose with as much surrounding soil as possible.
Some of dad's roses are older than me and I'm 62!!!

Maybe have some cake and fizz when it is replanted or whatever his tipple was.

Moved into my dad's when he died and had to transplant all his beloved roses from the back to front garden, thankfully all survived. Dad's ashes are in a pot with a rose. Every year the rose tree looks iffy, every year it survives. My dad's ages are feeding the rose tree and keeping it going.
Transplant the rose tree, your dad has nurtured it, he's in it. Don't worry.
Dad planted a queen Elizabeth rose in 1965. It's still going.

This gives me hope, thank you x
My dad's favourite rose was Peace, stiil going but very woody!

Lovely idea x

Maybe take some cuttings from the rose before you move it, just in case it doesn't like being transplanted?

Yes I'll do that too ☺️

https://www.gardenersworld.com/how-to/grow-plants/how-to-take-rose-cuttings/

@AuntieV wow! Same here. Dad's favourite was Peace. He's under a new one, we found his behind a shed we put up, thankfully managed to rescue it and it's in the front garden now.
Florist struggled to find Peace for the funeral so he had a mixture of pink and yellow.
We grew up with the rose garden. I found my dad's notebook where he'd planned it when he first moved in, managed to replace Iceberg and Blue Moon which had died and he'd not got round to replacing. I'm not a rose gardener, but nothing so far has died. We moved three of dad's roses to the front, took one out my neighbors garden when she died( traded with the new owner for a box of roses) and added an orange one for my ginger daughter, as well as replacing the other 2.
Everything is thriving.
Good luck with the move but as long as you get the massive( tap) root, water it well and feed it you should be fine.