Saudi 'city of roses' offers fragrant reminder of desert's beauty

Taif,SaudiArabia: After decades spent pruning thorny bushes and working arduous harvests, Khalaf Allah al Talhi has perfected the art of capturing the...

Taif, Saudi Arabia: After decades spent pruning thorny bushes and working arduous harvests, Khalaf Allah al-Talhi has perfected the art of capturing the fragrant aroma of the desert rose in a bottle.

"I love roses and take care of them more than I care for my own children," the 80-year-old told AFP from his flower farm in western Saudi Arabia's Taif.

Known as "the city of roses", the hills of Taif produce around 300 million of the area's signature pink roses annually at 800 flower farms.

By his own estimates, Talhi grows around five to six million of those.

The arrival of spring's mild climate is met with the blooming of roses that carpet the vast, rolling desert landscapes with vibrant shades of pink.