Why I Love Old Garden Roses

by Steve Jones

Since I grow a lot of old garden roses (OGRs); I was asked why I enjoy them. To set things straight, I do grow and love all kinds of roses, from once bloomers to modern roses. But I do have a special love affair with these roses of old, often preferring them over many of today's modern roses.

When I first started to grow roses, I wanted to have each of the highest rated roses, it didn't matter the type or class as I had no idea there was a difference. Most of the modern roses I bought were easy enough to find, but the old garden roses were not that easy. I was able to find the Yellow Lady banks (Rosa banksiae lutea) at my local nursery, but couldn't find the others. I asked nurseries high and low, and no one had an idea who had these roses. Maybe part of my love for OGRs was because they were so hard to get, just like life.

One day I was told about a person in Van Nuys who sold OGRs from his house. I asked a lot of people and finally got the name of Bob Edberg. I got his phone number from information, and started what turned out to be a long time friendship with one of the top OGR people and book collectors in the nation. Bob worked out of his house and I wanted a few OGRs. I was only able to buy a couple, Apothecary's Rose, Souvenir de la Malmaison, and a rose Bob talked me into even though it wasn't on my list, Fortunes Five Colored Tea. I have bought a lot of roses from Bob over the years and he is the one who got me started on collecting rose related books.

I am a history buff and the thought of these roses that have survived and all came from an original plant centuries ago intrigued me. Then there were the early hybridizers, the wild species roses, and the fascinating tales of the plant hunters who hiked into hostile territory to collect them. The names of Fortune and Wilson made great reading.

Of course once I had the historical interest, I had to collect all of the old rose books so I could continue my thirst for knowledge. Soon, my collection outgrew all of my bookcases and now number in excess of 1200 volumes in dozens of languages. I can always pick up any of these books and get lost in the information and endless varieties, poetry, plus history of roses.

So why the OGRs? Outside of their historical perspective, this class presents the most diverse and interesting roses in all of rosedom. Part of the OGR mystic is their fragrance. Not all OGRs are fragrant, but who can argue when you bury your nose into a bloom of Mme Isaac Pereire, Francis Dubreuil, Autumn Damask, Portland From Glendora, etc.? The old rose or damask scent is the most prized, and people today still look for that scent in all roses.

OGRs also represent the best collection of plant size and shape, bloom size and shape, once blooming to repeat bloom, very small to very large, and everything in between. OGRs make the best landscaping plants. This would also include polyanthas. The roses are well clothed and make a handsome mound of green with continual blooms. The china Mutabilis and the tea Mme Antoine Mari are perfect examples of this. For larger plants, who can beat Mermaid, which blooms most of the year in our climate, even though it is winter tender.

How about amount of bloom? Many of the OGRs outbloom most of the modern roses. My Souvenir de la Malmaison is rarely without a bloom from spring to the middle of winter. I once counted 70 blooms and color showing buds on my 3' high by 4' wide plant. What modern rose can equal this? Marchesa Boccella and Rose de Rescht are two other examples of heavy bloomers that are rather disease resistant and have good fragrance. Also for bloom, who can beat the chinas Old Blush and Rouletti? The latter is the first miniature rose and can be grown in a pot.  

Then there is adaptability. Albas and hybrid musks tolerate less sun than others. Plus albas are known for their high content of rose oil and disease resistant blue green foliage. Then we have the climbers and tree roses. The OGRs are best in this category, like Lady Banks, Newport Fairy, Vanity, and most of the noisettes.

How about interesting foliage like the parsley shaped leaves of Rosa stellata, the bamboo like leaves of Rosa multifolia watsonii, the variegated foliage of Rosa multifolia variegata, and the downy leaves of Rosa tomentosa? I mentioned the blue-green soft foliage of the albas earlier.

So why OGRs? Maybe they are rare and not everyone has them. I think their history and everything else combined is why I love OGRs.