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Special Note from RVR:
This article was originally published in the 2007 American Rose Annual, and has been reprinted with permission from the American Rose Society. Click Here for a complete list of Paul Barden roses available at RVR. We will continue to update this list throughout 2008, and plan on carrying all of the Paul Barden roses that have been introduced into commerce.
Something Old Becomes Something New
by Paul Barden
Breeding new roses is easy. But breeding a rose with good flowers, healthy foliage, attractive growth and some originality is quite another matter. The road to creating a good new rose can be a long and difficult one, but can be deeply rewarding also.
The hybridizer must be able to focus on specific goals, remain open-minded about the course of the breeding work, be very observant when looking at seedlings, and have patience. There are plenty of excellent resources in books and on the web that can tell you how to start your own breeding program, so I won’t labor over those details here. (See: www.paulbardenroses.com/seedproduction.2004.html for some beginner info.) I’d rather give you a tour of my breeding program in progress, with particular emphasis on the breeding lines that make use of the old garden roses.
So, what do I look for in a new rose? Roses that don’t look like existing varieties, low-maintenance shrubs, and roses that make shapely landscaping specimens. I also prefer the fully double, “quartered” bloom form associated with the old European once-bloomers. The old garden roses I use in breeding frequently offer another trait I want: excellent fragrance. Needless to say, improved disease resistance is something we are all pursuing in this era of nearly disease-free roses like 'Knockout' and 'Home Run'. Some of the old European roses, like the gallicas, impart superior disease resistance in their offspring and are valuable in my work. The species Rosa wichurana also offers improvements in disease resistance, and I am using one of its hybrids a lot. I don’t always plan my breeding work to produce repeat bloomers; I often make crosses that result in spring-blooming varieties, which still have a place in the modern garden, especially if they offer good shrub form and superior disease resistance. How can you resist a rose that produces more flowers in its brief spring bloom cycle than most modern roses do in the entire year?!
So, let’s have a look at some of the work I have been doing in recent years. Some of my earliest work involved 'Tuscany Superb' as a seed parent. I was hypnotized by the rich purple of its blooms the first time I saw them, and I immediately wanted to see that color in my own roses. It’s a very fertile rose as both a seed and pollen parent. My first hybrids were odd things, since, like so many aspiring breeders, I used whatever roses I happened to have, and they weren’t always ideal choices! Early gallica crosses gave me spring-blooming plants with awkward growth habits and lots of dull pinks. (Repeat bloom is a recessive gene, so when you cross a once-bloomer with a repeater, you get only once-bloomers in the first generation.) I still have one of those early seedlings: a 7-foot x 7-foot bush that is loaded with deep pink blooms in the spring and is quite healthy and needs no maintenance.
I made a number of gallica x modern-type crosses over the years. My 'Ellen Tofflemire' is one of these, from a cross of 'Tuscany Superb' and 'Othello', a David Austin rose. 'Ellen Tofflemire' is an attractive, small, suckering bush with bright green foliage that is deeply crinkled and attractive throughout the year. My original plant is now about 3 feet x 6 feet and very manageable. It blooms for a long period in May-June, often starting before other gallicas and ending after others have finished. Blooms are 3 inches across, extremely double and nicely scented. The color is quite variable and changes with weather conditions; sometimes deep crimson and blackish-purple, and sometimes smoky mauve with raspberry tints. It is very disease free and winter hardy to at least Zone 5.
I currently have a gallica hybrid being propagated for introduction in 2008, from a cross of 'Tuscany Superb' and 'William Lobb'. It is a medium-sized shrub that will grow to 6 feet in rich soil, with disease-free foliage. The blooms are quite remarkable in color, often resembling 'Reine des Violettes' in hue: smoky mauves and purples aging to a bluish-slate color. In fact, it is one of the most blue-mauve hybrids I have grown: its final color is a very beautiful grey-mauve that defies description. 'William Lobb' passes on mossing to many of its progeny and is still worth exploring as a parent. Ralph Moore’s 'Fairy Moss', from 1969, has 'William Lobb’ as a grandparent.
'Charles de Mills' is another of the spectacular gallicas that I include in my breeding. Unlike 'Tuscany Superb', it tends to give offspring in deeper colors: beetroot, crimson and purple, but it is also a far more reluctant breeder. It rarely produces pollen and sets seed only occasionally. I have a number of 'Charles de Mills' seedlings in my test area, and many of them are lovely, but not quite as good as their parent. In spring of 2007 I will see another crop of 'Charles de Mills' seedlings flower for the first time. The pollen parent is 'Chianti', a David Austin rose, which is a 1967 'Tuscany' hybrid. One of this group flowered last May, and it was very promising: deep crimson blooms, quartered form, and a nice scent. These gallica hybrids are among my favorites because they are rarely bothered by diseases, and they are cane hardy to USDA Zone 4.
One of the most useful gallicas I have had the pleasure to work with is 'Duchesse de Montebello', a soft blush pink variety. Some accounts have suggested that this is a gallica-noisette hybrid. David Austin has used this rose in breeding, obtaining his “Chaucer” group of hybrids. (Although Austin supposedly obtained repeat-blooming first generation hybrids from 'Duchesse de Montebello', I have never obtained a repeat-blooming seedling.) Often, the seedlings from 'Duchesse de Montebello' are very beautiful, with excellent disease resistance and winter hardiness. I have three varieties bred from this old beauty, two of which are now in commerce. The unnamed variety came from a cross of 'Duchesse de Montebello' and 'Buff Beauty'. Blooms are very full and soft yellow-cream, fading to white with age. The fragrance is honey-like and strong. Regrettably, this variety is difficult to propagate, so I doubt I will do anything with it.
'Allegra' is named for a very dear friend of mine. Its parentage is 'Duchesse de Montebello' x 'St. Swithun', the latter being a David Austin variety (a very good pollen parent!). What a beautiful rose this is, with its sturdy, lush growth, healthy dark foliage and abundance of clear pink, quartered blooms saturated with rich scent. 'Allegra' rarely has any trouble with foliage diseases and is attractive even when not in bloom, growing to 5-feet x 5-feet. (This is a spring bloomer.) This is one of the most rewarding roses I have bred and is a true old rose in every way. Fortunately, it roots easily from cuttings, unlike some of the gallicas. It also makes an excellent cut flower.
The other 'Duchesse de Montebello' hybrid, 'Marianne', came from a cross with 'Abraham Darby'. ('Abraham Darby' is an excellent pollen parent but less willing as a seed bearer. It can breed some beautiful seedlings, but you have to cull out the stingy bloomers. 'Abraham Darby' also gave me 'Oshun', a richly scented yellow-orange blend). This graceful shrub has extraordinary vigor, clean foliage and offers a massive display of soft yellow and peach blooms in early summer. Blooms of 'Marianne' are up to 4.5 inches across, fully double in old rose form, and come in clusters. Easy to grow and easy to propagate as well, this is one of my favorites of all my roses.
Also from the gallica section of my breeding program is a seedling known only by its code name, 21-03-12. Its parentage includes 'Souvenir du Docteur Jamain', 'Tuscany Superb', 'Othello', 'Tradescant' and a yellow blend mini called 'Penny Ante'. In many ways it resembles 'Othello' in bloom form and color, but on a much more compact shrub, a trait gained from the inclusion of miniature genes. It is a 4-foot shrub displaying 4-inch, deeply cupped blooms in rich red-crimson, with a strong old rose fragrance. Several seedlings from the same cross exhibited the unusual myrrh scent that sometimes appears in gallica breeding.
Most breeders will tell you that using open (self) pollinated seeds will rarely result in seedlings worth growing. (Loss of vigor and the expression of undesirable traits can plague self-pollinated seedlings.) Years ago I collected seed from an unidentified moss variety and grew them. One outstanding seedling was named 'Barbara Oliva' and is now in commerce. It is a 5-foot, arching shrub that is loaded with some of the most double crimson-mauve blooms I have ever seen. It offers great old rose fragrance and is a sturdy grower without being too aggressive. So don’t let anyone tell you nothing good will ever come from self-pollinated seeds! Every seed is worth growing, even if it only teaches you which roses to avoid using in breeding.
One of my favorite breeders is 'Out of Yesteryear', a breakthrough Rosa bracteata hybrid created by Ralph Moore. This extraordinary rose is a vigorous arching shrub with fully double, soft yellow blooms and extremely disease resistant foliage. It is a highly fertile triploid (three sets of genes) that passes on excellent foliage, fragrance and bloom quality to its offspring. I currently have two seedlings in testing phase and one commercially available variety called 'Golden Buddha', from a cross with 'June Laver'. 'Golden Buddha' is a compact shrub to about 2.5 feet, very generous with its 3.5-inch yellow and orange double blooms. The fragrance is strong and fruity and can be detected a distance from the plant.
The other seedlings are: (R. wichurana x 'Floradora') x 'Out of Yesteryear', a semi-climbing plant with fully double, highly fragrant, creamy yellow blooms, and the other is 'Charles Austin' x 'Out of Yesteryear', a golden bloom with heavy substance on a 3-foot x 4-foot plant. Both of these are repeat bloomers and have shown good disease resistance in testing.
In recent years I have used the teas in breeding to incorporate their twiggy, compact style and exquisite bloom form. The most useful tea has been 'Mons Tillier', a 6-foot x 6-foot, densely branched variety with blooms that vary from peachy-red to orange-red. One particularly nice seedling slated for future release came from a cross of 'Avandel' (soft yellow miniature) and 'Mons Tillier'. It is a medium coral-red, extremely double in the tea style with excellent vigor and disease resistance. It blooms heavily all season long and would likely bloom year round in a warm climate. Unfortunately this variety missed out on the tea scent of its parent, being only barely fragrant.
Another very promising seedling is 79-04-05 ('Lilian Austin' x 'Mons Tillier'), a warm pink with a deeper pink reverse and rich tea scent. The bloom form is a pincushion of narrow petals, all arranged in perfect layers. It is still too early to judge this one, but I believe this rose has much promise.
Introduced in 2006 is another tea-related variety I named 'October Moon'. It is bred from the superb yellow miniature 'Rise 'n’ Shine' and 'It’s Show Time', a peachy hybrid tea from Ralph Moore. (Its pollen parent is the old tea 'Bon Silene', which lends its character to this rose.) 'October Moon' is floribunda-like with clear evidence of its tea ancestry, as seen in its twiggy growth. It will build quickly to a height of 4-5 feet and repeats well with loads of soft orange blooms in the tea style. It has a moderate pleasant scent.
Finally, a brief description of two new roses that were introduced by The Uncommon Rose in 2007: 'Dragon's Blood' and 'Jeri Jennings', both of which include old varieties in their pedigree. 'Dragon’s Blood', named for the color of the incense resin, is an unusual rose.  Its color is described as “brown,” although it is more like oxblood, or mahogany, over a dark orange base. It blooms constantly, often forming new buds while the previous blooms are still open. It is a twiggy, fast-growing shrub of about 6-feet x 6-feet. Its seed parent was an unnamed seedling given to me years ago by Ralph Moore, named 203-91-13. I was told it is a cross of one of Moore’s miniature breeders and a bourbon we think was Grandma’s Hat. The pollen parent of 'Dragon’s Blood' was McGredy’s 'Brown Velvet'. I never imagined that I would get a deep oxblood seedling from a cross of a white climbing miniature and 'Brown Velvet'.
My other new rose is named for Jeri Jennings, well-known California rosarian, who is very generous in sharing her knowledge of old roses with friends and acquaintances. 'Jeri Jennings' is from a cross of the orange Moore miniature, 'Joycie', and the old hybrid musk, 'Trier', which helped create the hybrid musk class. 'Jeri Jennings' is a large, arching shrub about 6-feet x 6-feet in most climates, blooming in huge flushes with up to 30 blooms on the larger shoots. Blooms are fully double, in shades of yellow and soft orange, fading to lighter shades. The strong, sweet fragrance grows more intense as the blooms mature. This is possibly the most graceful rose I have bred so far. Prune it very lightly for maximum effect.
Finally, I will mention a new seedling I am working with that I hope will lead me to blackspot-free roses. Ralph Moore, to whom I am deeply indebted, has been especially kind to me, sharing a great deal of valuable information and some very valuable plants as well, such as 0-47-19, a seedling from R. wichurana and 'Floradora' used extensively in the creation of many Moore miniatures. In 2003, I crossed this with 'The Yeoman' and obtained some very healthy climbers. One in particular stood out, as it got no blackspot in my no-spray test area. It is spring blooming only, but I expect the next generation to recover the repeat-blooming habit. This attractive climber has deep red new growth and highly glossy foliage. Blooms are 2 inches, loosely double in butter yellow, with a tea fragrance. I am hoping its superior disease resistance will be passed on to some of its offspring. I think ahead to the coming season’s breeding plans and I see endless possibilities, a million combinations. There is so much to look forward to!
Click Here for a complete list of Paul Barden roses at RVR.
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