Author: roseoftheday58

Florence Oakley Fisher and her rose

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This post consists of two parts: the rose ‘Mrs Oakley-Fisher’ and a brief biography of Florence Oakley Fisher.

One of my favourite roses that grows just inside the garden gate is the 1921 Hybrid Tea ‘Mrs Oakley-Fisher’. A rose full of grace and charm with eye catching looks. She is as popular today as she was when first introduced.

The buds are a creamy orange streaked with carmine. Opens to a yellowy copper single bloom and then matures to an appealing yellow/apricot/amber/parchment before turning white. The petals have a silky appearance so the colour varies as the light changes. Long golden stamens make ‘Mrs Oakley-Fisher’ attractive to pollinators. Strong perfume that is a little unrose like, more an earthy ‘Tea’ than sweet. Repeat blooms consistently.

Fairly tall, around 1.25m. Healthy disease resistant foliage so she is suitable for a no spray garden. An easy rose to grow. Hardy USDA zones 7b and warmer. An 8.2 score from the American Rose Society – ‘a solid to very good rose, its good features easily outweigh any problems. Well above average.’ I cannot think of problems with ‘Mrs Oakley-Fisher’ but please comment if you have experienced issues with her.

Bred by Benjamin R. Cant & Sons but of unknown lineage. Rose shows were the main form of advertising rose varieties at the time and Cants were immensely successful exhibitors. Perhaps naming their latest rose after a new member of the RNRS council was a tactical move but Florence could well also have been a good friend of the family.

A rose that I would always grow in my garden. Cheerful is the best way I can describe her.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Florence Oakley Fisher together with Dora Darlington, wife of Hayward Radcliffe Darlington, a past President of the National Rose Society (NRS); and Lilian Courtney Page, wife of the Editor of the NRS Annual, John Courtney Page; became the first female members of the NRS council in 1921. (The NRS later gained a Royal prefix, the RNRS folded in 2017.) From the British Newspaper Archive, I discovered a small piece on this election. The NRS President Mr H. J. Holland stated that ‘he hoped they would find their duties more congenial than did the women who were now embarking on a certain new sphere of service.’ Make of that what you will! The photograph shows these three redoubtable ladies. Florence looks like a rather strong character. All three ladies had a rose named for them, but ‘Mrs Courtney Page’ is no longer commercially available. (A small note here that the official registered rose name has a hyphen, but Florence did not have this).

I am strangely fond of research and enjoy harvesting information from unlikely sources. My initial foray into the life of Florence Oakley Fisher turned up an article revealing she lived in Sudbury, Suffolk. I picked around this information fruitlessly until an Ancestry search through Electoral rolls found Florence living in ‘Egremont House,’ Sudbury, near Harrow in Middlesex with her husband George and their son Lionel Robert D’Arcy Fisher.

Florence was born in 1868 in Fairford, Gloucestershire, the daughter of Henry Dancy a draper, and his wife Henrietta. Educated at a ladies’ seminary in Oxford, now Pusey House. Florence married George Oakley Fisher, a widowed surveyor, and auctioneer in 1892. In 1901 they were living in Great Missenden and moved to their final home at Egremont House between 1901 and 1911.

The joy of searching through the British Newspaper Archives are the trivial details. Florence is advertising in 1926 for a cook and a housemaid. The advertisement states ‘good house, good wages, and outings, two in the family, good references required.’ I wonder if she was successful in her quest. This was a time when it was becoming difficult to get domestic staff.

Florence was a keen horticulturist, growing prize winning vegetables along with sweet peas and roses. From browsing back copies of the Rose Annual she appears regularly as a winner in the ladies’ classes, cut roses and rose arrangements, at the NRS rose shows. Back delving in the British Newspaper Archives, I find Florence having success at the Wembley Rose Show in June 1907. In the section for those who employ a gardener, she took second place in the twelve roses class where we learn her gardener is a W. Botten. Florence goes on to achieve a first in the three hybrid roses class, second in the three teas, third in two bunches -cluster, and finishing with a first in the basket of roses (ladies only). Later Florence was awarded second place for a ‘rather heavy’ arrangement of pink roses in the table decoration class.

The variety of rose is not always mentioned but in 1910 Florence has Madame Abel Chatenay and Prince of Wales Malmaison winning for her. In 1919 she exhibits rambler roses, but no variety was mentioned.

Towards the end of her life, Florence was to be found judging the ladies’ classes at these large horticultural shows, often with Lilian Courtney Page.

Dora Darlington and Lilian Courtney Page were frequent contributors to the Rose Annual. Florence didn’t pick up her pen, but she did pick up her baton. In 1912 she conducted an orchestra she trained herself in a performance of Romberg’s Toy Symphony. According to the report under her able baton, the orchestra gave a much enjoyed performance.

Florence remained on the NRS council until she died in 1930. I have not been able to find an obituary for her, not even in the NRS Rose Annuals. She lives on through her beautiful rose delighting everyone that sees her.

‘La Belle Sultane’

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I am sure everyone wants to grow a rose that not only looks stunning but provides sustenance for pollinating insects. Today’s rose does both beautifully, the Gallica rose – ‘La Belle Sultane.’

This is a rose that stops you in your tracks. The colour, those dark purple, violet, crimson, and maroon tones highlighted by the white petal base and crowned with vivid golden yellow stamens. A velvet like texture, silk velvet of course, to the petals. I am fond of Tuscany Superb, but I think ‘La Belle Sultane’ has the edge. Fat little buds with feathery sepals open to this semi double beautiful queen rose, an apt name if ever there was one. Strong perfume as well, typical of the Gallica family. She blooms just once in June with a flood of blooms.

Tall arching stems, around 1.5 m and about the same in width. Can be larger in warm climates. Stems covered in red bristles but still prickly. A crop of round red hips will appear in the autumn. Exceptional disease resistance, falling into the 0-5% category in the 1998 Montreal Botanic Garden survey on rose disease. Easy to grow and tolerant of poor cultivation. Hardy USDA zones 4b-8b. Scoring an 8.4 in the American Rose Society 2022 handbook, – ‘A very good to excellent rose, one recommended without hesitation.’

Believed to originate from the Netherlands in the 1700s but was introduced by Dupont around 1811. She does have several names – ‘Gallica Meheca,’ ‘Aigle Rouge,’ and ‘Violacea.’ Some debate whether ‘Violacea’ is a different rose. However, you are likely to find her as ‘La Belle Sultane’ rather than her alternatives. Widely available.

Bees and other insects dependent on pollen will flock to this rose, likewise your friends when they visit you on those long hot June days.

First published 12th January 2022 on my Facebook blog Rose of the Day

The hot pink ‘Nur Mahál’

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A recent addition to my Pemberton and Bentall Hybrid Musk collection is the shocking pink ‘Nur Mahál.’ Not a colour for everyone but she makes one smile.

Introduced in 1923 ‘Nur Mahál’ was a departure from Joseph Pemberton’s pale subtle coloured roses. The name, also a departure from his classical inspiration. Initially presented under a seedling number her name was proposed by a lady of the Raj who had lived in India for many years. Perhaps the hot pink colour spoke of India to her? The colour of ‘Nur Mahál’ comes from her seed parent ‘Château de Clos Vougeot’, a glorious dark red Hybrid Tea.

Nur Mahál, also known as Nur Jahan, deserves to be more widely known. Very much a woman who changed the world but has faded into obscurity. A favoured wife of the fourth Mughal Emperor Jahangir she became the real power behind the throne. Married in 1611, the twentieth wife of the Emperor, she was given the title Nur Mahál – Light of the Palace. She gradually assumed control of the empire from her opium and alcohol addicted husband. A highly capable ruler, she was also responsible for the great cultural and artistic achievements of Jahangir’s reign. In a time when most women lived in purdah, she championed the emancipation of women. The gardens of Kashmir and Agra were created under her patronage. Allegedly she discovered ‘Attar of Roses.’ A busy lady! Five years after her marriage she was granted the title of Nur Jahan – Light of the World. On Jahangir’s death, there was the usual power struggle between the many sons, and she was exiled to Lahore. If you are inspired to read more try ‘Empress: The Astonishing Reign of Nur Jahan’ by Ruby Lal was published last year.

As with all the Hybrid Musks, clusters of bloom are produced, and these get better and better as the summer progresses. Splashed with white as you can see in the photo, enhancing the bright pink. A lighter perfume than most of the other Musks though. Practically thornless with dark foliage ‘Nur Mahál’ will reach around 1.75m, taller in warmer climes, and rather wider. Disease free and easy to grow, these Hybrid Musks can be just left to grow and delight everyone who sees them. Hardy USDA zones 6b-10b and widely available.

‘Nur Mahál’ performed well for a first season rose in last summer’s chilly rain and dry autumn. I am looking forward to many summers of her glowing pink.

First published on my Facebook blog Rose of the Day 9th January 2022

An early Tea rose – ‘Safrano’

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Today a rose that I grow mainly for its historic value, but she is enchanting and remains popular, the Tea rose – ‘Safrano.’

A very early Tea, dating from 1839 and bred by an amateur grower Mons de Beauregard in Anger France. He bred just two roses, ‘Joseph’ now lost to cultivation and ‘Safrano.’ I hope he made some money from his ‘Safrano.’ In the late nineteenth century entire fields of ‘Safrano’ were grown in the South of France, and the buds and blooms were dispatched across Europe. Today the fashion for buttonholes has disappeared and florists want strong stemmed tough long lasting bright blooms, ‘Safrano’ doesn’t fulfil these modern demands.

A curious little soul, ‘Safrano’ hates the rain but can ‘bolt’ on very hot days running from her exquisite, furled bud to a spent bloom in under a day. A challenge to photograph I promise, when the bloom is perfect just run for your camera. Colours range from a bright salmony pink streaked with yellow fading to a buff parchment and finally white. She is highly variable and can disappoint with a pale insipid bloom but return a delicious bloom a few days later. Unusual in her petal count as this also changes a lot according to temperature and humidity. Fragrance is not too strong but ‘Tea’ like, earthy and captivating.

Here in the UK, she will probably only achieve a metre in height but considerably larger in hotter climates. Slightly fragile twiggy growth but I notice she gets stronger with age. Likewise, the bloom necks initially were weak, so she hung her head, but this too has improved over time. Although noted for being relatively hardy for a Tea a warm sunny sheltered spot would delight her. Ideal for a large container. Of course, being a Tea, she is disease resistant. Hardy USDA zones 7b-9b. Widely available. Said to grow wild in the South of France!

One reads that ‘Safrano’ is an early hand pollinated rose, ‘Park’s Yellow Tea-Scented China’ the seed parent and ‘Desprez à Fleur Jaune’ the pollen parent. However, this seems to have been a guess around a hundred years after her creation. Park’s Yellow certainly but the pollen parent isn’t known. This was natural pollination, with no little hogs’ hair brush involved. ‘Safrano’ has huge historic value as her genes are a major contributor to today’s modern roses, with just under 20,000 descendants.

Maybe not a rose for everyone and every garden situation. Tuck her in a sunny corner, enjoy her blooms, and relate her history to garden visitors over a glass of Sauvignon.

Originally published on my Facebook blog Rose of the Day 6th January 2022

‘Indigo’, not a blue rose at all!

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Visit a DIY store and you will be bemused by the names of paint. ‘Elephant’s Breath,’ hmm could that even be a colour? Dead Salmon seems unappealing even when the dead means flat as in not shiny. Pink was originally a murky yellow green only moving to describe light red in the late seventeenth century. The name of today’s rose appears to fall into these vague or confusing colour categories as we have the Portland rose – ‘Indigo.’ Not a deep midnight blue at all but mauve. Roses do not have the gene that produces the blue pigment delphinidin, (unless genetically modified) but nineteenth-century growers endlessly pursued the dream of breeding a blue rose. Perhaps naming this rose for a strong blue colour was a marketing ploy to tempt buyers?

Whatever the story behind the name ‘Indigo’ is a pretty rose. She can vary in colour according to sunlight and temperature, ranging from a dark purple through to mauve, sometimes with a streak of white or crimson. The petal backs are a little paler giving an attractive appearance. She will fade slowly as the large bloom matures ending up as a slaty pinkish grey. A small yellow button peeps through the double petals. Blooms appear either singly or in small clusters from June through to autumn. Delicious fragrance.

An early rose dating from pre-1845, bred by Jean Laffay. ‘Indigo’ reaches around one metre and is quite upright, so she does not take up so much space. Dark prickly stems with matt green foliage. Disease resistant although mildew might visit in very dry summers. Said to grow well in poor soil. USDA zo

‘Madame Laurette Messimy’ – an easy rose for busy gardeners

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Last summer the manager of one of the UK’s leading rose nurseries told me that buyers want easy to grow, disease free roses with good fragrance that bloom continuously or at least repeat bloom at short intervals. This statement was to explain their policy of dropping the older varieties in favour of the modern ones. Is it just modern roses that fall into this exacting category? I would argue that a number of the older roses are easy to grow, resistant to disease and delight with fragrant blooms from June to late autumn. Of course, there are older varieties that do not fit the bill and there are miserable, spot ridden modern roses that disappoint.

Today’s rose is one that ticks most of the boxes – ‘Madame Laurette Messimy.’ A China rose of huge charm and elegance. Her semi double blooms are not always the tidiest, but this is part of her charm. Highly variable in the colour ranging from pale pink through to bright salmon flushed with yellow, coral, and peach. Her poor point is the fragrance, elusive describes it best. Some days nothing and then she surprises with a soft light perfume. To make amends for the lack of perfume she gives a lot of bloom and just keeps going. On the first day of 2022 in the current exceptionally mild weather she has blooms and buds. Chilly weather will slow her down, but it is rare not to find a bloom or two. Not a great fan of the rain though. In June she was in full bloom and looked magnificent. Then the monsoon rain arrived, and she buckled under the weight of sodden petals. Honestly, she looked like a drunken wedding guest surrounded by damp confetti. Happily, she revived with a bit of sun and warmth.

Airy in her growth habit with dark plum stems which are almost thornless, just the odd prickle. Very healthy, as are all the Chinas. Aphids might appear but not a spot of fungal disease. Tall for a China, she is around 1.20m here in Suffolk and the same width. Would prefer for you not to approach with the secateurs, just leave her alone unless she is encroaching onto another favoured plant. Hardy USDA zones 7b-10b. Widely available.

‘Madame Laurette Messimy’ has two Tea parents, the seed parent Rival de Paestum and the glorious Madame Falcot the pollen parent. Bred by Jean-Baptiste André Guillot and introduced in 1887.

Who was the real Madame Messimy? Born Laurette Marie Anne Girodon in 1845, she married the notary Paul Charles Léon Messimy. I can find little information about her but her eldest son led an interesting life. Adolphe Messimy initially was a military officer, then a journalist and politician. He served as Minister of War in 1912 and again in 1914. He resigned early in WWI and returned to the army as an officer. A brave soldier, promoted to General by 1917 and awarded the Croix de Guerre. Said to be one of the many lovers of Mati Hari during her spying career.

I feel Madame Laurette Messimy is a stellar rose and well worth growing. She is a plant and stand back rose with little or no maintenance, ideal for busy (or lazy) gardeners.

Originally published 1st January 2022 on my Facebook blog Rose of the Day.

‘Archiduc Joseph’? Or maybe ‘Monsieur Tillier’??

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A Tea rose with a twin identity today, ‘Archiduc Joseph’ or ‘Monsieur Tillier’? Are these two discrete roses or the same? Most authorities consider this rose to be the same but disagree on which of the two names to use.  I bought mine as ‘Archiduc Joseph’ from Peter Beales, so he remains with this name. Not the only Tea rose with a muddled identification, ‘Clementina Carbonieri’ and ‘Souvenir de Gilbert Nabbonand’ are believed to be just one rose.

‘Archiduc Joseph’ is a seedling from the Tea rose ‘Mme Lombard’, discovered in 1892 and introduced to the market by Gilbert Nabonnand of Golfe Juan on the Côte d’Azur. Gilbert introduced an astonishing two hundred and nine roses. He concentrated on China and Tea roses, but a fair number are now lost to cultivation.

However, if we think this rose is ‘Monsieur Tillier’ the breeder is Jean-Alexandre Bernaix of Villeurbanne-Lyon who introduced his rose in 1892. The breeding is not recorded.

‘Archiduc Joseph’ gives us small pink buds, either singly or in small clusters. Opening to a smallish double enchanting pink, orange, and coppery toned blooms. These colours can vary according to temperature, with purple hues also appearing. A ‘brick’ red tone is also mentioned in the literature.  The dark backed petals quickly reflex into quills, resulting in a small fiery sun of a bloom.  Intoxicating ‘Tea’ fragrance as well. He blooms practically continuously well into the autumn.

Healthy dark matt green foliage on smooth thornless stems. A neat tidy growing habit, he can reach 1.5m here in the UK but much taller, around 3m, in warmer climates. Disease resistant. Not a lover of secateurs, just leave him to quietly grow. Hardy USDA zone 6b-9b, these are roses that appreciate sunny sheltered spots. Widely available but he may be sold under the name ‘Monsieur Tillier’ in the States and Australia.

Pinning a namesake is tricky where one has several individuals who have carried a particular title, there are a fair number of Archiduc Josephs. A single reference ties this rose to Joseph Charles Louis of Habsburg-Lorraine, Archduke of Austria, and Count Palatine of Hungary (1833-1905). A patron of Nabonnand, a botanist, and creator of the Margitsziger Park in Budapest, and in his spare time he compiled a Romany grammar. His sister Elisabeth Françoise Marie of Habsburg-Lorraine is the likely namesake of the Hybrid Perpetual ‘Archiduchesse Élizabeth d’Autriche’.

If this is ‘Monsieur Tillier’ this rose is named for the former head of the National School of Horticulture in Versailles.

Name issue aside ‘Archiduc Joseph’ is a charming rose that grows easily and keeps on giving blooms over a long season. Not a cold climate rose for my readers who garden in more chilly areas but if you are in USDA zones 6b and warmer this is a rose to consider.

Originally appeared on my Facebook blog ‘Rose of the Day’ 15th March 2022