Friday, February 11, 2011

White Noisettes at the Heritage

Somehow I missed an entire class of beautiful roses until now. Most of the pictures I could find are either of white (or blush) or of orangey yellow roses, so I decided to split them into two posts.

Noisette roses constitute a separate and distinct group named after Phillip Noisette, the superintendent of the Botanical Gardens of the South Carolina Medical Society in the early 1800s. Phillip bred the noisette rose "Blush Noisette" from the seeds of "Champney's Pink Cluster", a cross between r. chinensis and r. moschata obtained by John Champney, a farmer from Charleston, South Carolina. Noisette roses are thus closely related to Chinas, and are America's first significant contribution to rose breeding. While "Champney's Pink Cluster" is considered to be the first in this class, it is "Blush Noisette" that brought these roses into the spotlight and kick-started the hybridizing efforts that gave us so many of these exquisite beauties.

Duchesse de Grammont (before 1838)
This is such a delicate rose, of unknown origin (which never fails to intrigue me) and not readily available on the West Coast. I don't grow it, so I can't tell you much except that the plant at the Heritage does not seem to rebloom really well. However, the huge clusters of tiny double blooms are very special in spring, and pink buds add a bit of color. It has a shrubby habit, typical of some early Noisettes, and seems a healthy plant.



Jeanne d'Arc (Verdier, 1848)
A bit ho-hum, the only thing to like about Jeanne d'Arc is the stamens which begin yellow and age to pink (see the second picture), which is fairly unusual.



Lamarque (Marechal, 1830)
This, to me, is the most beautiful of noisettes. There are two versions of Lamarque available from nurseries, the California Lamarque and the Thomasville Lamarque, the latter being inferior in vigor and bloom quality. I was told that the California Lamarque is the real one. It repeats well with deadheading, is not too prickly, and the canes are flexible enough for stress-free training.



Lady Emily Peel (Lacharme, 1862)
A lovely blush pink rose named after the daughter of a Scottish nobleman. I don't know much about its rebloom or disease-resistance.


 'Manchester Guardian Angel' (found)
A really really massive and incredibly prickly rose. It has a strong sweet scent (courtesy of the musk rose in its ancestry) and very quick and generous repeat, although as you can see, the flowers are better for mass effect rather than individual beauty. A very healthy rose if you have enough room for it:-).



18 comments:

  1. Dear Masha, I think that the form of the Noisettes is so very pretty and, as my garden is virtually all green and white, there are so many of the Noisettes that you feature here that I should welcome in my own garden. I had no idea where the name 'Noisette' came from but now I know....as they say, one learns a little every day.

    I am so pleased to have found you having previously been confused over the naming of your weblog. I am so sorry about this, as I am with losing you as a follower. I shall very much hope to see you again.

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  2. How beautiful, I love noisette roses! They're a staple in the South, where I grew up. Unfortunately, they won't survive the winter here in NJ. They're great for warm climates, though. I love them as landscape features. The scent is amazing, too. Thanks for the beautiful pictures and info!

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  3. So glad to have found your blog today. The Noisettes are so pretty,your pictures are great!

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  4. Beautiful pictures, and beautiful roses. The pic of Duchesse de Grammont with the tiny droplets is gorgeous. I am looking to acquire more Noisettes, so I appreciate your highlighting this class.

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  5. I love the noisette roses. Lamarque is great although it took several years before it started blooming good for me. I also love Reve D'Or and Madame Alfred Carierre.

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  6. Phillip, you are putting me to shame. If you grow MAC, your garden must be quite a bit bigger than mine, or else it does not grow as big in your climate. Here all these plants are gigantic. I love Reve d'Or too, it is coming up in my next post:-).

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  7. Thank you, HolleyGarden. More envy follows, as my garden is so full, and so many of them so big. Well, I do enjoy them at the Heritage.... Good luck with your search.

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  8. Thank you, the Redneck Rosarian, and welcome!

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  9. Thank you, Shannon, for your compliment, and it is great that you are familiar with these roses. It is nice to meet knowledgeable people like you.

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  10. Dear Edith,

    Thank you very much for searching me out, and I am sorry about all the confusion. I enjoy your blog very much, you have a great way with words, and I am very happy we have reconnected.

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  11. Masha, my problem is that I'm running out of space and sun. I have about 3/4 acre. I have photos and a rose section on my website at http://phillipoliver.net/garden.htm

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  12. Thanks, Phillip, I have the exact same problem:-), and I garden on much less than that. I will check out the address you provided, thanks a lot!

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  13. Thanks for leaving a comment on my blog. I very much like LaMarque. Look forward to reading your post about just joey, it is one of my wifes favorites.

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  14. Thank you for coming to my blog, Greggo! I am very happy to meet you, and I am glad we like the same roses.

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  15. All I can say is Wow! Absolutely beautiful photos. I'm so happy I found your blog today. A nice break from our nasty winter weather.

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  16. Hello, ONG and welcome! It is nice to meet you and I am glad you liked my blog.

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  17. Your photos of these roses are beyond beautiful. Just exquisite. I could look at them all day.

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  18. Thank you, Sweetbay. Compliments from such a talented photographer are very much appreciated.

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I am so glad you have stopped by!