We grow 'Mme. Butterfly' as an index plant for mosaic virus. It and 'Ophelia' show remarkably strong shock symptoms in the spring, if an uninfected plant is budded in the fall with an infected bud. It's also a decent plant in the garden, but not "exciting" for us.

When I had 'Mme Butterfly', I thought it was special in an understated way as a cut rose. The petals are thick and satiny, the fragrance unusual and excellent, and the stamens, sometimes visible, are coral red.

Mine apparently froze out during a zone 7b winter, so I did not replant. Patricia41 reported the same experience from North Alabama.

I have Madame Butterfly coming from Palatine in the spring. I would love to grow Ophelia et al and likely will try somedayâ¦
I've ordered quite a few vintage HTs for spring and I am looking forward to receiving them. Where might one purchase Miss O on fort?
Thanks!
Susan

Susan, I thought Angel Gardens grafted on Fort, but I was wrong, they do own-root..

I'm unaware of a source of 'Fortuniana' rooted plants in this group. We graft our own. I believe FPMS at Davis has budwood of Ophelia (or used to -- have not checked lately) but you'd have to graft your own or have it done, custom, by someone.

Ophelia grew well on her own roots here but the blooms did not fare well in dry heat, despite their light color. Quickly crisped on hot days. Agree with Malcolm that she was not all that "exciting", so not much to make up for the often short-lived blooms, though I certainly appreciated her historical nature.

I grow Ophelia, Lady Ursula, and Climbing Madame Butterfly all on their own roots. They have grown and performed well for years.

They aren't listing Ophelia now, but do have Mme. Butterfly.

And it's time to order NOW. They have an Oct. 15 deadline for allotments going out in Nov. Get some clean budsticks & start taping buds. They only cost .60 each, for goodness sakes. Get them now & you can have them rooted & ready to bud all of your neat old HTs on in the spring.

They have quite a list of scion material, too. Just wish the timing was more convenient, but my order is in. I'm going to slap buds like crazy when I get the order & hope to have good clean stock to enjoy come spring.

Burling has Westfield Star in stock.

Here is a link that might be useful: UC Davis list of rootstocks & scion material

I never grew Ophelia, but did grow and loved Dainty Bess, one of her children.

I'm growing Madame Butterfly, which I got as a band from Burlington a few months ago, and so far it's done quite well. I give it high marks for vigor, as far as older own-root HT's go. After watching Shot Silk do absolutely NOTHING for more than a year (ONE bloom, about 10 days ago...), it's a relief to see MB constantly shooting out new growth. And healthy looking growth at that.
Several people here have mentioned the lack of "excitement" in the blooms- I think that's an interesting point. The first time I saw it ( and Ophelia as well), I was disappointed, since hot weather had washed out the color and blown out the form. I decided later, when I saw it again under completely different circumstances, that the buds of MB are far more attractive than the fully opened flower- classic, elegant HT form, and gorgeous subtle creamy-golden-pink color. Exactly the kind of subtlety that so many post-war HT's seem to lack. My climate is mild, to say the least, and color-bleaching and petal-crisping are the last things I ever worry about. There are several buds just about to open, and even the tiny bit of color showing is so pretty- I'm really excited to see what this rose does for me.

BTW- This was the first time I ordered from Burlington- I'm impressed to say the least. She was the ONLY person who had Madame Butterfly in stock. And because I'm out of control, I also ordered Tuscany Superb, Baronne Prevost and Red Radiance. Small plants, but they all started growing IMMEDIATELY. I can't believe how low her prices are! Her list is filled with fabulous roses- I can't wait to order from her again.

Zachary