Rosa bracteata (long)

11 years ago

My R. bracteata started as a sucker from Texas where it's (so I'm told) an unwanted invasive plant.
Mine has never been unwanted, nor has it been invasive. It has bloomed consistantly all season long with such pure white flowers that the blooms can be seen from the house almost two tenths of a mile away.
This winter was long...four months without rose growth. R. bracteatas withstood temps in the minus single digits here twice before, but this winter, with the very cold in March (for almost a week) following bud sprouting weather killed both of my R. b.s to the ground.

It did not, however, kill the roots. And as roses do, when they are healthy species, it has come back from the roots.

I am going to have some to give away, I hope. I won't send them where RRD isn't yet, nor will I send them to where they are called invasive.
They are carefree and need no fungicides. They also seem to be the one rose that the RRD vector eriophyid mite doesn't recognize as being a rose, so they leave without infecting this rose. The thorns are sharp and numerous and would be an excellent plant for under a lusty daughter's bed room window(s).

Anyway, think about adding this to your collection. Pure white single blooms all summer long, no spray and no fuss.

Ann

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Comments (3)

philipatx
11 years ago
Oh, darn... Does that mean you wouldn't be willing to send a piece back home? ;-) (CenTex, inside city limits of Austin). It is a naturalized roadside survivor east of here where the rainfall is higher, but I never thought of it as invasive per se. (I'm also inside the city where invasives are less likely to escape.)

I've actually been wanting to collect some specimens I've seen nearer to Houston for hybridizing.

My daughter is still young... Gives it time to get established...

Thanks.

-Philip
User
11 years ago
last modified: 11 years ago
I added this reference to HMF yesterday, but thought you might like to see it here:

From Samuel Bowne Parsons' 'The Rose', 1847, p.263

This rose was brought from China to England, by Lord Macartney, in 1793. Its habit is luxuriant, and its foliage is more beautiful than that of any other rose, its leaves being thick and of a rich glossy green. It commences blooming about midsummer, and its flowers, whose fragrance is like the perfume of an apricot, succeed each other without interruption till the first frosts, while the leaves remain till the very latest. Although as hardy as the hardiest of the China Roses, it would be better in this latitude to give it the same protection as recommended for the China. It is one of the most desirable roses for beds or borders. When covering the whole ground, and kept well pegged down, its rich, glossy foliage, gemmed with fragrant flowers, produces a beautiful effect.

Despite the praise, I'm not especially tempted by the species, but the Hybrid Bracteata 'Alba Odorata' is another matter, for some reason...

Virginia

PS The 'lusty daughter' comment cracks me up!
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lplantagenet7AVA
11 years ago
I have several plants which I rooted from cuttings--three stand alones and two on either side of the walk--at least there were two until a big storm and cleanup by heavy equipment in 2013 destroyed one of them. Now I'm trying to root a fourth from a long cane of the closest plant. About six weeks ago, I put a couple of cobblestones on the cane which now has buds on either side of the stones. I hope I will have a new plant by the end of the season.

The plants by the walk have been in place six or seven years and are kept under control by the tractor and weed eater. They aren't evergreen in my climate, however; in fact, they look terrible by the end of the winter, but come back quickly and look elegant all summer. I would say it is much hardier than Chinas and Teas which aren't doing well for me.

Lindsey