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samcanzone6a

Please help me identify my grandmother's roses!

5 years ago
last modified: 5 years ago

My grandmother fell ill recently, and it is very likely her home will be sold soon. Her area is also becoming gentrified, and many homes in her area are being razed to the ground to put up 4-plexes. She has several roses around her home, and I would be indebted for your assistance in identifying them. She has lived in the same location for 50 years, in Montreal, QC. They were a fixture of my childhood, and I am devastated to think they may also be destroyed. They are below (colors are fairly true). Many, many thanks in advance.

Rose #1: A climber or rambler, at least 8 ft tall, blooms 2.5-3 inches wide. Unsure about the fragrance.








New photo, updated 6/27


New photo, updated 6/27


Rose #2: Very, very thorny. Blooms fairly small, maybe up to 2 inches. Unsure about fragrance. Stems grow at least 10-12 ft tall, and blooms "spill over". This one was here when the family purchased the home, and can be found all over the neighborhood.





Rose #3: Grows at least 6 ft tall. Unsure about fragrance. B

looms about 2-3 inches wide.










Rose #4: Moderate fragrance (old rose), stems about 2 feet tall, fries in the sun and heat. Blooms at least 3.5-4 inches wide.







New photo, updated 6/27


New photo, updated 6/27


Comments (14)

  • 5 years ago

    I don't know, but they are very beautiful. Hopefully someone helpful can be on soon and can point you in a better direction. Best of luck with everything.

    SamuellaZ6a thanked Alana8aSC
  • 5 years ago

    I would say that #2 is F.J. Grootendorst.

    SamuellaZ6a thanked Magda (Ontario, USDA4/5)
  • 5 years ago

    @Magda (Ontario, USDA4/5) I was thinking the same thing, frilly smaller red blooms and the overenthusiastic thorns of a rugosa hybrid... probably F.J Grootendorst.

    SamuellaZ6a thanked Mischievous Magpie (CO 5b)
  • 5 years ago

    In agreement on grootendorst.


    You might want to contact Claire Laberge in Montreal. She was in charge of roses at the Montreal Botanical Garden and was actively collecting and identifying roses in the area (as well as accumulating them in the gardening area inside the Botanical Garden that isn't open to the public. If she can't help you, she would know who, locally, could help.


    The pink one with the button eye is really interesting.

    SamuellaZ6a thanked stillanntn6b
  • 5 years ago

    #1 is a mystery. It has some curious traits that make me think Damask, and the foliage is Gallica/Alba in style. I wonder if it could be 'Konigen von Danemark' or something related?

    #2 is 'Grootendorst'

    #3 is 'Banshee'

    #4 modern HT/Floribunda type, no idea about the variety

    SamuellaZ6a thanked User
  • 5 years ago

    I'm squinting to see because the pictures are a bit fuzzy, but in the last photo of the first rose, the buds look a bit mossy to me. OP, are they mossy in your opinion? Or do the buds have a distinct smell when you rub them with your fingers?

    SamuellaZ6a thanked Mischievous Magpie (CO 5b)
  • 5 years ago

    #3 ...that's a lot more petals than Banshee gets in Tennessee and Virginia, but if history serves, it should prefer the longer amount of time it takes to set flower buds that much farther north. Buds in the first photo ...do they look kind of like acorns in profile?

  • 5 years ago

    Hi everyone,


    Thank you for your quick responses and kind assistance! I apologize for the fuzzy photos; I wish I had had the time to take more. Those of us in the States all flew down to Montreal rather suddenly with the news, and all took turns keeping a 24/hr vigil over our beloved matriarch at the hospital, and then at her home when she was discharged for palliative care.


    That said, I am thrilled that F.J Grootendorst has been identified--thank you @Magda (Ontario, USDA4/5) @Mischievous Magpie (CO 5b) @User @stillanntn6b! Ann, thank you for letting me know about Claire Laberge--I will find her contact info! @User Eilleen, not impertinent at all--this would be a perfect solution, and would love to be able to do so! I forgot to mention in my post that I now live in Kansas, and would be unable to bring cuttings across the border. Other family members are not interested/do not have the space for these roses in their garden. @Alana8aSC thank you for your kind words, I hope so too!


    As for rose #1, @Mischievous Magpie (CO 5b) yes, buds are mossy, and @stillanntn6b yes, they certainly did look like acorns. Another interesting feature of rose #1 is that it bloomed beautifully in part shade, if not full shade, in some spots. It is intertwined with a number of grapevines and invasive shrubs. I don't know if this feature is due to the extent to which it has been established in the area, the prized soil on the island (my husband remarked that he could see "the silica sparkling in the soil"), or the variety itself.


    As for rose #3, I would say that the roses were already in full bloom by the time I arrived (June 3).


    I will see if I have other photos. Thank you again!

  • 5 years ago

    My Banshee has many petals and balls in wet weather. It came from Hickory Hill Plantation in Hanover County, about 10 miles away.


    Why try to move large, established roses when you can propagate them? Banshee should have produced some suckers you could move.


    Lindsey

    SamuellaZ6a thanked lplantagenet7AVA
  • 5 years ago

    Hi all,


    I added some new pictures for all three--hope they are of use. Again, I am indebted to your kindness and help!

  • 5 years ago

    #3 is definitely Banshee. For #1 I was thinking Queen of the Prairies but it seems too light. Maybe another hybrid setigera like Pride of Washington?

    SamuellaZ6a thanked belmont8
  • 5 years ago
    last modified: 5 years ago

    My 'Banshee' never opened and is now long gone, but I could see it had a lot of petals. It came from my grandmother's childhood home in far northern Maine. Banshee on its own roots will form a thicket over time. I admired it mostly because it is so darn tough.

    Rose #1, if either an alba or a damask, should be very fragrant. If it is more gallica, probably less so (though I do love gallicas). In any caseit will also be a once bloomer, that is a period of bloom lasting for a month or possibly two, then be done until the next year. It would probably also root very easily if you are tempted to try. It would probably be well worth it.

    SamuellaZ6a thanked Rosefolly z5
  • 5 years ago

    Re the first rose: my own best guess, like Paul's, was 'Koenigin von Daenemark' (I didn't believe it, but couldn't come up with anything better). However, I was out in this morning and saw my KvD, and it has distinctly pointed leaves, not rounded like those in the photo. I didn't check for other points of similarity or difference.

    SamuellaZ6a thanked Melissa Northern Italy zone 8