Some of you may already know that 'Oakington Ruby'* is one of the most important parent varieties in the breeding of modern miniature roses. Ralph Moore used it early on in his breeding program as an important source of the dwarfing genes. Moore's earliest varieties like 'Dian', and 'Little Buckaroo' both came from crosses involving 'Oakington Ruby' as the grandparent, and a few Moore roses were first generation hybrids, like 'Pink Joy' (one of my favorite Moore roses) and 'Patty Lou' which were in fact selfings of 'Oakington Ruby', all created in the 1950s.

Although the flowers and leaves of 'Oakington Ruby' are quite tiny (blooms do not exceed 1.5"), the plant itself grows just like most other Chinas; if left to grow as it pleases, it will gradually build on itself to form a fairly large specimen. Case in point would be my own largest plant of it, now 17 (or more) years old. It was in a pot once, but I am certain 90% of its root system is now in the ground. I don't cut it back, ever - I only remove dead wood when needed. And so, here you have it - my 'Oakington Ruby' - now 7.5 feet tall and about as wide.

'Oakington Ruby' sets seed easily and these germinate effortlessly. Many of the seedlings are at least curious and some are downright worthy of keeping.

*"Oakington Ruby' is a found rose, from the Cathedral Gardens at Ely, in Cambridgeshire, England. It was reintroduced in 1933 by a nurseryman named C. R. Bloom. Given its grown habit and style of foliage and flower, I am quite certain this is actually one of few surviving Dwarf Lawrenciana roses from the middle 1800s, closely related to "R. Roulettii". I have one other I believe is from the same time period, named for its discovery location: "Red Bluff Oakhill Cemetery Pink" and given to me many years ago by Sherri Berglund.