Old varieties of roses
"If you want to enjoy the scent of a rose, you must also accept its thorns." – Isaac Hayes
Gallicas, Damascenas, Centifolias, Portland roses, Bourbon roses…
Fragrant old varieties of roses are great love of ours. Almost forgotten, they are now returning to our gardens. They were almost evicted by modern hybrid roses which may look nicer in a vase but do not have what is most wonderful with a rose – the divine scent.
Old varieties of roses enchanted us with their scent, and furthermore they are the reason why we decided to work with essential oils. Over 30 different varieties and over 200 shrubs of roses are currently growing among other herbs in our Herb garden. We are very much looking forward to the day when they will yield that special and rare essential oil.
Rosa Mundi
Rosa gallica ‘Versicolor’
The most beautiful among striped roses
First mentioned in 1583
Rosa Mundi is my favorite rose, so I present it separately. Don’t ask me why. I don’t know. It was love at first sight. I bought the first seedling on my trip to Florence, and on the way back home, the tiny plant with only two flower buds release such a great scent in the car, we thought ourselves in a perfume shop!
In the garden I planted it in the most beautiful place where I could see it at all time. It was as if I knew that Rosa Mundi would turn into a real beauty. When it blossomed it fascinated me with cascades of flowers that opened one after another for some three weeks. In those days I couldn’t wait to get home from work and take a walk in the garden to visit Rosa Mundi and all other beauties.
There are some 100 seedlings of Rosa Mundi growing in the Herb garden. To me Rosa Mundi’s scent is unique and when I started thinking which rose to distil there was no doubt. I distil for my soul, and my soul is Rosa Mundi…
This rose variety was first mentioned in 1583. But since we know that its sister Rosa Gallica Officinalis is much older, we can assume that Rosa Mundi is probably much older, too. It probably existed already in the Roman period when various sources first mention its sister.
Rosa Mundi Rose characteristics
- belongs to the Gallica group roses
- as a dense shrub it grows up to 1,20 meter in height
- does not have a lot of thorns and is very healthy
- flowers are moderately full
- responds beautifully to the bending of stems and blooms in cascades along the entire length of stems
- with its vivid purple and pale pink stripes it is known as the most beautiful striped rose
- its smell is wonderful, a classic scent of old roses
Rosa Mundi is believed to be named after Rosamund Clifford, the official mistress of English king Henry II. Her unfortunate fate is narrated in many English ballads, poems, even operas.
Rosamund must have meant to the king much more than just an occasional amusement which is proved also by the fact that the king offered to Rosamund the caste Woodstock Palace in Oxford surrounded by a wonderful garden. Rosamund adored roses, and there were so many in the garden. In the absence of the king, the jealous queen Eleanor ordered that Rosamund be murdered. The latter was to choose between poison and knife. Rosamund decided for poison. She died in her garden with her favorite rose on her lips. There she was found by the saddened king Henry who had her buried in a monastery.
After her death, her favorite rose was named after her – Rosa Mundi, and under that name we still know the rose today.
Rosa Mundi is a natural mutation of Rosa Gallica Officinalis – also called the ‘Apotheker–Rose‘. Especially with older rose shrubs, it can happen that the rose on a certain stem mutates back to the original variety. Flowers are thus changed from characteristically striped to monochrome pink flowers. The best to do in such cases is to cut off the mutated stem, otherwise with time other stems may go the same way…
Rosa Mundi shrub responds extremely well to the so called ‘pegging-down’ method. The method is believed to be invented by English gardeners who wished to have rose shrubs as full of flowers as possible. Roses usually bloom at the top of stems. However, if a stem is bent and pinned down, new stems start pushing along the entire length of the bent stem. And since new stems give new flowers, shrubs get impressively rich with a mass of flowers.
Not all varieties of roses like this method but Rosa Mundi just loves it. This is another reason why it is such a pleasure to grow it.
Medicinal properties of roses
Rose is one of few plants that have the ability to harmonize processes in our bodies; where body organs and body systems need a boost they get it, on the other hand, calming effects take place when too is much going on in our body. Medicinal plants are therefore great conductors and it is no surprise that in the Middle Ages they were used to treat virtually all problems.
Roses with their energy vibration exceed on this planet everything that we know of. With emitted 320 MHz they are champions. And knowing that already with the energy vibration it is possible to heal, we can realize what an immensely powerful assistant we have in roses.
Roses systemically act on the hormonal system, purify, soothe, shrink tissue and are a great aphrodisiac. Their energy effects are cooling. As flowers of Venus, they have always been associated with love and remain among most romantic plants in the world.
Damascenas
Botanical family: Rosaceae
The most fragrant among fragrant ones
The origin of Damask rose is not clear. According to some sources, it existed already with ancient civilizations. Modern genetics say that it is a hybrid of Rosa x damascena Mill which itself is not an authentic wild rose. It is also not known whether it is a result of a spontaneous crossing or a human hand was at work there. Anyhow, Damask rose found its way to Europe, probably by Templers, but it was only in the 19th century that its breeders started to systematically work with it which resulted in many new varieties. Unfortunately, most of them no longer exist today. But those that still remain are simply magnificent. They distinguish themselves by an exceptional scent which is a symbol of what a rose is today – the most famous and appreciated garden plant.
Damask rose characteristics
- reaches up to 1,50 meter in height
- colors of petals range from purple to white
- blooms mostly once per year
- the scent is that of a ‘classic rose’
- shrubs are not as compact as those of Gallic roses
- usually blooms early in the year
- Kazanlik
- La Ville de Bruxelles
- Pink Leda
- Blush Damask
It is thanks to Damask Kazanlik rose that Bulgaria is today recognized in the world of perfumes as a land of roses. In the 16th century, Sultan Murad III brought it from Kashan in Persia and ordered that it be cultivated in Bulgaria. In the famous rose valley near the town of Kazanlak, where world largest quantities of rose essential oils are being produced, one comes across vast plantations of exactly Kazanlik rose.
It is interesting that the name Kazanlik in Bulgaria doesn’t refer to only one variety of roses. Over the centuries, there have grown many varieties of Kazanlik so similar to each other that, unless one is an expert, it is difficult to distinguish among them.
Gallic roses
Botanical family: Rosacea
Also known as ‘French roses’
Gallic rose is simply a must for every rose garden. In the past, monks used to plant it in their herb gardens and this tradition we still follow today.
Gallic rose characteristics
- is a mid-sized shrub; is not a climbing rose
- reaches 1,20 meter in height, without pruning up to 2 meters
- stems are straight and upright
- shrubs are very healthy, well adopting to the climate
- flowers are smaller, full and fragrant
- Rosa Mundi
- Belle Isis
- Ville de Toulouse
- Village Maid
- Burgundy Rose
- Cardinal de Richelieu
It is maintained that in the early 18th century, when Gallic rose was most popular, 2,000 – 3,000 varieties were in sale. In 1906, when there was an attempt to list all known varieties, experts, digging also in old catalogues and other literature, came up with only 1,713 varieties of Gallic rose, thus recognizing that a lot of varieties had disappeared.
To this day, there are some 300 varieties of old Gallic rose still preserved. The complete collection is kept in the rosary Cour de Commer, in Mayenne, France. In sale there is no more than about one third of existing varieties and even those are hard to get.
My first rose garden was created on a completely different location than that of today. It was the result of a true obsession with the beauty of roses. I was looking for roses that smelled particularly good and tried to create on a limited piece of land a splendid place as it befits those beauty queens. For all my care and dedication they rewarded me with incredibly beautiful flowers and scents. They taught me how to recognize different nuances of scents, thus leading me to the world of aromatherapy.
There are over 100 different varieties of roses growing in my garden. They have accompanied me on my way from a complete beginner to a great rose lover. They sent me on a journey through many flower gardens in Slovenia and Europe so that I could bring home new skills and methods. And whatever they have taught me, I am happy today to pass forward to everyone who has got a ‘call from roses’ as I did once.
