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Gallica, Alba and Damask Rose Varieties
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Nov 28, 2005 - 12:42:00 PM
By Gosia Wajchert
There are a great many rose varieties in the modern rose market. Some of the most popular varieties are the gallica roses, alba roses and damask roses.
Gallica Roses
As the name implies, Gallica Roses are selections which were bred from the "French Rose", R. gallica. A Gallica rose typically consists of a stocky plant and an open blossom on which the stamens are visible and held upright. The Gallica rose comes in colors which mostly consist of variations on the rose red. There are many subtle variations of colors, as well as a limitless array of heights and types of blossoms, from near singles to full doubles. Colors vary from light blush pinks to deep maroons, and from clear colors to cloudy, striped and spotted blooms. Gallica roses are easy to propagate through runners or suckers.
Alba Roses
There is still considerable debate about the precise origin of the Alba group of roses. Candidates for the original ancestor of the Alba rose include R. canina x R. damascena and R. corymbifera x R. gallica. Alba roses typically create large and healthy shrubs full of fragrant light pink or white blossoms, generally in clusters of several flowers. Alba roses are associated with the middle ages, particularly in the luxurious castle gardens of the era.
Damask Roses
The history of Damask roses is not as controversial as that of the Alba roses. Damask roses are typically understood to be a hybridization of R. gallica and R. phoenica. This hybridization originally occurred in Asia Minor and spread through Syria to the Near East and Middle East. According to tradition, the crusaders brought these roses back to Europe on their return from Damascus in 1254.
There is, however, a considerable question about this legend. There are references as late as the 1820's to a rose known as "the common Damask" but it is unclear what flower these references refer to. It seems that these citations may actually refer to the Damask Perpetual. No matter what its provenance or reference, the Damask rose should consist of upright and sometimes arching canes, grayish green leaves, and large, fragrant blooms in clusters of a few flowers. Colors of Damask roses range from white to deep pink.
Gosia Wajchert is a garden writer from the UK.
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