Rose Care Information
Article Titles
1. Alfalfa: the Alpha Additive for Rose Growers
2. Basics of Rose Pruning
3. Fungal Diseases
4. Rose Exhibiting for Beginners
5. Summertime Rose Care video
6. My Blue Girl Story
7. Cécile Brünner: An omnipresent rose on California's Central Coast
Alfalfa: the Alpha Additive for Rose Growers
by Joe Truskot, Master Rosarian
For many years, consulting rosarians have extolled the benefits of dumping a double-handful of alfalfa pellets in spring on top of every rose planted in our gardens. Happily, it’s not just garden lore. The combination of alfalfa and the slightly acidic rain has definite growth-enhancing benefits for roses. This addition of nutrients comes at a time when, thanks to our winter pruning, the bushes are coming out of our forced dormancy and responding to more sunshine.
The addition of alfalfa increases the enzymatic function of the roots which results in the overall improvement of a rose’s basic functions: photosynthesis and glucose production. With improvement in these areas, the plants absorb more sunlight and produce more glucose. The plants then send more sugar to the rhizosphere in the soil via the root system. That’s where the growth, respiration, and nutrient exchange take place – the more sugar in the soil, the more food for microorganisms. The busier the microorganisms become, the more organic material is broken down into the nutrients the plant needs to grow.
Because alfalfa enhances the overall functioning of the rose bush, it then speeds up the transportation rate of these now accessible nutrients to cells throughout the bush – more food, more growth. The now fully-fed cells are large, producing bigger leaves and more of them, thus further expanding photosynthesis. All this leads to stronger canes and fully developed, brighter flowers – and plenty more of both.
In addition, every morsel of an alfalfa pellet is organic and will break down rather quickly in the soil. Alfalfa contains a significant amount of nitrogen, mostly in a form that needs time to transform into a plant-edible nutrient – nitrate nitrogen. We need healthy microorganisms to do this for us. Warming soil temperatures and longer days expedite this process.
In the meantime, if you have sandy soil, organic material will help you maintain a more regulated moisture content. If your soil is heavy clay, organic material (rice hulls, nut shells) and sand or crushed rock, will increase the amount of air circulating in the soil.
Alfalfa pellets are an abundant and relatively inexpensive source of organic material. The pellets are easy to apply, free from weed seeds or insect eggs, and readily available. I saw a sack at our local grocery store in the pet aisle. And, no, the addition of rabbit food to a rose garden, does not increase bunnies hopping along the garden trail. Alfalfa quickly swells, breaks down, and forms an unattractive cow pie which is easily broken apart with water from a hose.
The active ingredient in alfalfa pellets and in the looser alfalfa meal is a waxy alcohol called triacontonol. It was identified in the 1930s in the cuticle of alfalfa seeds. It is also found in beeswax. Because triacontanol is a growth stimulant, it rapidly increases the number of basal breaks in grafted roses. If the pellets are applied directly onto the bud union, it keeps that often barky and dried-up area moist, facilitating new basal growth. New canes growing from the bud union are harbingers of many flowers to come for several more seasons – our ultimate aim as rose growers.
In its commercial form, triacontonol has been tested on many different row crops with mostly positive results, although quantities and timing are still being explored. It can now be synthetically produced.
In addition, triacontonol has been proven to add a degree of salt-tolerance to many plants. In India, it has improved the salt tolerance of hot pepper plants – a particularly sensitive species and an important crop in the Punjab. This salt-tolerant attribute of triacontonol may explain why adding more alfalfa to the roses around Labor Day serves as a tonic, counteracting a summer of watering roses with more alkaline leaning ground water which can raise the pH level. It may also benefit many roses’ propensity for a lush repeat fall bloom.
So whether you are new to rose growing or an experienced rosarian, don’t skip this important addition to your annual garden regime.
By the way, I wrote this article while munching on a tuna sandwich on oat bread piled high with alfalfa sprouts – a great combination of flavors and textures – and I didn’t think at all about how much triacontonol I just ate and what benefits my body might derive from it.
Happy Gardening.
Added: April 15, 2024
by Joe Truskot, Master Rosarian
For many years, consulting rosarians have extolled the benefits of dumping a double-handful of alfalfa pellets in spring on top of every rose planted in our gardens. Happily, it’s not just garden lore. The combination of alfalfa and the slightly acidic rain has definite growth-enhancing benefits for roses. This addition of nutrients comes at a time when, thanks to our winter pruning, the bushes are coming out of our forced dormancy and responding to more sunshine.
The addition of alfalfa increases the enzymatic function of the roots which results in the overall improvement of a rose’s basic functions: photosynthesis and glucose production. With improvement in these areas, the plants absorb more sunlight and produce more glucose. The plants then send more sugar to the rhizosphere in the soil via the root system. That’s where the growth, respiration, and nutrient exchange take place – the more sugar in the soil, the more food for microorganisms. The busier the microorganisms become, the more organic material is broken down into the nutrients the plant needs to grow.
Because alfalfa enhances the overall functioning of the rose bush, it then speeds up the transportation rate of these now accessible nutrients to cells throughout the bush – more food, more growth. The now fully-fed cells are large, producing bigger leaves and more of them, thus further expanding photosynthesis. All this leads to stronger canes and fully developed, brighter flowers – and plenty more of both.
In addition, every morsel of an alfalfa pellet is organic and will break down rather quickly in the soil. Alfalfa contains a significant amount of nitrogen, mostly in a form that needs time to transform into a plant-edible nutrient – nitrate nitrogen. We need healthy microorganisms to do this for us. Warming soil temperatures and longer days expedite this process.
In the meantime, if you have sandy soil, organic material will help you maintain a more regulated moisture content. If your soil is heavy clay, organic material (rice hulls, nut shells) and sand or crushed rock, will increase the amount of air circulating in the soil.
Alfalfa pellets are an abundant and relatively inexpensive source of organic material. The pellets are easy to apply, free from weed seeds or insect eggs, and readily available. I saw a sack at our local grocery store in the pet aisle. And, no, the addition of rabbit food to a rose garden, does not increase bunnies hopping along the garden trail. Alfalfa quickly swells, breaks down, and forms an unattractive cow pie which is easily broken apart with water from a hose.
The active ingredient in alfalfa pellets and in the looser alfalfa meal is a waxy alcohol called triacontonol. It was identified in the 1930s in the cuticle of alfalfa seeds. It is also found in beeswax. Because triacontanol is a growth stimulant, it rapidly increases the number of basal breaks in grafted roses. If the pellets are applied directly onto the bud union, it keeps that often barky and dried-up area moist, facilitating new basal growth. New canes growing from the bud union are harbingers of many flowers to come for several more seasons – our ultimate aim as rose growers.
In its commercial form, triacontonol has been tested on many different row crops with mostly positive results, although quantities and timing are still being explored. It can now be synthetically produced.
In addition, triacontonol has been proven to add a degree of salt-tolerance to many plants. In India, it has improved the salt tolerance of hot pepper plants – a particularly sensitive species and an important crop in the Punjab. This salt-tolerant attribute of triacontonol may explain why adding more alfalfa to the roses around Labor Day serves as a tonic, counteracting a summer of watering roses with more alkaline leaning ground water which can raise the pH level. It may also benefit many roses’ propensity for a lush repeat fall bloom.
So whether you are new to rose growing or an experienced rosarian, don’t skip this important addition to your annual garden regime.
By the way, I wrote this article while munching on a tuna sandwich on oat bread piled high with alfalfa sprouts – a great combination of flavors and textures – and I didn’t think at all about how much triacontonol I just ate and what benefits my body might derive from it.
Happy Gardening.
Added: April 15, 2024
Monterey Bay Rose Society Pruning Cheat Sheet
by Joe Truskot, Master Rosarian
Happy New Year! It’s time to prune your roses. This is my favorite time of year. I get to relive the successes I’ve had during the past year while planning to make my garden produce even better in 2026. Better to me means abundant flowers, well-shaped individual blossoms, and sprays. Alas, now’s a great time to remove under-performing bushes. New roses are best planted now, if you have any. Here’s an easy summary of what you need to do this month in the garden.
Remember the following reasons why we prune.
1. Practicing good sanitation
a. Reduces the fungal spores circulating around the bushes
b. Reduces and often eliminates insect eggs and larvae
2. Forcing the bush to rest
a. Roses need to conserve their energy during the winter months
b. Eliminates substandard growth during limited daylight hours
3. Reshaping the bush
a. Causes the bush to grow where you want it to grow
b. Provides more air circulation in and around the bush, allowing it to dry off during wet periods
c. Allows the increasing sunshine to warm the bud union
Always use the best equipment and most appropriate clothing
1. Choose bypass pruning shears and loppers
a. Oil their moving parts
b. They should comfortably fit your hand
2. Adjust the tool you use to the size of the job
a. Most useful are ¾” to 1” blades on hand shears
b. Various-sized loppers will save time and energy
c. Use a pruning saw on old canes
i. They cut when you pull, not when you push
ii. They make a clean cut, flat cut
3. Keep all your equipment VERY Sharp
a. Titanium sharpeners are small but really do a great job
b. Diamond-encrusted sharpeners come in various sharpening strengths
c. Re-sharpen your blades after twenty or so cuts
d. The sharper the blade, the less energy it takes, and the cleaner the cut will be
4. Wear loose, old clothing
a. Old rose canes at this time of year are sharp and unforgiving
b. Usually roses have hooked thorns
i. Push into a snag and jiggle yourself free
ii. Don’t pull away from a snag
5. Wear heavy leather gloves with forearm protection
a. Cowhide is the strongest
b. Deerskin or goatskin is most flexible
c. Watch out for prickles that stick you through a seam
Remember the following things to do while pruning.
1. Make all cuts at a 45° angle
a. Angled cuts allow water droplets to roll off
b. Flat or horizontal cuts could let water sit on the cut and cause die-back
c. If the cut tears the lower part of the cane, cut it again until it’s a clean slice
d. If you see a brown spot in the center or side of the cut, cut it again until you hit greenwood
e. A cane with a hollow top might contain a leaf-borer insect so keep cutting down until you hit greenwood
f. If cane canker or die back is apparent on the bushes being pruned, swirl your pruning blade in Lysol or bleach before you move to the next bush
g. Clean cuts to rose canes seal themselves in a few minutes. No need to treat them.
2. Get rid of dead wood
a. Do this all season long
b. Cut dead wood into manageable pieces to protect the live wood growing alongside it
3. Get rid of canes growing through the center of the bush
a. Opening up the center of the plant is the most important goal of pruning.
b. Remove all thin canes growing lower down
i. They catch falling dead leaves and petals and clog air circulation
ii. They never produce quality blooms – the ultimate goal
4. Get rid of misshapen, diseased, or injured canes
a. Remove canes that have rubbed together and scarred each other
b. Remove canes that broke during the year and have not healed themselves
c. Remove canes that contain more than two or three instances of cane-on-cane
5. Reduce the overall size of the bush by a third to a half
a. This helps you move about the garden
b. This allows more sunlight to fall on the bud union, which will produce more canes
6. Remove all leaves from the canes
a. Pluck the bush free of all leaves, flowers, and hips from 2023
i. Helps you get a better view of the bush while pruning it
ii. Removes any fungal spores and insect eggs.
7. Rake up all the trimmings from below the pruned bush
a. Many insect eggs and larvae are residing in the mulch
i. Especially important if you have had infestations of rose curculio, cucumber beetle, whitefly, and thrips
ii. Fresh mulch will warm the ground in winter and allow microbes to break down organic material
b. Throw all trimmings from roses in the trash
i. Most home compost piles aren’t hot enough to kill fungal spores
ii. Best to get the scraps out of your garden entirely
8. Spray your pruned garden with winter dormant oil
a. Only necessary if you have had severe insect infestations
b. Usually will increase protection, but it isn’t necessary
9. No need to feed your roses until new growth appears in February
a. It counters the effort to get the bush to rest
b. Low sunlight levels will cause weak growth
c. Wet weather will rinse away the soluble forms of nitrogen and potassium
by Joe Truskot, Master Rosarian
Happy New Year! It’s time to prune your roses. This is my favorite time of year. I get to relive the successes I’ve had during the past year while planning to make my garden produce even better in 2026. Better to me means abundant flowers, well-shaped individual blossoms, and sprays. Alas, now’s a great time to remove under-performing bushes. New roses are best planted now, if you have any. Here’s an easy summary of what you need to do this month in the garden.
Remember the following reasons why we prune.
1. Practicing good sanitation
a. Reduces the fungal spores circulating around the bushes
b. Reduces and often eliminates insect eggs and larvae
2. Forcing the bush to rest
a. Roses need to conserve their energy during the winter months
b. Eliminates substandard growth during limited daylight hours
3. Reshaping the bush
a. Causes the bush to grow where you want it to grow
b. Provides more air circulation in and around the bush, allowing it to dry off during wet periods
c. Allows the increasing sunshine to warm the bud union
Always use the best equipment and most appropriate clothing
1. Choose bypass pruning shears and loppers
a. Oil their moving parts
b. They should comfortably fit your hand
2. Adjust the tool you use to the size of the job
a. Most useful are ¾” to 1” blades on hand shears
b. Various-sized loppers will save time and energy
c. Use a pruning saw on old canes
i. They cut when you pull, not when you push
ii. They make a clean cut, flat cut
3. Keep all your equipment VERY Sharp
a. Titanium sharpeners are small but really do a great job
b. Diamond-encrusted sharpeners come in various sharpening strengths
c. Re-sharpen your blades after twenty or so cuts
d. The sharper the blade, the less energy it takes, and the cleaner the cut will be
4. Wear loose, old clothing
a. Old rose canes at this time of year are sharp and unforgiving
b. Usually roses have hooked thorns
i. Push into a snag and jiggle yourself free
ii. Don’t pull away from a snag
5. Wear heavy leather gloves with forearm protection
a. Cowhide is the strongest
b. Deerskin or goatskin is most flexible
c. Watch out for prickles that stick you through a seam
Remember the following things to do while pruning.
1. Make all cuts at a 45° angle
a. Angled cuts allow water droplets to roll off
b. Flat or horizontal cuts could let water sit on the cut and cause die-back
c. If the cut tears the lower part of the cane, cut it again until it’s a clean slice
d. If you see a brown spot in the center or side of the cut, cut it again until you hit greenwood
e. A cane with a hollow top might contain a leaf-borer insect so keep cutting down until you hit greenwood
f. If cane canker or die back is apparent on the bushes being pruned, swirl your pruning blade in Lysol or bleach before you move to the next bush
g. Clean cuts to rose canes seal themselves in a few minutes. No need to treat them.
2. Get rid of dead wood
a. Do this all season long
b. Cut dead wood into manageable pieces to protect the live wood growing alongside it
3. Get rid of canes growing through the center of the bush
a. Opening up the center of the plant is the most important goal of pruning.
b. Remove all thin canes growing lower down
i. They catch falling dead leaves and petals and clog air circulation
ii. They never produce quality blooms – the ultimate goal
4. Get rid of misshapen, diseased, or injured canes
a. Remove canes that have rubbed together and scarred each other
b. Remove canes that broke during the year and have not healed themselves
c. Remove canes that contain more than two or three instances of cane-on-cane
5. Reduce the overall size of the bush by a third to a half
a. This helps you move about the garden
b. This allows more sunlight to fall on the bud union, which will produce more canes
6. Remove all leaves from the canes
a. Pluck the bush free of all leaves, flowers, and hips from 2023
i. Helps you get a better view of the bush while pruning it
ii. Removes any fungal spores and insect eggs.
7. Rake up all the trimmings from below the pruned bush
a. Many insect eggs and larvae are residing in the mulch
i. Especially important if you have had infestations of rose curculio, cucumber beetle, whitefly, and thrips
ii. Fresh mulch will warm the ground in winter and allow microbes to break down organic material
b. Throw all trimmings from roses in the trash
i. Most home compost piles aren’t hot enough to kill fungal spores
ii. Best to get the scraps out of your garden entirely
8. Spray your pruned garden with winter dormant oil
a. Only necessary if you have had severe insect infestations
b. Usually will increase protection, but it isn’t necessary
9. No need to feed your roses until new growth appears in February
a. It counters the effort to get the bush to rest
b. Low sunlight levels will cause weak growth
c. Wet weather will rinse away the soluble forms of nitrogen and potassium
Master Rosarians Brenda Wood and Janey Leonardich prune the rose at Mission San Antonio.
Common Fungal Diseases of Roses
by Joe Truskot, Master Rosarian
The following four common fungal diseases are evident in most rose gardens during the year. A great deal of progress has been made my today's rose hybridization programs. Many new introductions are particularly resistant to one or all of them. The key word is resistent. So when the conditions are at a maximum danger level, the rose's inbred resistance can falter. These fungi are all airborne, so even if your roses are treated with chemical sprays purported to combat these ailments, your spraying regime just can't compete with nature's eternal breeze.
Black spot: Diplocarpon rosae
If we experience wet conditions, high humidity with temperatures in the 60 to 80 degree range; then we see a dry, warm, sunny period; then we witness a return of wet weather; we will most likely see blackspot on our rose leaves. The spores are airborne. They land on wet leaves especially on the underside where it stays wet longer. They take hold, grow, and develop fruiting components which ripen in the heat. The spores burst out and use the next breeze to move about, often aided by water droplets.
If there is insufficient air moving about the bush, its leaves will stay wet too long. If the roses are planted too closely together and/or the center of the bush isn't opened up enough to allow air to move about freely, you will get blackspot. All plants give off oxygen which provides further fuel for the fungus to multiply in a confined spot. Poor sanitation is also a culprit as fungal spores rest over winter on dead leaves just waiting for the right conditions described above. Once you see the spots, the leaf is a goner.
You should be able to walk entirely around each rose bush in your garden to give it optimal air circulation. The best spots for planting roses are the east and south facing locations. The north and west sides are likely to stay wet longer. Roses love water and a good soaking with a hose helps remove wind blown dust, but they need to be dry by the end of the afternoon.
Although many roses are described as being black spot resistant, they aren't totally immune. Many of the old garden and species roses are, in fact, black spot free, but most hybrid teas and floribundas are susceptible -- some more so than others.
Several commercial sprays are toted to kill it and that might be true but don't waste your money. The best cure for the affliction is good cultivation practices.
Powdery Mildew: Several related fungi cause it
Many roses are susceptible to powdery mildews. This affliction looks like a white powder growing on the surface of the rose leaves. It often wrinkles new leaves without much of a sign of white. Specific powdery mildews affect different families of plants: cucumbers, melons, squash get one variety; roses get another; grapes still another; onions and artichokes yet another.
Powdery mildew thrives in moderate temperatures with fluctuating humidity. Typically, warm dry afternoons and then cool, wet, foggy nights, are prime conditions for it. And yes, that's our summertime here on California's Pacific coast -- a perfect environment for it. Many rose cultivars do have a higher resistance to the condition. Many old garden roses and species are immune, many suffer terminally. Do your research. If the rose is described as "performs well in warm summer nights" that means it will mildew like crazy here.
Best home remedy is a repeated application of a whole milk solution. Scientists have proven its effectiveness as whey has a protein that inhibits its growth. Other treatments include sulfur dusting or sprays containing sulfur and various oils.
Or just wait out the conditions knowing that the warm October sun will end its scourge.
Rust: Several related fungi cause it
Specific rusts affect different families of plants. The life cycle of rusts is complex and involves primary hosts and secondary hosts. Rust invades the leaf structure and causes the plant to divert its nutrients from the leaves to the rust. It only affects living plants.
Rust thrives in moderate temperatures and moist climates. The spores will winter over on the underside of afflicted leaves. Many newer cultivars have a higher resistance. Many of the older hybrid teas and floribundas suffer from it. They are commonly referred to as 'rust magnets.' One of the purest white roses ever the Hybrid Perpetual Frau Karl Drushki introduced in 1901 but this beautiful lady quickly rusts in coastal fog.
Rust is one of the most studied families of airborne fungus in the world as its members can cause severe damage to agriculture affecting cereals, beans, and many other plants. Yields are severely reduced and the products often unsellable.
Prevention includes spraying oils on the leaves as this inhibits the spores from settling on the leaf underside. Good sanitation and removal of all affected leaves can reduce its spread in a home garden. Sulfur dusts also can slow fungi down. Best advice is know your roses and don't grow any roses that rust.
Botrytis cinerea: just plain rot
Botrytis cinerea affects all plants, none are resistant when the conditions are right. Botrytis grows on both living and dead plant tissue. It may first appear as pink spots on light-colored flower petals, some call them "water spots." It attacks rose buds in extemely wet weather causing the outermost petals to rot and stick tightly together preventing the bloom to open. This causes entire bud to "ball." This often happens in extended rainy periods, especially in early spring or late autumn. Flowers with many petals suffer the most. Because its pouring rain out and gardeners aren't out in it, entire buses of roses can be left to rot. Botrytis will continue to grow causing a gray mass. These should be removed as quickly as possible as they are botrytis spore factories.
Rotting occurs on a wide range of soft fruits such as strawberries, grapes, apples, and tomatoes. This fungus needs oxygen to thrive as well as continuous moisture which is why much fruit is kept in oxygen-free warehouses..
It's not all doom and gloom. Botrytis is one of nature’s best techniques to turn dead organic matter into humus in as short a period as possible.
Keep flowers and fruits open to air circulation, avoid overhead watering. One rotten apple does spoils the bunch.
Reprint possible with acknowledgement.
by Joe Truskot, Master Rosarian
The following four common fungal diseases are evident in most rose gardens during the year. A great deal of progress has been made my today's rose hybridization programs. Many new introductions are particularly resistant to one or all of them. The key word is resistent. So when the conditions are at a maximum danger level, the rose's inbred resistance can falter. These fungi are all airborne, so even if your roses are treated with chemical sprays purported to combat these ailments, your spraying regime just can't compete with nature's eternal breeze.
Black spot: Diplocarpon rosae
If we experience wet conditions, high humidity with temperatures in the 60 to 80 degree range; then we see a dry, warm, sunny period; then we witness a return of wet weather; we will most likely see blackspot on our rose leaves. The spores are airborne. They land on wet leaves especially on the underside where it stays wet longer. They take hold, grow, and develop fruiting components which ripen in the heat. The spores burst out and use the next breeze to move about, often aided by water droplets.
If there is insufficient air moving about the bush, its leaves will stay wet too long. If the roses are planted too closely together and/or the center of the bush isn't opened up enough to allow air to move about freely, you will get blackspot. All plants give off oxygen which provides further fuel for the fungus to multiply in a confined spot. Poor sanitation is also a culprit as fungal spores rest over winter on dead leaves just waiting for the right conditions described above. Once you see the spots, the leaf is a goner.
You should be able to walk entirely around each rose bush in your garden to give it optimal air circulation. The best spots for planting roses are the east and south facing locations. The north and west sides are likely to stay wet longer. Roses love water and a good soaking with a hose helps remove wind blown dust, but they need to be dry by the end of the afternoon.
Although many roses are described as being black spot resistant, they aren't totally immune. Many of the old garden and species roses are, in fact, black spot free, but most hybrid teas and floribundas are susceptible -- some more so than others.
Several commercial sprays are toted to kill it and that might be true but don't waste your money. The best cure for the affliction is good cultivation practices.
Powdery Mildew: Several related fungi cause it
Many roses are susceptible to powdery mildews. This affliction looks like a white powder growing on the surface of the rose leaves. It often wrinkles new leaves without much of a sign of white. Specific powdery mildews affect different families of plants: cucumbers, melons, squash get one variety; roses get another; grapes still another; onions and artichokes yet another.
Powdery mildew thrives in moderate temperatures with fluctuating humidity. Typically, warm dry afternoons and then cool, wet, foggy nights, are prime conditions for it. And yes, that's our summertime here on California's Pacific coast -- a perfect environment for it. Many rose cultivars do have a higher resistance to the condition. Many old garden roses and species are immune, many suffer terminally. Do your research. If the rose is described as "performs well in warm summer nights" that means it will mildew like crazy here.
Best home remedy is a repeated application of a whole milk solution. Scientists have proven its effectiveness as whey has a protein that inhibits its growth. Other treatments include sulfur dusting or sprays containing sulfur and various oils.
Or just wait out the conditions knowing that the warm October sun will end its scourge.
Rust: Several related fungi cause it
Specific rusts affect different families of plants. The life cycle of rusts is complex and involves primary hosts and secondary hosts. Rust invades the leaf structure and causes the plant to divert its nutrients from the leaves to the rust. It only affects living plants.
Rust thrives in moderate temperatures and moist climates. The spores will winter over on the underside of afflicted leaves. Many newer cultivars have a higher resistance. Many of the older hybrid teas and floribundas suffer from it. They are commonly referred to as 'rust magnets.' One of the purest white roses ever the Hybrid Perpetual Frau Karl Drushki introduced in 1901 but this beautiful lady quickly rusts in coastal fog.
Rust is one of the most studied families of airborne fungus in the world as its members can cause severe damage to agriculture affecting cereals, beans, and many other plants. Yields are severely reduced and the products often unsellable.
Prevention includes spraying oils on the leaves as this inhibits the spores from settling on the leaf underside. Good sanitation and removal of all affected leaves can reduce its spread in a home garden. Sulfur dusts also can slow fungi down. Best advice is know your roses and don't grow any roses that rust.
Botrytis cinerea: just plain rot
Botrytis cinerea affects all plants, none are resistant when the conditions are right. Botrytis grows on both living and dead plant tissue. It may first appear as pink spots on light-colored flower petals, some call them "water spots." It attacks rose buds in extemely wet weather causing the outermost petals to rot and stick tightly together preventing the bloom to open. This causes entire bud to "ball." This often happens in extended rainy periods, especially in early spring or late autumn. Flowers with many petals suffer the most. Because its pouring rain out and gardeners aren't out in it, entire buses of roses can be left to rot. Botrytis will continue to grow causing a gray mass. These should be removed as quickly as possible as they are botrytis spore factories.
Rotting occurs on a wide range of soft fruits such as strawberries, grapes, apples, and tomatoes. This fungus needs oxygen to thrive as well as continuous moisture which is why much fruit is kept in oxygen-free warehouses..
It's not all doom and gloom. Botrytis is one of nature’s best techniques to turn dead organic matter into humus in as short a period as possible.
Keep flowers and fruits open to air circulation, avoid overhead watering. One rotten apple does spoils the bunch.
Reprint possible with acknowledgement.
Rose judges Jolene Adams and Barbara Gordon examine entries as MBRS member Karl Dost clerks the show.
Rose Exhibiting for Beginners
American Rose Society, April 2019
So – the rose bug has bit you! You have learned about planting, pruning and spraying! Now you are ready to exhibit!
If possible, attend a rose show and visit the preparation room where you can watch the exhibitors at work before you exhibit yourself. Most exhibitors are usually pretty busy during this time, so be sensitive about asking questions. Take mental notes and ask them about their exhibiting techniques after their entries are placed into the show. Volunteer to clerk (no previous experience required) in order to learn how rose shows are set up and how the judges work. Obtain a copy of the ARS Guidelines for Judging Roses and read it.
For your first show, choose one fairly close to home and one that offers some Novice Classes. You are not limited to novice status, but you might feel more comfortable starting there. Obtain a copy of the show schedule and read it. Decide which classes you might like to enter. Limit your number of entries to allow yourself enough time to give each rose your attention. You can take more than one rose to the show per class, and at the last minute, decide which one to enter.
ONE MONTH BEFORE THE SHOW
Start watching your roses for potential exhibition specimens. If you plan to exhibit a single bloom on a stem, you will need a strong, straight stem that has been disbudded as it developed. Disbudding is the process of removing all side buds that form between the stem and the axil of the leaf. This allows all the energy to go to the terminal bud. Eventually you might want to stake the cane with a bamboo stick and some twist ties. Be sure to keep the tip of the stake just under the bloom. Staking protects the cane from snapping off in the wind and prevents leaf tearing on thorns from nearby canes.
If you plan to show a floribunda spray, you will want to remove the center (largest) bud at the point of emergence from the stem. This allows the side buds to develop and fill in the hole where that first bloom would have been if allowed to develop. That center bloom would have developed first and been finished by the time the rest of the spray was in exhibition form. Removing it at that time would have left the hole.
Water your bushes regularly and keep up your spraying schedule! Prepare a grooming kit which you will use the day of the show. Get a small plastic or metal case and gather together the following items:
ONE WEEK BEFORE THE SHOW
Watch the blooms that are starting to open and have show potential. Protect them from night dew by covering with a plastic baggy and twist tie gently below the bloom. This should be done in the evening and removed before the sun shines on the bloom and heats the air inside the bag.
2-3 DAYS BEFORE THE SHOW
When do you cut the rose? The timing varies depending on the variety of the rose, the number of petals, the temperature and general weather conditions and your ability to store the cut roses.
Roses should be cut 1/4 – 1/3 open which allows them time to open more on the morning of the show. Cut them early in the morning if possible or late in the evening. Cut the stem a little longer than the 7:1 ratio (the stem should be 7 times longer than the height of the bloom) to allow for recutting later.
Cut the stem at an angle with sharp, clean pruners and immediately take it to your preparation area. A laundry tub works great! Have some tall, white plastic buckets available which you can usually obtain from a bakery or a sandwich shop. In one bucket put a flower preservative mixture, such as Floralife®, and cold water up to 3-4 inches. Fill another bucket to the top with tepid water. Bring the roses in from the garden, one or two at a time to prevent them from snagging one another. Submerge the rose stem in the full bucket, recut the stem and then lower it into the water so the water comes up just below the bloom. Allow the roses to rest in the tepid water and drink their fill, but watch the blossoms carefully. If you see a bloom start to open, place it in the cold water that contains the preservative immediately. After an hour or two, move any remaining roses to the cool water bucket and put in a cool dark place. If you place your rose bucket in a refrigerator, be sure to put a baggy on the blooms so they do not lose moisture from the petals. If you cut the night before the show, you probably will not need to refrigerate.
American Rose Society, April 2019
So – the rose bug has bit you! You have learned about planting, pruning and spraying! Now you are ready to exhibit!
If possible, attend a rose show and visit the preparation room where you can watch the exhibitors at work before you exhibit yourself. Most exhibitors are usually pretty busy during this time, so be sensitive about asking questions. Take mental notes and ask them about their exhibiting techniques after their entries are placed into the show. Volunteer to clerk (no previous experience required) in order to learn how rose shows are set up and how the judges work. Obtain a copy of the ARS Guidelines for Judging Roses and read it.
For your first show, choose one fairly close to home and one that offers some Novice Classes. You are not limited to novice status, but you might feel more comfortable starting there. Obtain a copy of the show schedule and read it. Decide which classes you might like to enter. Limit your number of entries to allow yourself enough time to give each rose your attention. You can take more than one rose to the show per class, and at the last minute, decide which one to enter.
ONE MONTH BEFORE THE SHOW
Start watching your roses for potential exhibition specimens. If you plan to exhibit a single bloom on a stem, you will need a strong, straight stem that has been disbudded as it developed. Disbudding is the process of removing all side buds that form between the stem and the axil of the leaf. This allows all the energy to go to the terminal bud. Eventually you might want to stake the cane with a bamboo stick and some twist ties. Be sure to keep the tip of the stake just under the bloom. Staking protects the cane from snapping off in the wind and prevents leaf tearing on thorns from nearby canes.
If you plan to show a floribunda spray, you will want to remove the center (largest) bud at the point of emergence from the stem. This allows the side buds to develop and fill in the hole where that first bloom would have been if allowed to develop. That center bloom would have developed first and been finished by the time the rest of the spray was in exhibition form. Removing it at that time would have left the hole.
Water your bushes regularly and keep up your spraying schedule! Prepare a grooming kit which you will use the day of the show. Get a small plastic or metal case and gather together the following items:
- Soft clean cloths (hotel shoe shine cloths are great)
- A package of Q-tips
- Tweezers
- Small sharp scissors
- Small camel-hair brush
- Several sheets of aluminum foil and/or plastic wrap
- Return address labels
- An ARS Handbook for Selecting Roses and ARS Exhibition Names
- If possible, some exhibiting tags with rubber bands that you picked up at a previous show or local society meeting
ONE WEEK BEFORE THE SHOW
Watch the blooms that are starting to open and have show potential. Protect them from night dew by covering with a plastic baggy and twist tie gently below the bloom. This should be done in the evening and removed before the sun shines on the bloom and heats the air inside the bag.
2-3 DAYS BEFORE THE SHOW
When do you cut the rose? The timing varies depending on the variety of the rose, the number of petals, the temperature and general weather conditions and your ability to store the cut roses.
Roses should be cut 1/4 – 1/3 open which allows them time to open more on the morning of the show. Cut them early in the morning if possible or late in the evening. Cut the stem a little longer than the 7:1 ratio (the stem should be 7 times longer than the height of the bloom) to allow for recutting later.
Cut the stem at an angle with sharp, clean pruners and immediately take it to your preparation area. A laundry tub works great! Have some tall, white plastic buckets available which you can usually obtain from a bakery or a sandwich shop. In one bucket put a flower preservative mixture, such as Floralife®, and cold water up to 3-4 inches. Fill another bucket to the top with tepid water. Bring the roses in from the garden, one or two at a time to prevent them from snagging one another. Submerge the rose stem in the full bucket, recut the stem and then lower it into the water so the water comes up just below the bloom. Allow the roses to rest in the tepid water and drink their fill, but watch the blossoms carefully. If you see a bloom start to open, place it in the cold water that contains the preservative immediately. After an hour or two, move any remaining roses to the cool water bucket and put in a cool dark place. If you place your rose bucket in a refrigerator, be sure to put a baggy on the blooms so they do not lose moisture from the petals. If you cut the night before the show, you probably will not need to refrigerate.
Rose show judge Martine LaBelle
THE MORNING OF THE SHOW
Rise early. Remove the roses from the refrigerator and take one last walk through the garden for another possible entry. Pack up your roses and your grooming box and head for the show. Plan to arrive early so you can get table space and your favorite doughnut! Register, if required, and gather enough vases for your roses. If you plan to enter a rose in a bowl (you do not need a good stem for this), check ahead of time to see if you need to bring your own bowl or use one supplied by the show committee.
Place each rose in a bud vase and evaluate the bloom stage. If the bloom is too tight, carefully insert Q-tips between the petals to encourage opening. Take note of the temperature in the room and check if any sunlight is shining in on your roses. Warmth will hasten the opening. Sometimes, the air conditioning is so low, you have to remove the rose to another location to warm it up. I once put a rose in my car which was parked in the sun. Guess who showed an open bloom? You have to use your own judgment. A lot of knowing what to do comes with trial and error and experience.
Support each leaf from behind with your fingers, and polish the surface with a soft cloth. During this time, watch your blooms for any adjustments they might need. Carefully remove any guard petals (those small petals on the very outside that protected the bud) that have color faults or are smaller than the outer ring of petals. If an outer petal is hanging low, you can raise it by carefully by lifting it so it rests on the petals next to it. Use your brush to remove any fine debris from the petals and use the scissors to trim any brown or torn edges from the petals or leaves. Check the proportion of the bloom to the stem. You can adjust this somewhat by pushing the stem deeper into the vase or wedging it with rolled up plastic wrap or foil. Be sure the stem is in the water and the wedging material is not showing above the top of the vase.
Fill out the exhibitors’ entry tags, if you haven’t already done so. Use your ARS Handbook to check rose names and the proper spellings. Use your address labels to save writing all that information on each tag. Attach your entry tags to the vase and make one final check of the overall appearance. Set the vase on the floor and look down on the entire entry. If you need to adjust or trim, this is your last chance. Place your entries on the exhibition table, one at a time if possible. Immediately clean up your work space. Return any unused vases and wipe up any water. Secure your personal belongings and go find some fellow rosarians to enjoy a hearty breakfast and rose talk!
Good luck!
Text reprinted from the American Rose Society website. Photos from past MBRS Rose Shows.
Blue Girl, hybrid tea, 1964 -Kordes
My Blue Girl Story
by Joe Truskot, Master Rosarian
My first encounter with Blue Girl was during a photo shoot for a local news magazine. She stood out among a crowd all vying for the prized cover shot. She was tall. She was different. She seemed to dance in the gentle afternoon wind, and that captured my attention. Every click that camera made of her in the warm sun produced an eye-popping image. As I approached her, I was smitten. Her form was voluptuous, her color soft yet intense. She was fragile but had great substance. Her fragrance was intoxicating. I had to have her. Blue Girl needed to be mine.
Serendipitously, Blue Girl showed up on the Rose Society raffle table, and I won her. She lived in that same pot for the rest of that year as I prepared a weed-infested corner of my yard for her. The ridding of weeds from that plot took much longer than I thought … nearly three years. Blue Girl prospered during the first two seasons in the pot, but when I tried to move her, I realized she was doing well because her roots had come through the drain hole and found some delicious soil. I moved the pot, cut off the exposed root, and her health took a plunge.
Finally, the ground was ready for a new resident. The hole was dug wide and deep with a couple of dried rack-of-lamb bones tossed into the bottom. As I lifted Blue Girl out of the pot, my hand slipped, and the entire rose fell four feet to the ground, breaking off half the bush. I did a nice, clean prune and planted the remainder in the prepared soil. She made it through the rest of that season no worse for the trauma.
Spring came, and the weeds were back. When I went to prune her a little bit, I realized that my mow-blow-and-go team had gotten there first and had weed-wacked the side of her strongest cane. Roses don’t heal from those wounds. So I cut the cane back to below the shreds of the scraped side – three inches protruding from the soil, now matching the stub I cut last fall when I dropped the plant.
I cleared more grass and weeds so the weed wacker would never get close again, watered, gave them some alfalfa, and let the sun shine on them. A week later, two canes had popped out, and a future for Blue Girl was assured.
My house is seventy years old, and although I’ve made many improvements over the years, the time was past due to fix the rotten and leaking window frames. The actual windows were replaced with Milgard ones twenty years ago, but what they were set into was now rotten and had to be replaced. After several interested contractors never returned with quotes, fortune finally shone in my favor. I engaged the best team of repairers I’ve ever experienced. These guys knew what to do and how to do it quickly and within just two days. I was so pleased to have this dangerous maintenance chore completed so beautifully.
When I went to admire one of the three fixed windows, I looked down and realized that was where Blue Girl was. Those two new canes coming from the stubs of what was once a beautiful rose bush looked dried out and forlorn. Like all rose enthusiasts, I knew it was a downside of growing roses. Sometimes the bushes you love just don’t make it. I began to think of other roses I might now put in that ideal spot. Many new varieties exist and are often better than those from the past. I was set on investigating something new.
After a couple of weeks and no sign of life up top from Blue Girl, I explored underground. It looked like something was happening beneath the soil line. Could that be a basal break? Sure enough, after being discarded, abandoned, broken, slashed, stepped on, and mourned over, Blue Girl was returning to life.
Here’s more information. Blue Girl was introduced in 1964 by the famous German hybridizing family, Kordes. Blue Girl is a deep lavender, hybrid tea rose released in the United States under that semi-prurient name in 1964, but introduced in Germany as Kölner Karnival (Cologne Carnival). Curiously, Carnival is a season celebrated in the City of Cologne and much of the Rhineland from November 11 up to Shrove Tuesday, the day before Ash Wednesday, with a break for Advent, Christmas, New Year's Day, and the Epiphany. The largest celebration takes place on Rosenmateg or Rose Monday, the day before Mardi Gras. Giving Blue Girl the name Cologne Carnival in Germany by the top rose hybridizers in Germany indicates the Kordes family thought it a superior creation.
In the American Rose Society’s 2021 Handbook for Selecting Roses, Blue Girl is given the non-distinguished rating of 6.8. It appears to have been out of favor for a period and has regained some popularity. It isn’t listed in the 2014 Handbook at all.
The lesson of this story is that as long as you have a healthy root system and a quality graft sitting in a well-watered, well-drained soil, a rose bush has remarkable resilience. As it turned out in that photo shoot, which occurred years ago now, my enthusiasm for Blue Girl’s photogenic qualities didn’t win over the editor, and some other picture ended up being the Cover Girl. JT
Added: June 2025
by Joe Truskot, Master Rosarian
My first encounter with Blue Girl was during a photo shoot for a local news magazine. She stood out among a crowd all vying for the prized cover shot. She was tall. She was different. She seemed to dance in the gentle afternoon wind, and that captured my attention. Every click that camera made of her in the warm sun produced an eye-popping image. As I approached her, I was smitten. Her form was voluptuous, her color soft yet intense. She was fragile but had great substance. Her fragrance was intoxicating. I had to have her. Blue Girl needed to be mine.
Serendipitously, Blue Girl showed up on the Rose Society raffle table, and I won her. She lived in that same pot for the rest of that year as I prepared a weed-infested corner of my yard for her. The ridding of weeds from that plot took much longer than I thought … nearly three years. Blue Girl prospered during the first two seasons in the pot, but when I tried to move her, I realized she was doing well because her roots had come through the drain hole and found some delicious soil. I moved the pot, cut off the exposed root, and her health took a plunge.
Finally, the ground was ready for a new resident. The hole was dug wide and deep with a couple of dried rack-of-lamb bones tossed into the bottom. As I lifted Blue Girl out of the pot, my hand slipped, and the entire rose fell four feet to the ground, breaking off half the bush. I did a nice, clean prune and planted the remainder in the prepared soil. She made it through the rest of that season no worse for the trauma.
Spring came, and the weeds were back. When I went to prune her a little bit, I realized that my mow-blow-and-go team had gotten there first and had weed-wacked the side of her strongest cane. Roses don’t heal from those wounds. So I cut the cane back to below the shreds of the scraped side – three inches protruding from the soil, now matching the stub I cut last fall when I dropped the plant.
I cleared more grass and weeds so the weed wacker would never get close again, watered, gave them some alfalfa, and let the sun shine on them. A week later, two canes had popped out, and a future for Blue Girl was assured.
My house is seventy years old, and although I’ve made many improvements over the years, the time was past due to fix the rotten and leaking window frames. The actual windows were replaced with Milgard ones twenty years ago, but what they were set into was now rotten and had to be replaced. After several interested contractors never returned with quotes, fortune finally shone in my favor. I engaged the best team of repairers I’ve ever experienced. These guys knew what to do and how to do it quickly and within just two days. I was so pleased to have this dangerous maintenance chore completed so beautifully.
When I went to admire one of the three fixed windows, I looked down and realized that was where Blue Girl was. Those two new canes coming from the stubs of what was once a beautiful rose bush looked dried out and forlorn. Like all rose enthusiasts, I knew it was a downside of growing roses. Sometimes the bushes you love just don’t make it. I began to think of other roses I might now put in that ideal spot. Many new varieties exist and are often better than those from the past. I was set on investigating something new.
After a couple of weeks and no sign of life up top from Blue Girl, I explored underground. It looked like something was happening beneath the soil line. Could that be a basal break? Sure enough, after being discarded, abandoned, broken, slashed, stepped on, and mourned over, Blue Girl was returning to life.
Here’s more information. Blue Girl was introduced in 1964 by the famous German hybridizing family, Kordes. Blue Girl is a deep lavender, hybrid tea rose released in the United States under that semi-prurient name in 1964, but introduced in Germany as Kölner Karnival (Cologne Carnival). Curiously, Carnival is a season celebrated in the City of Cologne and much of the Rhineland from November 11 up to Shrove Tuesday, the day before Ash Wednesday, with a break for Advent, Christmas, New Year's Day, and the Epiphany. The largest celebration takes place on Rosenmateg or Rose Monday, the day before Mardi Gras. Giving Blue Girl the name Cologne Carnival in Germany by the top rose hybridizers in Germany indicates the Kordes family thought it a superior creation.
In the American Rose Society’s 2021 Handbook for Selecting Roses, Blue Girl is given the non-distinguished rating of 6.8. It appears to have been out of favor for a period and has regained some popularity. It isn’t listed in the 2014 Handbook at all.
The lesson of this story is that as long as you have a healthy root system and a quality graft sitting in a well-watered, well-drained soil, a rose bush has remarkable resilience. As it turned out in that photo shoot, which occurred years ago now, my enthusiasm for Blue Girl’s photogenic qualities didn’t win over the editor, and some other picture ended up being the Cover Girl. JT
Added: June 2025
Blue Girl rises from the soil.
Cécile Brünner: The Sweetheart of the Central Coast
By Joe Truskot, Master Rosarian
The number of names a plant acquires over time is a testament to its popularity, vigor, and usefulness. Mademoiselle Cécile Brünner [correctly pronounced: sey-SEAL BRUH-nay, but commonly referred to as: SEE-sul BROO-ner] is one such rose. You can find it at nearly all good nurseries listed by one of the following names: Mlle. Cécile Brünner, Mme. Cécile Brünner, Maltese Rose, Mignon, or Sweetheart Rose. It’s also known as a “button hole” rose, based on one of its possible uses.
Two versions exist on the market. The one most frequently found is correctly labeled Climbing Cecile Brunner. It is a very vigorous climber that blooms in a great flush in April and sends out single blooms sporadically throughout the summer. The far superior version—and the one I got as a cutting from Otto Lund during the summer plant sale—is the bush version. I’ve put it in the ground about six weeks ago and it immediately set buds. It’s one of the world’s best-ever roses. The bush version is never without blooms.
Technically, it is an ever-blooming polyantha in its bush form and a more or less once-blooming polyantha in its climbing form. Both forms are incredibly well-suited to the climate of California’s Central Coast. In fact, I have found several old bushes that appear to have been planted when the various neighborhoods were built, from the 1890s to the 1940s. If pruned correctly, the bush form will grow to the size and shape of an ornamental cherry tree! Don’t believe me? Drive by the ones planted near the end of Grove Street in South Salinas or along the cul-de-sac at the top of Cass Street in Monterey.
In its early stages of bloom, this delicate little rose (1"-1½" in diameter) has shell-pink blossoms shaped like tiny hybrid tea blooms. Each blossom has about 30 tiny petals. The buds are darker pink, and the flowers, as they open in neatly arranged flat blooms, fade to light pink. You usually find the blossoms on a spray of up to twenty or so individual flowers. Each flower comes at the end of a disproportionately long, thin stem. At high rose tide (late April or early May), a bush will appear almost solid pink on top. It does have a mild true rose fragrance.
The bush form will take time to get established. It might not do much for two or three seasons, but then suddenly it will come alive. The climbing sport is a weed, a rose for people who think they can’t grow roses. Putting aside its one-time bloom, the climbing form of Cécile Brünner is one of the best large-sized roses for landscape gardening. It’s incredibly fast-growing, highly disease-resistant, leafy from top to bottom if grown in full sun, happy in mottled shade, and tolerant of poor soil. When not in bloom, the climbing plant provides a handsome, leafy backdrop for continuously flowering roses planted in front. It will cover a white, lattice-work arbor in no time flat. If given the right support, it will quickly become a living hedge. I have also seen it used as an effective groundcover, growing down a steep slope where nothing else will grow. This latter effect is stunning when the plant is in full bloom.
Mademoiselle Cécile Brünner was bred in France in 1881 by a woman! Her name? Madame Jean-Claude Ducher (Veuve Ducher). [pronounced doo-SHAY] She was often referred to as The Widow Ducher. Her family owned a thriving plant nursery in Lyon. The namesake of the rose was the daughter of Ulrich Brünner, a rose grower based in Lausanne, Switzerland, and a close friend of the family. (Ulrich Brünner Fils is a dark pink Hybrid Perpetual also introduced in 1881. This rose, which foreshadowed the shape of hybrid teas to come, was bred by Antoine Levet, another rose grower from Lyon. Levet also developed Paul Neyron and Perle des Jardins–two old garden roses still commonly grown.)
Upon her daughter Marie’s marriage to Joseph Pernet, Mme. Jean-Claude Ducher became the mother-in-law of a man destined to be one of the world’s most famous and most important rose hybridizers. Joseph took the name “Pernet-Ducher” to solidify the union of the two prominent horticultural families, and the Widow Ducher drew back from her own hybridizing.
Joseph Pernet was born in Lyon in November of 1859, himself the son of Jean Pernet, a rose grower particularly interested in novelty flowers. After watching a carnation grower in a neighboring nursery place paper caps over his pollinated flowers, Joseph began utilizing the same technique to fend off insects who would inadvertently interfere with his rose hybridizing. This practice continues to this day. But Joseph’s great horticultural challenge, and indeed his life mission, was to create a remontant yellow hybrid tea rose. His wish was funded, in part, by the success of Mlle. Cécile Brünner.
Monsieur Pernet-Ducher collected pollen from Rosa foetida, the Persian yellow species rose, and began his breeding program. In 1893, he found a chance seedling and named it Soleil d’or. It was called a hybrid foetida and put on the market in 1901. Along with its attractive, and at that time exotic, yellow color, it brought rosa foetida’s unattractive susceptibility to blackspot, rust, and mildew. Then in 1910, he achieved another success with Rayon d’or, the first yellow hybrid tea rose and the first in a line of roses which came to be known as Pernetianas.
Joseph and Marie Pernet-Ducher raised two sons, Claudius and Georges, and prepared them to take over the business. Tragically, they were both killed early in World War I. Their parents honored them by attaching their names to two important roses, Souvenir de Claudius Pernet and Souvenir de Georges Pernet. Both are still grown. The former, in fact, figures prominently in the ancestry of Peace, Maria Callas, and many, many other great roses. Pernet-Ducher triumphed by producing roses in the hitherto nonexistent colors of salmon, flame, and apricot. Pernet-Ducher, called the Wizard of Lyon by many, arranged for Jean Gaujard to take over the business in 1924. He died in November 1928.
After Cécile Brünner was introduced, it became immensely popular, especially in areas with a Mediterranean climate. The rose’s parents are listed as a multiflora seedling, and Mme. de Tartas, a popular light pink, fragrant tea rose developed in France in 1859 by H. B. Bernède. There may be some question as to the accuracy of this parentage. Nevertheless, Cécile Brünner clearly descends from multiflora and tea roses, which were relatively close to the original China roses brought to Europe only decades before. Cécile Brünner’s repeat flowering habit comes from its Chinese heritage, as does its tenderness. Cécile Brünner is not a rose for colder climates. However, several people have reported that in the right location (sunny and sheltered) and with ample mulch. It can be grown as far north as parts of Vermont and Ohio.
A white sport of Cécile Brünner presented itself in 1909. A rose called Perle d’or (1884) was given the name yellow Cécile Brünner, largely as a marketing ploy. The blossoms don’t resemble their namesake at all. They are quite a different shape and somewhat larger. They aren’t yellow either, but rather a pearly peach. The shrub does somewhat resemble Cécile Brünner.
Spray Cécile Brünner came from the Howard Rose Company of Great Britain in 1941. This is a more floriferous version of the original climbing sport introduced by the American nurseryman Hosp in 1894. Some catalogues list this rose erroneously, as Bloomfield Abundance, a now thought-to-be-extinct rose which had Cécile Brünner’s shape and habit but with extraordinarily long sepals. Cécile Brünner’s sepals are quite short. Also capitalizing on its popularity, a red Cécile Brünner was developed in the United States by Krebs in 1942.
Improved Cécile Brünner arrived in 1948. It was developed for the florist trade and produces the pink “sweetheart” roses used in corsages. It has completely different parentage [(Dainty Bess ) x (Rosa gigantea)] and is also sold under the name Rosy Morn as a floribunda. In addition, there is Baby Cécile Brünner, a 1981 Ralph Moore miniature with Cl. Cécile Brünner crossed with Fairy Princess (1955), producing the characteristic blossoms on a 12-18" bush.
A few found roses have appeared, which look a lot like Cécile Brünner. I suspect their resemblance is due to sustained undernourishment. The popularity and longevity of Cécile Brünner, however, do increase the likelihood that the plant has produced undocumented sports.
Other than a great lapel decoration and a good cut flower, a partially opened Cécile Brünner bud will hold both its color and shape if dried quickly. I like to place a few blooms on top of my dashboard and park the car in full sun. Not only does it leave its attractive scent in the car, but I have a terrific miniature dried rose ready to decorate anything. JT
Added: December 9, 2025
By Joe Truskot, Master Rosarian
The number of names a plant acquires over time is a testament to its popularity, vigor, and usefulness. Mademoiselle Cécile Brünner [correctly pronounced: sey-SEAL BRUH-nay, but commonly referred to as: SEE-sul BROO-ner] is one such rose. You can find it at nearly all good nurseries listed by one of the following names: Mlle. Cécile Brünner, Mme. Cécile Brünner, Maltese Rose, Mignon, or Sweetheart Rose. It’s also known as a “button hole” rose, based on one of its possible uses.
Two versions exist on the market. The one most frequently found is correctly labeled Climbing Cecile Brunner. It is a very vigorous climber that blooms in a great flush in April and sends out single blooms sporadically throughout the summer. The far superior version—and the one I got as a cutting from Otto Lund during the summer plant sale—is the bush version. I’ve put it in the ground about six weeks ago and it immediately set buds. It’s one of the world’s best-ever roses. The bush version is never without blooms.
Technically, it is an ever-blooming polyantha in its bush form and a more or less once-blooming polyantha in its climbing form. Both forms are incredibly well-suited to the climate of California’s Central Coast. In fact, I have found several old bushes that appear to have been planted when the various neighborhoods were built, from the 1890s to the 1940s. If pruned correctly, the bush form will grow to the size and shape of an ornamental cherry tree! Don’t believe me? Drive by the ones planted near the end of Grove Street in South Salinas or along the cul-de-sac at the top of Cass Street in Monterey.
In its early stages of bloom, this delicate little rose (1"-1½" in diameter) has shell-pink blossoms shaped like tiny hybrid tea blooms. Each blossom has about 30 tiny petals. The buds are darker pink, and the flowers, as they open in neatly arranged flat blooms, fade to light pink. You usually find the blossoms on a spray of up to twenty or so individual flowers. Each flower comes at the end of a disproportionately long, thin stem. At high rose tide (late April or early May), a bush will appear almost solid pink on top. It does have a mild true rose fragrance.
The bush form will take time to get established. It might not do much for two or three seasons, but then suddenly it will come alive. The climbing sport is a weed, a rose for people who think they can’t grow roses. Putting aside its one-time bloom, the climbing form of Cécile Brünner is one of the best large-sized roses for landscape gardening. It’s incredibly fast-growing, highly disease-resistant, leafy from top to bottom if grown in full sun, happy in mottled shade, and tolerant of poor soil. When not in bloom, the climbing plant provides a handsome, leafy backdrop for continuously flowering roses planted in front. It will cover a white, lattice-work arbor in no time flat. If given the right support, it will quickly become a living hedge. I have also seen it used as an effective groundcover, growing down a steep slope where nothing else will grow. This latter effect is stunning when the plant is in full bloom.
Mademoiselle Cécile Brünner was bred in France in 1881 by a woman! Her name? Madame Jean-Claude Ducher (Veuve Ducher). [pronounced doo-SHAY] She was often referred to as The Widow Ducher. Her family owned a thriving plant nursery in Lyon. The namesake of the rose was the daughter of Ulrich Brünner, a rose grower based in Lausanne, Switzerland, and a close friend of the family. (Ulrich Brünner Fils is a dark pink Hybrid Perpetual also introduced in 1881. This rose, which foreshadowed the shape of hybrid teas to come, was bred by Antoine Levet, another rose grower from Lyon. Levet also developed Paul Neyron and Perle des Jardins–two old garden roses still commonly grown.)
Upon her daughter Marie’s marriage to Joseph Pernet, Mme. Jean-Claude Ducher became the mother-in-law of a man destined to be one of the world’s most famous and most important rose hybridizers. Joseph took the name “Pernet-Ducher” to solidify the union of the two prominent horticultural families, and the Widow Ducher drew back from her own hybridizing.
Joseph Pernet was born in Lyon in November of 1859, himself the son of Jean Pernet, a rose grower particularly interested in novelty flowers. After watching a carnation grower in a neighboring nursery place paper caps over his pollinated flowers, Joseph began utilizing the same technique to fend off insects who would inadvertently interfere with his rose hybridizing. This practice continues to this day. But Joseph’s great horticultural challenge, and indeed his life mission, was to create a remontant yellow hybrid tea rose. His wish was funded, in part, by the success of Mlle. Cécile Brünner.
Monsieur Pernet-Ducher collected pollen from Rosa foetida, the Persian yellow species rose, and began his breeding program. In 1893, he found a chance seedling and named it Soleil d’or. It was called a hybrid foetida and put on the market in 1901. Along with its attractive, and at that time exotic, yellow color, it brought rosa foetida’s unattractive susceptibility to blackspot, rust, and mildew. Then in 1910, he achieved another success with Rayon d’or, the first yellow hybrid tea rose and the first in a line of roses which came to be known as Pernetianas.
Joseph and Marie Pernet-Ducher raised two sons, Claudius and Georges, and prepared them to take over the business. Tragically, they were both killed early in World War I. Their parents honored them by attaching their names to two important roses, Souvenir de Claudius Pernet and Souvenir de Georges Pernet. Both are still grown. The former, in fact, figures prominently in the ancestry of Peace, Maria Callas, and many, many other great roses. Pernet-Ducher triumphed by producing roses in the hitherto nonexistent colors of salmon, flame, and apricot. Pernet-Ducher, called the Wizard of Lyon by many, arranged for Jean Gaujard to take over the business in 1924. He died in November 1928.
After Cécile Brünner was introduced, it became immensely popular, especially in areas with a Mediterranean climate. The rose’s parents are listed as a multiflora seedling, and Mme. de Tartas, a popular light pink, fragrant tea rose developed in France in 1859 by H. B. Bernède. There may be some question as to the accuracy of this parentage. Nevertheless, Cécile Brünner clearly descends from multiflora and tea roses, which were relatively close to the original China roses brought to Europe only decades before. Cécile Brünner’s repeat flowering habit comes from its Chinese heritage, as does its tenderness. Cécile Brünner is not a rose for colder climates. However, several people have reported that in the right location (sunny and sheltered) and with ample mulch. It can be grown as far north as parts of Vermont and Ohio.
A white sport of Cécile Brünner presented itself in 1909. A rose called Perle d’or (1884) was given the name yellow Cécile Brünner, largely as a marketing ploy. The blossoms don’t resemble their namesake at all. They are quite a different shape and somewhat larger. They aren’t yellow either, but rather a pearly peach. The shrub does somewhat resemble Cécile Brünner.
Spray Cécile Brünner came from the Howard Rose Company of Great Britain in 1941. This is a more floriferous version of the original climbing sport introduced by the American nurseryman Hosp in 1894. Some catalogues list this rose erroneously, as Bloomfield Abundance, a now thought-to-be-extinct rose which had Cécile Brünner’s shape and habit but with extraordinarily long sepals. Cécile Brünner’s sepals are quite short. Also capitalizing on its popularity, a red Cécile Brünner was developed in the United States by Krebs in 1942.
Improved Cécile Brünner arrived in 1948. It was developed for the florist trade and produces the pink “sweetheart” roses used in corsages. It has completely different parentage [(Dainty Bess ) x (Rosa gigantea)] and is also sold under the name Rosy Morn as a floribunda. In addition, there is Baby Cécile Brünner, a 1981 Ralph Moore miniature with Cl. Cécile Brünner crossed with Fairy Princess (1955), producing the characteristic blossoms on a 12-18" bush.
A few found roses have appeared, which look a lot like Cécile Brünner. I suspect their resemblance is due to sustained undernourishment. The popularity and longevity of Cécile Brünner, however, do increase the likelihood that the plant has produced undocumented sports.
Other than a great lapel decoration and a good cut flower, a partially opened Cécile Brünner bud will hold both its color and shape if dried quickly. I like to place a few blooms on top of my dashboard and park the car in full sun. Not only does it leave its attractive scent in the car, but I have a terrific miniature dried rose ready to decorate anything. JT
Added: December 9, 2025
