The Book of Roses

by Francis Parkman

The above are all old roses; for it is rarely that a cultivator of the present day will give himself the trouble to raise new varieties of any of the June roses, excepting always the Mosses, which can never be out of favor.

[Original]

Rosa Centifolia Muscosa.—We have spoken of the tendency of the Provence Rose to "sport." The most widely known and the most beautiful of the results arising from this tendency is the Moss Rose and its varieties; for that such is the true origin of this unique family, there can be very little doubt. There is, however, no record of the first appearance of the Moss Rose. The original type of the race—the Old Red Moss—was introduced into England as early as 1596. It came immediately from Holland, but seems not to have originated there: indeed, to this day, we have remained in doubt as to whence it drew its birth. Of the large number of Moss roses now on the lists of nursery-men, some owe their origin to sporting branches, others to seed. Of the plants arising from the seed of a Moss rose, not more than one in three will show the characteristic of the parent; that is, the "moss," the rest will be mere varieties of the Provence Rose. Sometimes a Moss rose will put forth a branch perfectly free from the mossy covering.

In cold, heavy soils, Moss roses are somewhat difficult of cultivation; but in a light, rich loam, and a sunny exposure, free from roots of growing trees, they thrive luxuriantly.

They all require high enrichment. All excepting the strongest growers should be closely pruned; and, in the Northern States, it is well to give them protection in winter by means of pine-boughs, or by laying them down like raspberries.

Here, as in other classes of the rose, the hybridist has been at work. By impregnating Moss roses with the pollen of some of the ever-blooming sorts, a group of Perpetual Mosses has been produced. These have, to a greater or less extent, the ever-blooming quality; but this is acquired at some sacrifice of the peculiar beauty of the moss. They will receive a separate notice. Again: these roses have been fertilized with the pollen of the Hybrid China Rose; and the result is a Moss rose, remarkably vigorous in growth, and particularly well suited to form pillars. Any, however, of the more vigorous Mosses may be used for this purpose, provided always that they receive the highest culture in a warm and open exposure. We have it on the authority of the well-known English rose-grower, Mr. Paul, that, in the garden of an amateur near Cheshunt, there is a pillar of the Old Red Moss fifteen feet high!

At the present day, when the annual progeny of new Perpetual roses from the nurseries of France, with a humble re-enforcement from those of England, has eclipsed by numbers the old garden favorites, the well-remembered roses of our infancy, the Moss alone stands in tranquil defiance of this gay tide of innovation. Nothing can eclipse and nothing can rival her. She is, and ever will be, the favorite of poetry and art; and the eloquence of her opening buds, half wrapped in their mossy envelope, will remain through all generations a chosen interpreter of the language of youth and beauty.

Alice Le Roy is a distinct and beautiful rose, very large, full, and mossy; color, lilac and rose; form, cupped: it grows vigorously. Angélique Quétier is also of a rosy-lilac hue, large, very double, and very mossy: it grows freely, like the former. The Blush Moss is of growth somewhat more moderate: the flower is large and full, the foliage fine, and stems and buds well mossed; color, clear pale pink. Celina is of a deep, rosy crimson, sometimes verging to purple. The Common, or Old Moss, is still one of the most beautiful of the whole family. Its flowers are large and full, and of a pale rose-color and globular form. It is more abundantly mossed than most of its progeny; and none of them surpass it, indeed very few equal it, in the beauty of its half-opened bud. Its growth is tolerably vigorous, and foliage fine. Laneh is a vigorous and beautiful rose; flowers large, full, and globular; color, a light rosy-crimson. The buds are large, full, and well mossed; its growth is vigorous; and, under good cultivation, the whole plant, with its large and bright-green foliage, bears a striking appearance of thrift and health.