Rose Anne Boleyn

This rose, with its low, spreading growth, develops into a neatly mounded shrub. Its soft green foliage is more glossy compared to other English roses. The flowers are cupped and rosette-shaped, with petals arranged in perfect symmetry, forming a slight button eye in the centre. Their color is a soft, warm pink, deepening only slightly toward the center. The flowers nod gently on the stem, enhancing the overall impression of neatness and refreshing beauty, both in the blooms and the leaves. Forms a beautiful, compact shrub, perfect for smaller spaces.

DESCRIPTION OF THE VARIETY

Throughout this description of the rose variety 'Anne Boleyn' is provided with color descriptions using terminology of the The Colour Chart of The Royal Horticultural Society, except where common terms of color definition are employed. Phenotypic expression may vary with environmental, cultural and climatic conditions, as well as differences in conditions of light and soil.

FLOWERING

This rose variety has a recurrent flowering habit. Blooms in flushes with short breaks from summer until frosts. The number of blooms per plant during the growing season is profuse, but there are too many to count.

Flower bud:

The flower buds of 'Anne Boleyn' rose variety are medium sized, about 1.3 cm long and 1.2 cm in diameter when the petals start to unfurl. The bud form is pointed ovoid. When the sepals first divide, the bud color is pink (Group 38A). When half open, the upper sides of the petals are orange red (Group 41C) and the lower sides of the petals are pink (Group 38A) with pink (Group 41D).

The sepals have a length of about 2.5 cm and a width of 1 - 1.3 cm. The shape of the sepals is spherical, the surface texture is smooth with slightly hairy edges on the upper surface and mostly smooth with a waxy underneath on the lower surface. The colour on the upper surface is light green (Group 144B) with dark purple red blush (Group 60A) and on the lower surface is light green (Group 144AB). There are 3 lightly appendaged sepals and there are 2 unappendaged sepals with hairy edges.

The receptacle is light green (Group 144B) with dark purple red blush (Group 60A), pitcher shaped and has a smooth surface. The size of the receptacle is medium, broad and long, about 0.7 - 1.5 cm long and about 0.7 - 1.3 cm in diameter.

The peduncle is medium averaging to about 2.5 - 6.5 cm in length, of a stiff strength and has a rough, glandular surface. The colour of the peduncle is light green (Group 144B) with medium brown purple overcoat (Group 184B).

Bloom:

The flowers are medium-sized, the average diameter of the open flower is about 7.6 cm. When first open, the flower form is cupped rosette. As the flower opens the form flattens becoming quartered rosette shaped, outer petals curl back. Flowers are very full, the number of petals under normal conditions is 110. They are born in small clusters of 4 to 14 blooms together, having a rounded shape. The flowering stem is strong, rather long, and has an average length of about 50 - 60 cm.

When first open the colour of the upper sides of the petals is light blue pink (Group 65C) on the outer portion with light blue pink (Group 65D) in middle portion and light yellow at inner portion (Group 8D), the tips are being medium yellow (Group 8A or 8B). The reverse sides of the petals are light blue pink (Group 65B) on the outer portion and in the middle portion, light yellow at the lower portion (Group 8D) with medium yellow (Group 8B) on the tip. The major color on the upper side is pink (Group 51D) on inner petals and light blue pink (Group 65D) on outer petals.

The general tonality at the end of the first day is light blue pink (Group 65D), at the end of the third day the general tonality becomes lighter, light blue pink (Group 56D).

Petals:

The texture of the petals is thick and the surface is smooth. The shape of the outer petals is round and wide pointed, the inner petals are oval with a narrow point, their margins are weak reflexing and with weak undulation. The apex is heart shaped and the base of the petals is emarginate, and the petals form is incurved with tips slightly recurved. The arrangement of the petals is quartered.

Normally there are many petaloids present in the center of the flowers, 25 on average, in the center. Petaloids have orange red colour (Group 41B).

The petals of this rose variety have good self-cleaning quality, they normally drop off cleanly before drying. Under normal climate conditions the petals last fairly long, on the plant they last for about 3-4 days, as a cut flower they last for about 2 days.

Fragrance:

The fragrance of the rose 'Anne Boleyn' is moderate, of a fruity character.

Reproductive parts:

The number of stamens is 30 on average per flower, the length is about 5 mm, and they are mixed with petaloids.

The anthers have a length of about 2 mm and medium yellow colour (Group 6C).

The colour of the filaments is light yellow (Group 8C).

The pollen is medium yellow orange (Group 15B).

The number of pistils is 7 on average.

The colour of the styles is medium yellow green (Group 154C) and are about 2 mm long.

Stigma are about 2 mm long and are medium yellow (Group 7C).

The hips of this rose variety are small, have dark yellow colour (Group 14B)and are about 0.8 - 1.5 cm long.

PLANT

The rose variety 'Anne Boleyn' is classified as a Shrub rose and is part of David Austin’s English Shrub Roses collection. The growth character is medium and sprawling. Mature and well-established plant has a height of about 90 - 110 cm and the width of about 90 - 120 cm.

This rose is reliable and easy to grow. It forms a beautiful, compact shrub, perfect for smaller spaces. The variety is quite short but widely spreading, with attractively arching growth which is almost completely free of disease.

Foliage:

There is an ordinary quantity of the foliage on the plants of this rose variety. The number of leaflets on normal mid-stem leaves is normally 7. The average flowering stem has about 10 leaves. The foliage is medium sized, about 16 cm long and about 13.5 cm wide.

The colour of the juvenile foliage on the upper side is dark brown green (Group 146A) while the lower side is dark brown green (Group 146B). The mature foliage on the upper side is medium brown green (Group 147B) and on the lower side is medium brown green (Group 147B).

Leaflets:

The leaflets are medium-sized, about 5.5 cm long and are about 3.8 cm wide. The shape of the leaflets is broadly oval, the shape of the leaflet tip is obtuse and the base shape is aristate narrowing into a point. The surface texture of the leaflets is leathery and glossy. The edges are serrated, the type of serration is single and small.

The petiole has medium brown green colour (Group 146C) and has a smooth with prickles surface texture. The petiole rachis is light green (Group 144B) and has a smooth with prickles surface on the underside.

The auricle is narrow, about 1.6 cm long. The stipules are 1.5 cm long, serrated and have a light green colour (Group 144B). The veins have light green (Group 144B), the venation pattern is reticulate.

Wood:

The new wood of this rose variety has dark brown green colour (Group 146A) with medium brown purple blush (Group 184B), the bark is smooth. The mature wood is medium green (Group 143B), the bark remains smooth.

Prickles:

There are ordinary prickles present on the main canes from base and on the laterals from main canes. The shape of the prickles is hooked downward, the length is about 4 - 6 mm. The colour of the young prickles is medium brown purple (Group 184B); the mature prickles have dark purple red colour (Group 185A).

Small prickles:

Usually there are no small prickles observed on the main canes of this rose. On the laterals from the main canes of this rose variety there are few prickles. The colour of the small prickles is medium red (Group 47B).

Disease resistance:

The rose variety 'Anne Boleyn' has good resistance to most common rose diseases, in particular it is resistant to mildew, blackspot and rust under normal growing conditions. The pest resistance has not been tested yet.

Rose variety is recommended for growing in climate conditions similar to USDA 4 to 5 and requires winter protection in more colder climates.

Named for the second of Henry VIII’s six wives, who was mother to Queen Elizabeth I.

English Shrub Roses

ORIGIN OF THE VARIETY

Rose variety ‘Ausecret’ / 'Anne Boleyn' originated by David Austin by crossing the variety ‘Ausmas’ / ‘Graham Thomas’ with the unnamed, unpatented seedling.

BACKGROUND OF THE VARIETY

The primary objective of this rose variety breeding was to create a new very healthy rose variety with flowers of the classic English rose shape and with a good fragrance.

SUMMARY OF THE VARIETY

The objective was achieved, along with other important improvements, and this rose variety incorporated the following unique combination of characteristics:

 Short spreading growth;

 Warm pink rosette-shaped flowers produced in quite large sprays;

 Light fruity type fragrance;

 Soft green, highly polished foliage;

Asexual reproduction of this variety by budding showed that the foregoing and all other characteristics and distinctions came true to form, established and transmitted through the succeeding propagations.

COMPARISON WITH PARENTS

The ‘Ausecret’ / ‘Anne Boleyn’ may be distinguished from its seed parent, by the following combination of characteristics:

 The seed parent ‘Ausmas’ / ‘Graham Thomas’ has a full, upright growth habit and bears rich yellow flowers while ‘ Ausecret’ / ‘Anne Boleyn’ has warm pink rosette-shaped flowers and much smaller spreading plant.

The ‘Ausecret’ / ‘Anne Boleyn’ may be distinguished from its pollen parent by the following combination of characteristics:

 The pollen parent has a more upright and bushy growth habit and bears bright pink blooms. ‘Ausecret’ / ‘Anne Boleyn’ has a medium arching growth habit and bears larger, soft pink flowers having more petals than those of the pollen parent.

COMPARISON WITH THE CLOSEST COMMERCIALLY AVAILABLE CULTIVAR

The most similar rose cultivars to the ‘Ausecret’ / ‘Anne Boleyn’ is rose variety ‘Ausmak’ / ‘Eglantyne’ and they may be distinguished by the following combination of characteristics:

 ‘Ausmak’ / ‘Eglantyne’ has a more upright bushy and branching growth habit, with leaves that are less shiny than ‘Ausecret’ / ‘Anne Boleyn’.

USDA 5