Rose Boscobel

Red buds of ‘Boscobel’ open into beautifully formed, upward-facing, coral-pink cupped rosettes. The myrrh fragrance carries delicious hints of hawthorn, elderflower, pear, and almond. This rose forms an upright, compact and neat shrub.

DESCRIPTION OF THE VARIETY

Throughout this description, colour references and/or values are based upon the Colour Chart of The Royal Horticultural Society (2001) except where common terms of color definition are employed.

FLOWER

'Boscobel' has a very good repeat flowering habit, blooms in flushes, with very short breaks, from early 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 are about 2 cm long and 1.8 cm in diameter when the petals start to unfurl. The bud form is globular. When sepals first divide, the bud color is red (Group RHS 51A). When half blown, the upper sides of the petals are red pink (Group RHS 39A), and the lower sides of the petals are orange red (Group RHS 41C).

The calyx is star-shaped when the flower fully open, with sepals folding back, the length is about 7 cm and the diameter is about the same.

The arrangement of the sepals is regular. On the upper surface the colour of the sepals is yellow-green (Group RHS 146D) and on the lower surface is yellow-green (Group RHS 144B). The length of the sepals is 32 mm and the width is about 10 mm. The shape is lanceolate with downy upper surface texture and glandular lower surface. There are 3 normally appendaged sepals and there are 2 unappendaged sepals with slightly hairy edges.

The receptacles are medium sized, about 1 cm long and about 0.9 cm wide, have green colour (Group RHS 143B). The receptacles are funnel shaped, and their texture is smooth.

The peduncle is medium sized, of a normal strength, erect, averaging to about 8.5 cm, the surface is prickly. The colour of the peduncle is light green ( Group RHS 146C) with some red intonations (Group RHS 39A).

Bloom:

The flowers are large, the average open diameter is about 9 cm. They are borne mostly singly, or in small clusters of 1-4 blooms having flat shape. When the flower first open the flower form is cupped. As the flower fully opens it displays a nicely formed rosette, the outer petal edges curl slightly. Flowers are very full, the number of petals under normal conditions is 78 on average.

The colour of the upper sides of the petals are red-purple (Group RHS 62B). The reverse sides of the petals are red-purple (Gorup RHS 62B) with yellow intonations (Group RHS 1D). The base of the petals is yellow (Group RHS 1D). Under normal growing conditions no variegation is observed on the flowers.

The general tonality of the flowers at the end of the first day is pink (Group RHS 39B) and at the end of the third day is light blue pink (Group RHS 62C) with light yellow shades (Group RHS 1D).

Petals:

The surface and texture of the petals is smooth.The shape of the petals is obovate, the base of the outer petals has obtuse shape and the shape of the inner petals is pointed, the shape of the apex is rounded on both outer and on the inner petals. The edge of the petals is notched on some and entire on the others. The form of the outer petals is slightly incurved. The petals are medium sized, with a width of about 3.5 cm and the length of about 3cm. The arrangement of the petals is imbricated.

There are some petaliods present on the flowers of this variety, about 17 per flower. The colour of the petaliods is pink (Group RHS 43D), the near anthers have dark yellow colour (Group RHS 13A) and the colour of the nearby filaments is medium yellow (Group RHS 12A). The length of the petaloids is about 10-13 mm and the width is about 1-1.5 mm, while near anthers have length of about 2-5 mm and width of about 2 mm, the near filaments have length of about 4-6 mm and about 0.1-1 mm wide. The shape of petaloids and their margins is irregular.

The petals usually dry and hang on on the plant, therefore the timely deadheading is required for this variety. The petals last on a plant for about 5 days under normal growing conditions and about the same as a cut flower.

Fragrance:

‘Boscobel’ has a rather moderately strong fragrance , with prominent myrrh character and has delicious hints of hawthorn, elderflower, pear and almond.

Reproductive parts:

The number of stamens per flower is around 140, they have average length of about 10 mm.

The anthers have length of about 2-3 mm, their colour is dark yellow colour (Group RHS 13A), and they are usually mixed with petaloids.

The filaments have yellow colour (Group RHS 12A) with some red intonations (Group RHS 47C), the length varies within the 5 - 10 mm.

The pollen has yellow colour (Group RHS 13A).

The pistils are many and rather short, 6.5 mm long, there are usually about 60 of them per flower.

The styles have pink and yellow-green colour (Group RHS 43D & RHS 1D), their length is about 6 mm.

Stigmas are yellow (Group RHS 16A) and about 0.5 mm long.

The hips are not observed yet.

PLANT

The variety is classified as a Shrub rose from David Austin’s English Shrub Roses collection. ‘Boscobel’ has a vigorous, upright, bushy growth character. It able rather quickly to establish itself in the garden, it takes about 2 years for this variety to become quite mature. Forms a compact plant of about 90 - 110 cm in height and has about 60 - 110 cm in width.

The variety is perfect not only for mix borders, rose borders and pathways, but it also will look great in pots and containers due to its neat and compact growth habit.

Foliage:

The foliage on this variety is abundant, the number of leaves per flowering stem is 9 under normal growing conditions. There are usually 5 leaflets, including a terminal leaflet, on the normal mid-stem leaf. The leaves are medium sized, about 13 cm long and about 10 cm wide. The new foliage on the upper surface is yellow-green (Group RHS 146B) and on the lower side is yellow-green (Group RHS 146C), both upper and lower sides are tinged with dark brown purple (Group RHS 183C). The old foliage on the upper side is green (Group RHS 139A) and the lower side has green colour (Group RHS 138A).

Leaflets:

The leaflets are about 5.8 cm long and about 3 cm wide. The shape of the leaflets is oval with obtuse base and acuminate apex; the surface texture is smooth and leathery; the edges are serrated; the type of serration is single and medium. The appearance of the leaflets is semi-glossy.

Petiole have yellow green colour (Group RHS 146B), the length is 3 cm on average and the width is about 1.5 mm; the surface texture is glandular and with prickles.

Petiole rachis is also yellow green (Group RHS 146B), the underside surface with prickles.

The stipules have green colour (Group RHS 146B), the length is about 2 cm, the surface texture is glandular.

Auricle has a lanceolate shape, the length is about 0.8 cm and the width is about 2 mm. The colour of the auricle is yellow-green (Group RHS 146B).

The vein color is the same as leaf color, the venation pattern is reticulate (net-veined).

Wood:

The colour of the new wood is yellow-green (Group RHS 143B) with some red-purple intonations (Group RHS 58A), the bark is smooth. The mature wood has slightly darker yellow-green colour (Group RHS 146B), the bark is smooth, with some rough patches.

Stems:

There are usually about 4 - 6 branches on the stem, the length of the branch usually is about 40 cm, with a diameter of about 10 mm. The internode distance is about 4-10 cm. The above measurements are all variable, depending on growing conditions in a season. On the branches of this variety the stem pubescence is not present.

Prickles:

The quantity of prickles on the main canes from base is few, the number per stem length is about 6 per 30 cm of the stem length. On laterals from main canes there are many prickles, about 10 per 10 cm of the stem length. They have deep concave form, the length is about 7 - 8 mm. The colour of the young prickles is medium brown purple (Group RHS 181A), the mature prickles have also medium brown purple (Group RHS 181A).

Small prickles:

There are no small prickles on the main stalks and on the laterals from the main canes.

Disease resistance:

The variety ‘Boscobel’ has good disease resistance to most common rose pathogens, it is resistant to mildew, black spot and rust. Pest resistance has not been tested yet.

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

Named to honor Boscobel House and The Royal Oak, located in the parish of Boscobel in Shropshire. It has been, at various times, a farmhouse, a hunting lodge, and a holiday home; but it is most famous for its role in the escape of Charles II after the Battle of Worcester in 1651. Charles II hid in an oak tree at Boscobel House during the English Civil War.

Today it is managed by English Heritage.

English Shrub Roses

ORIGIN OF THE VARIETY

The rose variety ‘Auscousin’ / ‘Boscobel’ is classified as a Shrub rose, and was originated by David Austin from the cross-pollination of the two ‘unnamed’ and unpatented seedlings of Rosa hybrida.

BACKGROUND OF THE VARIETY

The primary objective of this rose variety breeding was to grow a vigorous and healthy rose growing as a medium sized upright shrub and having blooms of rich salmon color that commence as a red bud and open to pretty cups that then develop into perfectly formed rosettes having a medium-strong myrrh fragrance.

SUMMARY OF THE VARIETY

Among the features which distinguish ‘Auscousin’ / ‘Boscobel’ variety from other presently available and commercial rose cultivars is the following combination of characteristics:

  - salmon colored, cupped rosette shaped blooms,

  - a medium-strong myrrh fragrance,

  - medium green, semi-glossy foliage with vigorous growth.

Asexual reproduction of this variety by budding as performed in greenhouses at Bowling Green Lane in Albrighton, The UK showed that the foregoing and other distinguishing characteristics came true to form and established and transmitted through succeeding asexual propagations. ‘Auscousin’ / ‘Boscobel’ may be asexually propagated by budding.

COMPARISON WITH PARENTS

‘Auscousin’ / ‘Boscobel’ may be distinguished from its seed parent, by the following combination of characteristics:

  emsp;whereas the seed parent is apricot in color, ‘Auscousin’ / ‘Boscobel’ bears flowers of salmon-pink.

‘Auscousin’ / ‘Boscobel’ may be distinguished from its pollen parent, by the following combination of characteristics:

   the pollen parent bears looser petalled apricot blooms, ‘Auscousin’ / ‘Boscobel’ bears flowers of salmon-pink.

COMPARISON WITH THE CLOSEST COMMERCIALLY AVAILABLE CULTIVAR

The closest commercially available cultivars to the ‘Auscousin’ / ‘Boscobel’ variety are the ‘Aushunter’ / ‘Jubilee Celebration’ and ‘Ausencart’ / ‘Benjamin Britten’ .

‘Auscousin’ / ‘Boscobel’ rose may be distinguished from the ‘Aushunter’ / ‘Jubilee Celebration’ variety by the following combination of characteristics:

 ‘Aushunter’ / ‘Jubilee Celebration’ forms a larger shrub than ‘Auscousin’ / ‘Boscobel’ reaching 1.25 m, and has fruity fragrance with hints of lemon and raspberry, whereas ‘Auscousin’ / ‘Boscobel’ is a smaller shrub reaching only about 1 meter and has a myrrh fragrance.

Likewise, the new rose may be distinguished from the ‘Ausencart’ / ‘Benjamin Britten’ variety by the following combination of characteristics:

 ‘Ausencart’ / ‘Benjamin Britten’ is redder in color with a fruity fragrance, whereas ‘Auscousin’ / ‘Boscobel’ is more salmon colored with a myrrh fragrance. Also ‘Ausencart’ / ‘Benjamin Britten’ forms much larger plant, reaching about 150 - 180 cm and has very prickly stems whereas ‘Auscousin’ / ‘Boscobel’ forms much smaller plant and have much fewer prickles.

USDA 5