Rose Financial Times Centenary

Beautifully refined English shrub rose celebrated for the exceptional clarity and richness of its color - a pure, glowing rose-pink that stands out in any garden. The blooms are large, cupped, and deeply globular, forming a neat and symmetrical shape with inward-curving petals that partially enclose the golden stamens at the center. As the flowers mature, their pink shades intensifies and becomes more vivid and uniform, giving the plant a luminous presence. The fragrance is strong, pleasing Old Rose. Foliage is lush and dark green, providing an elegant contrast to the bright blooms.

DESCRIPTION OF THE VARIETY

Throughout this description of the rose variety 'Financial Times Centenary' is provided with color descriptions using terminology of the "Methuen Handbook of Colour" published by Eyre Methuen Ltd. (1963), 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 an abundant and continual flowering habit. Blooms in flushes 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 'Financial Times Centenary' rose variety are medium sized, about 2.5 cm long and 1.5 cm in diameter when the petals start to unfurl. The bud form is rounded with a cuspidate tip. When half open, the upper sides and the lower sides of the petals are geranium red / red (Group 11B7). Calyx is star-shaped when fully opened with the sepals folding back.

The sepals have a length of about 2.2 - 3.0 cm and a width of 1 cm. The shape of the sepals is lanceolate, the surface texture is tough and leathery on both sides. The colour on the upper surface is deep green / parrot green (Group 30E8) and on the lower surface is greyish green (Group 30B6). The outer margins of the sepals hase 1 or 2 ensiform protuberances with red glandular hairs and the inner margins are smooth and lined with white downy hairs.

The receptacle is greyish green / spring green (Group 30C7), cupped shaped and has a smooth surface. The size of the receptacle is medium, about 1.1 - 1.4 cm long and about 1.0 - 1.2 cm in diameter.

The peduncle is medium-sized, averaging to about 2-4 cm in length, of a normal strength and has sparse red glandular hairs on the surface. The colour of the peduncle is deep green / parrot green (Group 30E8).

Bloom:

The flowers are medium-sized, the average diameter of the open flower is about 7.0 cm. When first open, the flower form is flattened cup, cupped, and deeply globular, forming a neat symmetrical shape with inward-curving petals. The flower form persists until the end. Flowers are very full, the number of petals under normal conditions is varies from 120 to 140. They are born in small clusters of 1 - 10 blooms together, but 6 on average.

When first open the colour of the upper sides of the petals is red (Group 11A7) and the reverse sides of the petals are greyish red (Group 10B6).

When fully open the color of the flowers on the upper sides of the petals is pale red / rose pink (Group 12A5) and the reverse sides of the petals is pale red / flamingo (Group 12A4) .

When finishing blooming the colour of the upper side of the outer petals is rose pink (Group 13A3) and of the inner petals is rose pink (Group 13A5). The reverse of the outer petals is pinkish white (Group 13A2) while the inner petals on the reverse side are rose pink (Group 13A4).

Under normal growing conditions no variegation is observed on the flowers of this rose variety.

Petals:

The texture of the petals is soft and the surface is smooth. The shape of the outer petals is very round, concave, base with slight shoulder apex slightly irregular, they have a length of about 4.0 - 4.5 cm and the width of about 3.5 - 4.0 cm. The petals in the middle have an ovoid shape with rounded top, and the base is v-shaped, their length is 3.5 cm and the width is 3 cm on average. The most inner petals are slender, ovoid, their top and base are rounded, there are also irregular inner petals with stamenoid base, v-shaped; their length is about 2.5 - 3.0 cm and the width is about 1.5 - 2.0 cm.

The petals of this rose variety fall reasonably well but not as quickly as they should do, therefore regular deadheading of the spent flowers is recommended for this rose variety. Under normal climate conditions the petals last fairly long, on the plant they last for about 10 days, as a cut flower their lastingness is also long, about 9 - 12 days.

Fragrance:

The fragrance of the rose 'Financial Times Centenary' is good, sweet, of Old rose character.

Reproductive parts:

The number of stamens is 110-120 on average per flower.

The anthers have reddish yellow / orange yellow colour (Group 4A7).

The colour of the filaments is maize yellow (Group 4A6), and their length is about 8 - 10 mm.

The number of pistils is 170 - 180 on average.

The colour of the styles is pale yellow (Group 1A3) and there may be ruby / cerise blush (Group 12C8) towards the apex, they are about 5 - 10 mm long.

Stigma has pastel yellow colour (Group 3A4).

The hips of this rose variety have not been observed.

PLANT

The rose variety 'Financial Times Centenary' is classified as a Shrub rose and is part of David Austin’s English Shrub Roses collection. The growth character is moderately vigorous, upright, strong and rather tall and narrow. Mature and well-established plant has a height of about 120 - 135 cm and the width of about 75 - 90 cm.

The plant has an upright growth habit, somewhat vertical in nature, which can make it appear less rounded or bushy than other David Austin varieties. While this habit may not suit every planting style, it makes 'Financial Times Centenary' especially useful for the back of the border, where its height and structure create a striking floral backdrop.

With good care: regular feeding, deep watering, and deadheading, this rose performs reliably, flowering in flushes throughout the growing season. Though not among Austin’s most widely popular roses, 'Financial Times Centenary' is a rewarding choice for gardeners who appreciate classic color, full-petalled flower form, and a strong fragrance.

Foliage:

There is an abundant quantity of the foliage on the plants of this rose variety. The number of leaflets on normal mid-stem leaves varies from 3 to 7, but most often there are 5 leaflets present, including the terminal leaflet. The foliage is medium sized.

The colour of the juvenile foliage on the upper side is dark green (Group 29F7) while the lower side is greyish green (Group 29D6) and greyish green / spinach green (Group 29E6). The mature foliage on the upper side is dark green (Group 29F8) and on the lower side is greyish green / spinach green (Group 29E6) and greyish green / bracken green (Group 29E7).

Leaflets:

The leaflets are large, about 8 - 9 cm long. The shape of the leaflets is ovoid, the shape of the leaflet tip is cuspidate and the base shape is rounded. The surface texture of the leaflets is tough and leathery, semi-glossy. The edges are serrated.

The petiole has dark green colour (Group 29F8) on the upper surface and there are sparse red glandular hairs present along the edge of the groove. The underside is yellowish green / sap green (Group 30B7) and has small prickles, about 1 - 2 per internode, of about 1.5 mm long.

The stipules are 0.8 - 2.2 cm long and 0.4 - 0.6 cm wide. The angle of wingtips to petiole is variable but most often is about 45°. The colour of the stipules is greyish green (Group 30B5) and their margins are lined with red glandular hairs.

Wood:

The new wood of this rose variety has parrot green colour (Group 20EB) with violet brown blush (Group 10E6), the bark is smooth. The mature wood is dark green (Group 29F7) with extensive violet brown blush (Group 10E6), the bark remains smooth.

Stems:

The stem pubescence is not observed on the stems of this rose variety.

Prickles:

There is an ordinary quantity of prickles present on the main canes from base, about 2 - 5 per internode. On the laterals from main canes there is a normal quantity of prickles, about 3 - 15 per internode. They have a basal width of about 2.8 mm and length of about 2.6 mm. The colour of the young prickles is red.

Small prickles:

There are a normal number of small prickles and red glandular hairs present on the main canes of this rose and on the laterals from the main canes of this rose variety. Their colour is the same as the colour of the larger prickles.

Disease resistance:

The rose variety 'Financial Times Centenary' 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 6 and requires winter protection in more colder climates.

Named to commemorate the 100th anniversary of The Financial Times in 1988.

English Shrub Roses

ORIGIN OF THE VARIETY

Rose variety ‘Ausfin’ / 'Financial Times Centenary' originated by David Austin by crossing an unnamed, unpatented seedling with an unnamed, unpatented seedling.

BACKGROUND OF THE VARIETY

The primary objective of this rose variety breeding was to create a new rose variety with distinctive character by its very full, pure pink flowers with abundant continual blooming, and the unusual shaping of the flowers.

SUMMARY OF THE VARIETY

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

 vigorous abundant and continual blooming that occurs for 5 months;

 very full flowers of an old-fashioned shape of a pure pink coloring;

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.

USDA 6