Rose Lady Salisbury

‘Lady Salisbury’, combines the informal softness associated with Old Garden Roses with the longer flowering season expected of modern shrub roses. Its rich rose-pink buds open into loose, light-pink rosettes that gradually fade to softer shell and blush-pink shades, creating considerable tonal variation on a plant carrying flowers of different ages. The blooms are supported with matt green foliage and a naturally bushy framework that gives the shrub something of the quiet, leafy character of an Alba or other old European rose rather than the polished appearance of a Hybrid Tea. Fragrance is present but moderate. It is sufficiently substantial for a mixed border or informal hedge while remaining manageable in a medium-sized garden.

DESCRIPTION OF THE VARIETY

Among pink English shrub roses, ‘Lady Salisbury’ is distinguished less by dramatic flower size or powerful scent than by delicacy, continuity and an unusually convincing Old Rose effect. The blossoms do not form the extremely symmetrical, tightly quartered rosettes associated with some Austin cultivars. Instead, the petals arrange themselves rather freely, giving the flower a softer and more spontaneous outline. In the earlier stages a small button-eye may be observed in the centre; as the bloom matures, it relaxes and eventually allows part of the central cluster of stamens to become visible. This progression is important to the cultivar’s character: the flower looks less like a static exhibition bloom than a traditional garden rose changing visibly from bud to senescence.

The modern relevance of ‘Lady Salisbury’ lies in precisely this balance. It provides the atmosphere of an old pink shrub rose without limiting the garden to a single early-summer display. David Austin described its repeat as impressively regular from early summer onward, and many gardeners stressed its remarkable continuity. It is therefore particularly useful where gardeners want a romantic, historical appearance but need flowers over a prolonged season.

FLOWERING

‘Lady Salisbury’ is a genuinely repeat-flowering shrub, producing successive flowering shoots from early summer through the later growing season. Under the relatively long, mild season the flowering may continue well into autumn, toward the first frost. The precise beginning and ending of the season naturally depend on climate, winter pruning, spring temperature and available moisture.

The first major flowering is usually the strongest, after which new lateral shoots develop and carry additional flowers. Deadheading helps encourage these later cycles, although an established plant with adequate water and nutrition is naturally inclined to rebloom. In cooler continental climates the intervals between flushes can be more distinct than in the UK, especially where winters are prolonged and autumn frost arrives early. The flowering lateral branches are relatively numerous, although the number of flowers borne on each individual lateral is described as low. This corresponds well with the garden effect: ‘Lady Salisbury’ is not fundamentally a large-clustered Floribunda but a branched shrub producing individual blooms and modest clusters over a broad leafy framework. The result is graceful, flowers are distributed through the plant and can mingle naturally with surrounding perennials.

Flower bud:

The flower bud is ovoid in the longitudinal section; before opening it is much richer in colour than the opened flower, usually rose pink to comparatively deep pink. This darker bud stage gives the flowering plant welcome definition and ensures that even an otherwise pale-pink shrub does not appear washed out. As the sepals start to open, the deeper outer colouring gives way to the cleaner pink of the inner petals. Opening is gradual, passing from a rounded bud into a loose cupped flower and finally into the informal rosette. The flowers are nevertheless sufficiently well supported by the puduncle for useful cutting, even though the cultivar was bred primarily as a garden shrub rather than as a florist’s rose.

The sepals have lanceolate shape, they are rather slender and narrower, have yellow-green colour and few of them have lightly appendaged edges. The receptacle is medium sized, elongated chalice shaped, has medium green to yellow green colour and smooth surface. The peduncle is long, slender but quite strong and able to support the flowers upward; the colour of the peduncle is medium green suffused with bronze red, especially from the side turned to sun.

Bloom:

The opened blooms of rose ‘Lady Salisbury’ are medium in size, reaching to about 5 - 9 cm (2 - 3.5 in) in diameter when fully open, while in more favorable conditions and climates they tend to be larger, reaching about 6 - 7 cm (2.4 - 2.8 in) in diameter. Such variation may be driven by the plant age, strength, season and growing conditions and climate. The flowers are full, typically having about 70 petals, and they are arranged as informal cupped rosettes. The outer petals spread sufficiently to give the mature bloom a broad, relaxed appearance, while the inner petals initially create a small button-eye or folded centre when the bloom just opens. With age the centre opens further, exposing some of the stamens. This change prevents the flower from becoming visually heavy despite its numerous petals. .

The colour of the flowers is likewise restrained. The petal surface displays generally light blue-violet to light blue-pink colour (similar to RHS group 69C), typically without a basal spot. In simple terms this translates into a relatively clear pink, initially stronger because it emerges from deeper rose-pink buds, then softening noticeably with age. Different-aged flowers therefore form a graded composition of stronger and paler pink rather than a completely uniform mass. Its foliage contributes nearly as much as the flowers to the cultivar’s old-fashioned appearance. ‘Lady Salisbury’ has comparatively lightly coloured foliage with weak surface gloss. The effect can appear slightly grey-green or softly muted under bright light. Combined with the branched, leafy shrub habit, this gives the plant an especially natural appearance among herbaceous perennials, old roses and cottage-garden plants.

Flowers may appear solitary, but typically they appear in small clusters of 3 to 15 blooms together on branched flowering shoots. Their strongest ornamental effect comes from the mixture of dark buds, fresh clear-pink flowers and older pale-pink rosettes appearing simultaneously over the muted foliage.

Petals:

The petals have obovate shape, marginal reflexing is very weak and the degree of waviness is likewise very weak, making the flowers appearance comparatively smooth, rounded even though the overall rosette remains informal. The texture of the petals is sufficiently substantial for a normal garden but is not thick and dense. Like many full English roses, the appearance of the flowers can be affected by prolonged rain, particularly when cool wet conditions delay normal opening and petals become damaged and bowl. In favourable weather the petals relax attractively as they age rather than remaining tightly packed.

Colour begins as a stronger rose pink in the bud and newly unfolding flower, becoming clear to light pink at maturity and then progressively paler. This fading is a normal and desirable feature of the cultivar. Exposure to strong sun and high temperatures may accelerate the loss of colour, while cool conditions can preserve the deeper pink somewhat longer.

Fragrance:

The fragrance of ‘Lady Salisbury’ is generally light, pleasant but not a principal reason for choosing the cultivar.

Reproductive parts:

As mature flowers open, a cluster of stamens becomes partly visible in the centre, demonstrating pale-yellow colour of the outer stamen filaments. When spent flowers left unpruned some orange fruits (hips) may occasionally develop, but the hips of ‘Lady Salisbury’ does not have major ornamental value.

PLANT

Rose variety ‘Lady Salisbury’ is classified as Shrub rose and is part of the English Shrub roses collection created by David Austin. This medium to large sized English rose forms a bushy, relatively natural upright plant. The mature and well established plants of this variety typically reach of about 125 - 150 cm (4 - 5 ft ) in height and grows to about 90 - 110 cm (3 - 3.3 ft) wide under annual pruning; in a rich soil and long growing season it may therefore become somewhat larger than the compact dimensions sometimes quoted in early catalogues.

This rose works particularly well in mixed borders, traditional rose borders, cottage gardens and informal hedges. David Austin also recommends it for containers, although a generously sized container is essential if the plant is to develop normally. It tolerates partial shade better than many roses and is currently marketed by the breeder for both full sun and partial shade. Nevertheless, the best combination of flower production, sturdy growth and disease avoidance will normally be obtained with several hours of direct sun and good air circulation. Soil should ideally be fertile, humus-rich and moisture-retentive without remaining waterlogged. It has some suitability for clay, loam, chalk and sandy soils across acid, neutral and alkaline pH ranges, while also noting that shrub roses perform best in fertile, moist but well-drained ground and can tolerate poorer soils. On very light soils, incorporation of organic matter and summer mulching are particularly useful because continuous flowering requires a reliable water supply.

Pruning should preserve the naturally bushy framework of the plant rather than force the plant into the rigid shape expected of a Hybrid Tea. In late winter or early spring, remove dead, damaged and crossing wood, thin congested growth and shorten the remaining principal shoots sufficiently to maintain balance. On established shrubs, reducing much of the previous season’s growth by approximately one-third is often adequate; stronger pruning can be used where rejuvenation or size control is required. Excessively severe annual pruning may sacrifice some of the graceful Old Rose architecture that gives the cultivar its charm.

In cold continental gardens, planting the graft union somewhat below finished soil level, applying a winter mulch around the crown and avoiding late-season nitrogen are sensible precautions. In warm climates, afternoon shade, organic mulch and regular deep watering can reduce heat stress and rapid flower fading.

Foliage:

There is abundant foliage on the plants and it forms one of the identifying ornamental features of ‘Lady Salisbury’. The leaves are somewhat large, comparatively light green and only weakly glossy. Anthocyanin coloration is recorded as present in the foliage, while young shoots show strong anthocyanin pigmentation. Newly emerging growth may consequently show reddish or bronzed tones before hardening to green, this bronze red colour is especially intense and visible on the edges of the leaflets, and may remain visible when the leaflets become mature. The mature foliage is commonly matt green, has almost silvery or bluish quality, adding muted appearance to the leaves. This lack of gloss reinforces the resemblance to traditional Old Garden roses and contrasts especially well with the pure pink flowers.

Leaflets:

The leaves are compound and pinnate in the normal manner of modern shrub roses. The normal medium sized leaves in the middle of the flowering stem typically have 5 leaflets, with occasional variation from 7 to 3, including the terminal leaflet. The terminal leaflet of ‘Lady Salisbury’ has an elliptical shape with an acute apex and base. The leaflet surfaces are weakly glossy, more matte, and the venation is visible without being especially coarse. The edges of the leaflets are quite decorative, as expected serrated, the type of serration is double and medium size, and the very edges of the leaflets tend to keep for a prolonged period the bronze red colour which is more prominent on the younger growth.

Wood:

The plant develops a branched shrub, with an intermediate overall plant posture. Young shoots possess strong bronze red anthocyanin coloration, giving new stems a reddish cast before maturing to medium to dark green; the bark is smooth and they are quite strong though appearing rather slender. Established plants form a rounded to somewhat irregular framework with enough basal and lateral branching to maintain good leaf cover. Such plant form is well suited to informal borders and low flowering hedges.

Prickles:

They are from a normal quantity to few prickles typically present on the main canes from the base and few prickles present on the laterals from the main canes of the rose variety ‘Lady Salisbury’ - it is not among the most heavily armed English shrub roses. The prickles have elongated slightly curved downward shape, they are medium sized and have medium green to bronze red colour and they mature to brownish tan colour.

Small prickles:

Under normal growing conditions the smaller prickles are not observed on the main canes from the base as well as on the laterals from the main canes of ‘Lady Salisbury’.

Disease resistance and stress tolerance:

Although rose ‘Lady Salisbury’ was considered very healthy in the first years after its introduction, contemporary reports from gardeners all over the world note some clarifications. Generally it is still considered as a healthy and free-flowering shrub. However, in some climates it may demonstrate an average resistance to the common rose diseases black spot, powdery mildew and rust. In climates with frequent summer rain, black spot are likely to be the most important potential problem. Place in full or reasonably bright sun, air circulation, watering at soil level, removal of badly infected fallen foliage and maintenance of balanced plant nutrition are preferable to crowding the shrub in a stagnant position. Powdery mildew may occur where roots become dry while foliage experiences warm days and cool nights. Rust appears less frequently in many gardens but should still be regarded as possible.

The winter hardiness is typical as for an English shrub rose, the RHS assigns ‘Lady Salisbury’ hardiness rating H6, corresponding to approximately –20 to –15°C (–4 to 5°F) under British and northern European conditions. This broadly corresponds to USDA zone 6, and this rose is generally recommended for growing in climates similar to USDA zones 6 to 9. Heat tolerance appears adequate for more temperate gardens, but very high heat will accelerate fading and may temporarily reduce bloom size.

The name ‘Lady Salisbury’ commemorates the connection between the rose and Hatfield House in Hertfordshire. David Austin introduced the cultivar in 2011 to mark the 400th anniversary of Hatfield House, which had been built by Robert Cecil, 1st Earl of Salisbury, in 1611. The estate is particularly associated with its historic gardens and extensive rose plantings, and contemporary descriptions identify Lady Salisbury as an enthusiastic gardener.

David Austin records that Lady Salisbury planted the rose in the West Garden at Hatfield. Later accounts of the estate also describe pale-pink ‘Lady Salisbury’ roses planted around features created for the house’s 400th-anniversary celebrations. The name therefore functions both as an honour to Lady Salisbury and as an anniversary name connecting the cultivar with the horticultural history of Hatfield House.

The authoritative breeder and RHS records use ‘Lady Salisbury’ as the market name and ‘Auscezed’ as the breeder denomination. “The Lady Salisbury” may occasionally appear as an informal linguistic expansion of the title, but it is not its registered or official name.

No verified major international rose-trial award, ADR certificate, RHS Award of Garden Merit, All-America Rose Selections/American Garden Rose Selections honour, Australian National Rose Trial award or comparable competition distinction was confirmed for ‘Lady Salisbury’.

ORIGIN OF THE VARIETY

Rose variety ‘Auscezed’ / 'Lady Salisbury' was bred in the UK by David Austin and introduced by David Austin Roses in 2011. Precise parentage for this rose has not been disclosed to this date and remains protected.

BACKGROUND OF THE VARIETY

‘Auscezed’ / 'Lady Salisbury' combines great Old Rose charm and has many common traits with Alba roses: matt foliage, uncomplicated pink colouring, softly arranged rosettes and bushy habit, while its prolonged remontancy clearly separates it from the once-flowering behaviour of most historic Albas. For a garden trying to capture a genuine Old roses atmosphere, ‘Lady Salisbury’ is useful because it can extend the visual language of the historic rose garden beyond the principal June flowering and continues to flower with similar colours and foliage character later in the year.

SUMMARY OF THE VARIETY

‘Auscezed’ / 'Lady Salisbury' is a refined medium-sized English shrub rose for gardeners who value the softer, less formal face of David Austin breeding. Its combination of rich pink buds, gently fading informal rosettes, muted Old Rose-like foliage and a remarkably persistent flowering season provides the illusion of an old pink garden rose that has somehow acquired the ability to return repeatedly through summer and autumn. This rose variety incorporated the following unique combination of characteristics:

  rich rose-pink, ovoid buds opening to informal clear- to light-pink rosettes that become paler with age;

  a prolonged and notably regular repeat-flowering habit from early summer into autumn;

  matt, comparatively light green foliage and bushy growth strongly evocative of Old Garden and Alba roses;

  relatively few bronze red prickles, strongly anthocyanin-coloured young shoots and delicately scented flowers.

Propagation may be undertaken vegetatively in the normal manner for shrub roses. The semi-ripe cuttings in late summer, hardwood cuttings in autumn and T-budding in summer - all are suitable methods. Budding onto an appropriate rose rootstock is the conventional nursery method where uniform plants are required, while cuttings may be useful for producing own-root plants.

COMPARISON WITH PARENTS

Precise seed and pollen parent documentation for this cultivar was not confirmed; therefore, a formal parent-by-parent comparison cannot be made reliably.

COMPARISON WITH THE CLOSEST COMMERCIALLY AVAILABLE CULTIVAR

Among currently available David Austin cultivars, ‘Queen of Sweden’ (‘Austiger’) provides an especially useful comparison. Both are medium-sized, repeat-flowering, light-pink English shrub roses with an approximately 125 cm (4 ft) mature height. Their garden personalities, however, are quite different. ‘Queen of Sweden’ produces particularly more neat flowers. Its buds open into half-enclosed cups that develop into shallow, upward-facing cups of notable symmetry. The colouring begins with soft apricot-pink tones before becoming pure soft pink. ‘Lady Salisbury’ lacks this formal, upright cup. Its richer rose-pink buds open into looser, less regular rosettes, and the centre initially forms a small button before relaxing sufficiently for the stamens to show. The ageing flower therefore looks more convincingly like an informal Old Garden rose.

Plant architecture also separates them. ‘Queen of Sweden’ is notably upright and relatively narrow, making it excellent for formal rplanting, rose hedging and cutting. ‘Lady Salisbury’ is bushier and less architectural, spreading its flowers more naturally among the foliage. The latter consequently integrates particularly well into cottage borders and combinations with perennials.

Fragrance gives ‘Queen of Sweden’ another advantage where scent is a priority: it carries a clear medium-strong myrrh fragrance, whereas ‘Lady Salisbury’ is only lightly scented. Conversely, gardeners deliberately seeking a rose with muted matt foliage and an Alba-like atmosphere may prefer ‘Lady Salisbury’. Thus, although both occupy the broad category of medium pink English shrub roses, ‘Queen of Sweden’ is the more formal, upright and distinctly scented cultivar; ‘Lady Salisbury’ is the softer, more naturalistic rose, valued for its loose rosette form, deeper buds, matt foliage and impression of an old pink shrub rose flowering repeatedly through the season.

USDA 6

USDA Zone 6 - hardiness guide