Rose New Dawn

A blush-pink climber that made horticultural history: in 1931 it became U.S. Plant Patent No. 1, the first living plant ever protected by patent law, thanks to its repeat-flowering sport of the once-blooming ‘Dr W. Van Fleet’. Vigorous yet mannerly, it decorates trellises and arbors with glossy foliage, scented shell-pink blooms from late spring to frost, and a winter crop of orange hips. Tough enough for USDA Zone 4, tolerant of light shade, and lauded with the RHS Award of Garden Merit and the 1997 World Federation “World Favourite Rose”, ‘New Dawn’ justifies its fame in gardens large and small.

FLOWERING

This rose variety has a recurrent flowering habit. The flowering is recurrent: after the first flush in late spring to early summer, further blooming cycles continue through summer and into autumn.

Flowers are very delicate, silvery shell-pink opening from slightly deeper buds, paling to near-white in heat, cooler nights intensifying the blush. Blooms appear in relaxed small clusters of 3 - 15, and held in corymb clusters at the end of arching canes on both old and new wood, ensuring continuous flushes from late spring to hard frost.

The flowers of ‘New Dawn’ are medium to large sized, about 7 - 9 cm (3 – 3 1⁄2 inches) in diameter. They start as height-centered but quickly open to semi-double cupped to flat flowers consisting 20 - 35 petals, the very outer petals slightly curl out.

The fragrance is moderate, sweet, with hints of apples and honeysuckle. The petals of this rose variety have good self-cleaning quality, they normally drop off cleanly before drying.

To stimulate repeat blooming and prevent rose hips (fruits) from forming it is recommended to deadhead the spent flowers. If not deadheaded, ‘New Dawn’ forms abundant globe shaped red-orange fruits in autumn, valued by birds and perfect for winter display.

PLANT

Rose variety ‘New Dawn’ is formally classified as a Large-Flowered Climber within the Hybrid Wichurana group, a modern climbing rose cultivar renowned for its vigorous growth and prolific flowering. This rose is consistently recognized worldwide as one of the best repeating climbing roses available. This capacity for continuous floral display throughout the growing season, a significant advantage over once-blooming varieties, is a primary reason for its sustained popularity among home gardeners seeking extended visual interest in their landscapes.

‘New Dawn’ produces long, pliable canes 300 - 600 cm (10 – 20 ft) that arch or can be trained up supports. Stems carry normal quantities of moderately sized, hooked downward prickles. The mature and well-established plant has a height of about 300 - 600 cm and the width of about 120 - 200 cm.

The foliage of this rose variety is abundant and dense. The leaves have 5 - 7 elliptic, serrate leaflets, of deep-green colour and glossy appearance, contributing notable disease resistance.

Flowers best in full sun but tolerates as little as 4 h light, making it one of the most shade-accommodating climbers. In terms of care it requires training of the new canes horizontally to maximise lateral flowering; avoid hard pruning of productive older canes and remove not more than a quarter of oldest shoots after bloom; minimal dead-heading required (to encourage forming hips).

Grace pergolas, arches, fences, or pillar roses; train along north-facing walls where few climbers blossom. Its pliant, thorn-moderate canes weave readily through wires, and winter hips extend interest into the lean months.

The rose variety 'New Dawn' has very good resistance to most common rose diseases, in particular it is resistant to mildew, blackspot and rust under normal growing conditions. This resilience extends to various environmental stressors, as it is noted for being drought-resistant and tolerant of light shade and even poor soil conditions. ‘New Dawn’ can be susceptible to black spot, powdery mildew, and rust, particularly in very humid climates in very crowded plantings.The pest resistance has not been tested.

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

Rose ‘New Dawn’ is known by several synonyms, reflecting its close genetic relationship to its parent and its widespread introduction under various marketing names. These include ‘Everblooming Dr. W. Van Fleet’ and ‘The New Dawn’. The synonym ‘Everblooming Dr. W. Van Fleet’ directly refers to its origin as a sport of Rosa ‘Dr. W. Van Fleet’, highlighting the key genetic difference - its ability to bloom continuously rather than just once. The simple addition of "The" in 'The New Dawn' is a minor variation in marketing.

WFRS Rose Hall of Fame (The World's Favourite Rose), World Federation of Rose Societies Convention, 1997;

World's Favorite Rose, World Federation of Rose Societies, 1997;

Climber (ARS), Combined Chicagoland Rose Society Show, 2000;

Climber (ARS), Grosse Pointe Rose Society Show, 2000;

Climber (ARS), Kansas City Rose Society Show, 2000;

Climber (ARS), Reno Rose Society Show, 2000;

Climber (ARS), Birmingham Rose Society Spring Show, 2001;

ORIGIN OF THE VARIETY

The origin of Rosa ‘New Dawn’ traces back to 1930, when it was discovered as a spontaneous genetic mutation, or “sport,” of Rosa ‘Dr. W. Van Fleet’ at Somerset Rose Nursery in New Jersey, United States. This discovery marked a pivotal moment in horticultural history, as ‘New Dawn’ became the subject of the first plant patent ever granted in the United States. Henry F. Bosenberg, a landscape gardener, received U.S. Plant Patent No. 1 on August 18, 1931, for this climbing rose. The patent specifically covered its "everblooming" character, a trait that fundamentally distinguished it from its once-blooming parent, Rosa ‘Dr. W. Van Fleet’.

Triploid chromosome set (2n = 21) explains its fertility limits yet vigorous growth.

USDA 4