Rose Pierre de Ronsard

The flowers of this rose open slowly, they are large, cup-shaped, with long petals and have the charm of old roses. The colour is white with some cream or ivory shade, and the edges are rich pink-carmine, but the overall colour is very variable, and sometimes pink is clearly visible in the center of the flower, and white at the edges; the outer petals have a green tint. The flowers are heavy and bend down gracefully under their own weight.

DESCRIPTION OF THE VARIETY
The chart used in the identification of colors is that of The Royal Horticultural Society (R.H.S. Colour Chart).

FLOWERING
This rose has abundant and continuous flowering habit. Blooms with flushes from summer until colds.

The first flowering is very abundant, the plant is covered with flowers from top to bottom. Later, there are fewer flowers, but they appear constantly.

Flower bud:
The buds have globular shape, the length of the bud is approximately 3.0 cm on average. The colour of the upper surface is greenish creamy white (Group 155A), edged with a thin border of carmine pink (Group 52C). The colour of the under surface is substantially the same as the colour of the upper surface. The flowers appear on the plant mostly solitary, or up to 2 -3 flower buds per stem.

The sepals on the upper surface have tomentose shape and darkish green colour and the under surface is medium green colour with a reddish tint, often with glandular appendiculated edges.

The peduncle is smooth, green, straight, rigid, quite long, approximately 7 cm. in length on average.

Bloom:
The flower are large, the diameter of the open flower is approximately 8 to 10 cm. The shape is high-centered when the flowers start to open, quickly changing to a hollow cup with a flat top.

The colour of the flowers when opening begins on the upper surface is creamy white, (Group 155A), edged with a thin border of carmine pink (Group 52C), and lightly suffused particularly on the central petals with pale carmine pink, (Group 52D). The under surface of the petals have substantially the same colour as the upper surface.

When fully open the colour on the upper surface is creamy white (Group 155A), lightly suffused with pale carmine pink (Group 52D) and the under surface of the petals has substantially the same colour as the upper surface.

The colour doesn’t change much through the flower life. The flowers last on a plant fairly long, about 8 – 10 days under normal growing conditions.

Petals:
The number of petals on a plant is approximately 55 to 60. They have rounded form, flattened, with slightly reflected edges. The petals have quite thick and firm texture.

Fragrance:
The fragrance of this rose variety is light.

Reproductive parts:
The number of stamens per flower us about 120 to 125 on average.

The anthers are normal, straw yellow in coloration and edged with dark ochre.

The filaments have average length and yellowish colour.

The numbers of pistils is approximately 80 to 90 per flower.

The stigmas are medium sized, normal, straw colored, located beyond the anthers.

The styles have free arrangement, straw colored with a bright violet top, of very irregular heights.

The receptacle is medium green at dehiscence of the anthers, and in longitudinal section it is wide and in the shape of a jug.

The variety does not have an aptitude to bear fruits.

PLANT
The rose variety is classified as a Climbing shrub rose. The variety has vigorous, climbing, and strong growth habit. Forms strong, broad, large, and bushy plant. The height of the mature and well-established plant is about 150 – 365 cm and spreads over 100 – 150 cm.

Foliage:
This rose has quite dense foliage, the number of leaflets on a normal mid stem leaves varies from 3 to 5 and to 7 (most often).

The stipules have adnate shape, slightly pectinate, wide and linear.

The petioles on the upper surface are grooved, reddish-brown on young foliage, medium green on mature foliage with more or less glandular edges. The under surface is light green with some small hooked thorns.

Leaflets:
The shape of the leaflets is oval. The edges are serrated, the type of serration is single and regular. The surface texture is firm with dense and glossy overall appearance.

The colour of the young foliage on the upper surface is lettuce green (Group 144A), widely shaped with a reddish tint; the under surface has same lettuce green colour (Group 144A), with a reddish shades. The colour of the adult foliage on the upper surface is dark brown green (Group 147A) and the under surface of the leaflets has medium brown green (Group 147B).

Wood:
The colour young stems is medium brown green (Group 146D), the bark is smooth. The adult wood is medium brown green (Group 146C) and the bark is smooth with some rough patches.

Prickles:
There are few prickles on the main canes of this variety, about 1 – 2 per internode. There are very few to none prickles on the and on the laterals from the main canes. The prickles have pyramidal, slightly hooked downward form. The colour of the young prickles is medium brown green, the mature prickles are brown gray.

Small prickles:
The small prickles are not observed on the main canes and on the laterals from the main canes of this variety.

Disease resistance:
The variety has good resistance against all main rose pathogens, including black spot, mildew and botrytis. Pest resistance has not been tested.

The variety is recommended for growing in climate zones similar to USDA 6 and warmer and require winter protection in more colder climates.

Pierre de Ronsard was a French poet or, as his own generation in France called him, a "prince of poets".

ORIGIN OF THE VARIETY
The rose variety ‘Meiviolin’ / ‘Pierre de Ronsard’ was created by artificial pollination of two parents, which previously had been studied in the hope that they would contribute the desired characteristics.

The female parent (i.e., the seed parent) of ‘Meiviolin’ / ‘Pierre de Ronsard’ was formed by crossing the climbing rose ‘MALcair’ / ‘Danse des Sylphes' from Meiiland, 1959, with the climbing rose ‘MACha’ / ‘Handel’ from McGredy, 1960.

The male parent (i.e., the pollen parent) was the rose variety ‘Meihartforsar’ / ‘Climbing Pink Wonder’ a climbing rose from Meilland, 1976.

The parentage of the new variety can be summarized as follows:

[‘Danse Des Sylphes’ × ‘Handel’] × Climbing Pink Wonder.

BACKGROUND OF THE VARIETY
The seeds resulting from the above pollination were sown and 360 plantlets were obtained which were physically and biologically different from each other. Selective study resulted in the identification of a single plant of the new variety ‘Meiviolin’ / ‘Pierre de Ronsard’.

SUMMARY OF THE VARIETY
It was found that the ‘Meiviolin’ / ‘Pierre de Ronsard’ possesses the following combination of characteristics:

(a) abundantly and continuously forms attractive long lasting very double creamy white blossoms edged with carmine pink which exhibit an ancient rose shape,

(b) exhibits vigorous vegetation,

(c) exhibits excellent resistance to frost, and

(d) is particularly well suited for growing in the landscape.

This rose variety well meets the needs of the horticultural industry. It can be grown to advantage as an attractive ornamentation in parks, gardens, public areas, and residential landscapes.

The characteristics of the new variety have been found to be homogeneous and stable and are strictly transmissible by asexual propagation from one generation to another.

USDA zone 6 and warmer