In biology, species is often defined as a group of organisms capable of interbreeding and producing fertile offspring. Species roses are those which exist in the wild and successfully produce offspring virtually identical to the parent plant.The genus Rosa is distributed throughout the temperate andsubtropical regions of the Northern hemisphere and comprises some 100-150 species. Rose taxonomy is complicated due to the ease of interbreeding, limited morphological and anatomical characters to readily separate species, and the human impact by rose breeding. A number of species have been included in the Historic Rose Garden as being of historical or botanical importance as rootstock or ancestors of more modern roses.******************One popular species is R. banksia. These roses are characterized by beautiful tiny white or yellow flowers, a lack of prickles and an ability to climb up and over almost anything. |
R. banksia normalis (Fondly known as 'Broadway Banks' because after climbing more than 60 feet up in this pine tree, it can be seen from Broadway.) |
Single flower blooms of R. banksia normalis |
Historically, classification of roses was based on petal color. The first to attempt to classify roses scientifically was Linnaeus in the 18th century who did so primarily by hip size, shape, and color. Later botanists introduced the presence and form of prickles as well as fine hairs and occurrence of glands as relevant identification characters. From then on, the number of described species increased into several thousand. |
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Left: R. banksia lutea climbing on a Cypress tree.Above: R. banksia lutea blooms |
R. banksia lutescens blooms |
R. banksia lutescens plant |
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Left: R. banksia banksia plant climbing in a yew treeAbove: R. banksia banksia's double blooms |
Species roses are the ancestors of hybrids and many modern roses. Throughout history, these roses were used for many things. For example, R. damascene was (and is) used to obtain rose oil and R. multiflora was a common hedgerow planted to aid erosion control in the Midwest in the 1930’s. For this reason as well as for their beauty, a number of species roses are to be found in the Historic Rose Garden. |
Blooms of R. banksia hybrid, "The Pearl" |
R. cinnamomea blooms are typical for species roses - five petals white, pink or colored like apple blossoms.
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R. cinnamomea shows beautiful autumn color. |
R. canina shows off bright hips beginning in August |
R. spinossissima (AKA Pimpinellifolia) is readily identified by it's red, spiny twigs, bristles and prickles. Hips turn black in autumn. |
R. webbiana blooms resemble apple blossoms |
R. moschataThis photo was taken at the end of November, showing that some species bloom throughout the fall and into early winter. |
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