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Identifying Gallica

lebva26lebva26 Posts: 4
in Plants
Hello--I believe I have a Gallica rose at the end of the driveway of our mid-1800s farmhouse in the eastern US. About 10" tall, not prone to black spot, tolerant of droughty summer conditions and cold winters (January lows of -12 C).  Any feedback would be appreciated. Thanks so much--

Posts

  • NollieNollie Posts: 7,529
    If it’s a gallica it’s probably Gallica Officinalis, the ‘Apothecary Rose’. I did also wonder about The Portland Rose.

    I don’t have either, but hopefully having bumped your post up the list by replying, someone else can confirm for you.

    Mountainous Northern Catalunya, Spain. Hot summers, cold winters.
  • lebva26lebva26 Posts: 4
    Thank you so much!
  • NollieNollie Posts: 7,529
    No problem, hoped someone would pop in and confirm that for you. NB, The Portland Rose does repeat flower some, so that may rule that in or out. @bédé you grow a lot of gallicas, what do you think?
    Mountainous Northern Catalunya, Spain. Hot summers, cold winters.
  • MarlorenaMarlorena Posts: 8,705
    I'm not seeing a Gallica rose there, maybe a Portland Damask type or hybrid Rugosa even..  the foliage looks similar to the Portland's but who knows what may be found in American gardens.. one can only speculate I think..

    Gallica roses have mid green matt foliage, heavily ridged, and prickles that are both long and short all down the stem..  
    Here are 2 Gallicas..




    ..this is another Gallica showing the thorny nature.. with both long and short prickles.. of course this is common in other roses too..

    East Anglia, England
  • bédébédé Posts: 3,095
    edited June 2023
    My Rosa gallica that I call "officinalis" is a reversion from "rosamundi".  So not the best standard.  Yours does have the zinging rose-pink colour of mine.  Not fully double with a pale centre.  Gallica leaves.

    Asfar as height goes, mine are about 4 foot.  The British convention would read 10" as ten inches.
     location: Surrey Hills, England, ex-woodland acidic sand.
    "Have nothing in your garden that you don't know to be useful, or believe to be beautiful."
  • lebva26lebva26 Posts: 4
    Thank you, bédé, and Marlorena. This is very helpful.  I'm leaning toward rugosa at this point, maybe more along the lines of the beach roses that occur in the US, given their similar height. Mine are also quite short, about 10-12 inches tall, with none growing higher, though without the tendency to spread. Thanks very much for the feedback.
  • bédébédé Posts: 3,095
    edited July 2023
    They could also be rugosa just from the pic.  Leaves would show the difference.  Puckered, glossy  and very healthy dark green.   Rugosa is continuous flowering.

    So when you said 10" you meant 10".
     location: Surrey Hills, England, ex-woodland acidic sand.
    "Have nothing in your garden that you don't know to be useful, or believe to be beautiful."
  • lebva26lebva26 Posts: 4
    Thank you, bédé. I just went out and rechecked the leaves, and the leaves are matte, slightly puckered and mid-green, not dark green or glossy. And yes, they are very short roses at 10 or 12 inches. They only bloom once, in June, so perhaps not rugosa, and they have a fair amount of thorns.  Maybe we're back to some kind of Gallica/hybrid Gallica (I've gardened for years, but have little experience with roses). Some vinca minor leaves also appear in  one of the photos.. 


  • bédébédé Posts: 3,095
    Nice little rose though.  If it's wild near you, someone local should know it.  All my wild flowwr books are UK or Europe.
     location: Surrey Hills, England, ex-woodland acidic sand.
    "Have nothing in your garden that you don't know to be useful, or believe to be beautiful."
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