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Finding Old Roses
by Ruth Knopf
"Tradd Street Yellow"..."German Cemetery Rose"..."The Sport"..."Cathryn's Bouquet"..."The Heart-Petal Rose." These are all roses growing in my garden. These aren't their official names, but rather descriptive ones that remind me where I found them. Learning their proper names will come with time, if at all. To me what is important is not the names, but the fact that these local roses are a part not only of our garden history but of our lives. Finding them creates a tie that binds them to your heart.
When I discovered old roses in 1976, there were few sources for buying them. Old roses were out of style, and nurseries usually offer only what is in demand. So in order to have roses I admired, I learned to root them and thus began my collecting. Whenever someone told me of a rose that had been in their family or was growing in an old garden, I went to see it and often returned with cuttings to try.
'Clothilde Soupert'
Photo © Stephen Scanniello
After a while I found myself looking for roses wherever I go. To be prepared, I take plastic bags and clippers in my car. I look for old roses in yards of older houses, cemeteries and vacant lots. I've become brave and have learned to knock on doors and explain my mission. At first the owner looks at you with suspicion, but when you finally see a smile, you know you've gotten the preservation message across and have secured a future for the rose. I always try to get as much history as possible about the rose and to photograph the plant and its location.
In the beginning, I collected anything that didn't look like a hybrid tea bush, and usually it was an old rose. After a while, your eye becomes trained to recognize the different forms various classes of roses take. You also learn to look for the way the leaves are shaped and grow, and you often have to do this from a distance. For example, although tea roses vary, they usually have an upright but graceful, spreading growth habit. The leaves are smooth though not shiny, and can be longer than average. If you can see this from the car, you know it calls for a closer look.
Identification is a controversial subject among some old-rose collectors and growers. Rose research is hard work and can often be a slow process. But it's rewarding, too—like unraveling a mystery. Still, the roses will be blooming in our gardens regardless of what we call them. And even if we eventually find our roses' official titles, I hope they will always keep their own special names—like "Tradd Street Yellow," "German Cemetery Rose," "Cathryn's Bouquet," and "The Heart-Petal Rose."
Ruth Knopf is a native of South Carolina who has collected and grown old roses for 18 years. She studies and photographs roses during her extensive travels in the U.S. and abroad.