I spent hours dreaming during the winter about what I was going to cross this year and worked on my list of crosses I would like to try. Anyone make these crosses yet or know if these will work or not?
OK ‘Knockout’ is my favorite seed parent so far. Everything gets crossed with ‘Knockout’. I have found lots of variability in Knockout seedlings and (so far) usually bicolors (I’m guessing the high percentage of red/white bicolors are actually OP seedlings…although they have great dark green foliage and no signs of disease, I don’t have room to keep them).
Knockout x Excellenz von schubert (not much if any pollen/may be dead end…but I gotta try, almost guaranteed futility)
Knockout x Mrs. RM Finch (ditto above)
Knockout x Bella’Roma (somewhat bs prone but still love it, lotsa pollen…this cross is high on my list)
Knockout x Mardi Gras (great rose so far, maybe a little pollen)
Knockout x Graham Thomas (not the most vigorous rose for me so far- hope to spread its color)
Knockout x Sunsprite (bs magnet even though most peeps claim it’s disease resistant, whatever)
Knockout x Welcome Home (ditto)
Knockout x Guinee (great rose, an exciting cross…I’m gonna work with Guinee as much as I can this year)
Knockout x Peace (obligatory cross there)
Knockout x Golden Masterpiece (GM is a new rose for me…so far I’m loving it, great rose…exciting cross)
Knockout x Once blooming, shade tolerant, free flowering found rose (possibly Seven Sisters)
I’m gonna work with ‘Prosperity’ as much as possible this year also. BTW no-one ever lists ‘Prosperity’ as being evergreen as I have found it to be for me…the only drawback to this is that it helps carry blackspot on into the next year…not completely over-run with it though. Good rose, I hope it turns out to be a decent seed parent for me.
Prosperity x Peace (I’m VERY excited about making this cross and its reciprocal)
Prosperity x Graham Thomas
Prosperity x Bella’Roma
Prosperity x Unnamed Knockout Seedling (Think this would be a super cross…)
Prosperity x Sunsprite
Prosperity x Golden Masterpiece (excited about this one too)
Prosperity x Guinee
Prosperity x Ballerina
I’m gonna give Peace a try as a seed parent and see if she does alright for me.
Peace x Prosperity (a MUST for me…high up on my list)
Peace x Unnamed Knockout seedling (exciting cross)
Peace x Bella’Roma
Miscellaneous Crosses:
Sunsprite x Unnamed Knockout Seedling (hoping to improve bs resistance…of sunsprite)
Sunsprite x Bella’Roma (I doubt I’ll be happy with the BS factor of this cross though…not high on my list)
Carefree Beauty x Bella’Roma
Carefree Wonder x Unnamed Knockout Seedling
Carefree Delight x Unnamed Knockout Seedling
Graham Thomas x Unnamed Knockout Seedling
Red Rugosa x Guinee
White Rugosa x Mardi Gras (already done this, first crosses of the year)
Poinsettia x Guinee (Poinsettia is a new rose for me, looking good so far…an exciting cross for me)
Some roses that are new to me this year that I’m gonna spread around as it’s given to me (if there’s anything to spread…Reminds me of the blues song about being called the “spreadenator”):
Ann Harkness
Apricot Queen
Persian Flame
Sequoia Ballet
Mariposa Gem (gonna be free flowering…lotsa buds…seems to be a great rose so far)
Cardinal de’Richelieu (any pollen on this one?..lotsa buds…just about to open)
Royal Gold
Lady X (excellent leaf texture…would go good with Knockout)
Golden Masterpiece (Lotsa buds on this one too, so far the best yellow I’ve got…I’m excited about it)
Poinsettia (doing good so far…excited about using it as a seed parent)
Guinee …not a new rose for me (as I’ve had it for some years) but it simply languished as a budded rose (didn’t like the root stock apparently). This year I got the bud union to produce some of its own roots and it’s shooting out from the base like crazy. I’m gonna be using it alot.
Some roses that are doing sad for me in a spray free environment (bs defoliation/languishing away):
Angel Face (sad, it would be a good seed parent otherwise…so far she has refused to die on me though and still gives me seed)
Henry Fonda (really sad, I would love this rose otherwise)
Betty Boop (every year I’m surprised she is still hanging on)
Golden Showers (really wish I could squeeze out some crosses from this one as I would like to perpetuate some siblings of Charlotte Armstrong…guess I need to do a Knockout x Chrysler Imperial cross and be happy… this is one rose that I’ve had for years that won’t die- but just languishes on year after year)
I’m sorta tired of growing rugosa seedlings and seedlings from Robin Hood and Carefree Delight (although I do every year). It seems they are always in continual bloom though and they always get stuck with pollen when I have nothing else to put it on. My parents yard is getting quite full of them (I don’t have room to keep them in my own). I’m sure something cool will eventually come out of it though.