My Euphrates plant has been in a large pot now for 3 weeks, planted bare root. It has put out loads of new growth and flower buds are already appearing.
I am very surprised with all this amount of growth and flower buds, so soon after the planting?!
Its half polyantha…
You were right, it is a good cultivar to have, in its own right!
Current Persica crosses going now:
Summer Wind x Persian Flame : 3 hips going.
Persian Flame x Im too tred to recall right now … total failure.
Playboy x Eyes for You : 3 hips going.
Any other Persica crosses also failed (Im too tired to even look right now).
Euphrates, even if not a good breeder, is a nice period piece addition to the garden. I view Nigel Hawthorn the same way. Its too bad they are not likely crossable because it would have potential.
Wow…that’s great that you got those persica hips going! Hope you get seeds and hybrid persica babies…will be waiting to see results, from across the ocean… LOL
Yeah, time will tell. Its sad but Im more looking forward to Summer Wind x Rose Gilardi and Playboy x Shadow Dancer. I dont know why Im enthralled by those crosses but Im eager to see them.
So Michael, did you try any crosses with Nigel Hawthorne or just not bother with it in the end?
They failed lol.
Hi Jadae,
‘Eyes for You’ is where I’d put my efforts next year - but I guess that goes without saying considering your success with that one this year! You should get something interesting with it from ‘Playboy’.
Jim Sproul
Hmmm…
Simon how about you?! Has your Altissimo X Euphrates seed germinated?
Not yet… was looking at them this afternoon, willing them to open… alas there was nothing except big hard impervious looking seeds poking fun of me. I think I’m at the point where I’m going to crack them (we’ll see who is laughing then 
), and try to culture them (Altissimo seeds were easy to extract the embryo from) and put all my effort into getting Euphrates pollen to stick to something else with more reliable germination. Warren Millington has just joined Rose Talk and has used Altissimo extensively as a seed parent, because to steal Paul’s phrase, Altissimo is a rose hoe, so I’m hoping to pick his brains on different strategies I might be able to use to get these hard nuts to ‘crack’.
However!!! I have heard on the grape vine that there are three persica hybrids being evaluated somewhere in Australia (my guess is at Swanes’ tests grounds but I’m not 100% certain)… not sure which ones, where, or what they are but I’m guessing they are the Interplant ones… we may have some more advanced hybrids to work with soon enough. In the mean time I’m just going to throw its pollen at everything that has been a strong seed setter and germinator for me this season to try and just get something going…
three persica hybrids being evaluated somewhere in Australia<<<<<<
If this is true, its about time!