Today I pollinated my first roses, not a planned cross. I finially had pollen of a possible tetraploid rugosa Blanc Double de Coubert, and my Prospero was the only rose available today for pollination. Now I am extreamly hopeful that this will result in a tetraploid, and no triploid. Lets see if I do have a tetraploid Blanc… I wonder what the result will be? If the color white gene is dominant and will result white offspring, or that ugly rugosa shadey pink color, or even beautiful smoldering purple colors… or even the normal pink shades. Will it be packed with petals, or just a few… I have much in store for “Blanca” (I use that name for short) this season. I don’t have great expectations for this cross, just hopes that I will get a fertile tetraploid rugosa hybrid.
Enrique
Enrique,
Can you please contact me via email…I have an important message for you!
Thanks,
Paul
Hello Enrique,
Last year I tried crossing lots of (mostly David Austin) roses with Prospero and not one hip would set. Have you ever had luck hybridizing that rose? It is a beautiful rose and I would love to get some crosses out of it.
Thank you,
Libby
‘Prospero’ works as a pollen parent only, in my experience. Find a good seed parent and try again using 'Prospero’s pollen.
Regards,
Paul
I’ve used Prospero with good success, but sets very little seed, generally 2 to 4 seeds. I had used Queen Elizabeth, Mon Cheri, Love Potion and Reine des Violettes with it last season. In my experiance, Prospero is bad as a pollen parent, the other parent’s hip usually shrivels up in a month or two. I had bought this for the purpose of breeding red Austins. In my experiance, Prospero was the most disease resistant of my roses, but lets see this year. Maybe it enjoys it’s spot next to The Fairy and Betty Prior.
Enrique
Hello Enrique,
If you are looking for a good David Austin red rose with disease resistance you might consider his new William Shakespeare 2000 (or 2002?) He claims it is the most disease resistant red he has ever produced. I have three, and so far so good, but they haven’t really taken off yet. Prospero has been pretty healthy in my yard, a little rust, but not bad.
Libby
Well, I have learned that the English compliment themselves a bit too much (the roses I mean). All new roses claim that they are incredible breakthroughs, the most disease resistant, the best and the most perfect. It justs feeds to our human mentality; “I want bigger and better.” I got Evelyn because it was touted the most fragrant of the English roses, but that’s not true. It’s very good and especially strong, but not the most fragrant. That was the one reason why I traded her in for an unpatented rose. So I’m going to restrain myself from getting William Shakespeare 2000 for a while until I hear more of it.