I have repeatedly heard that Portland offspring are quite partial to mildew. Even though that hasn’t happened to me as of yet, I don’t feel I can be the exception. Has anyone tried crossing rugosas and Portland roses to try and remove their ills?
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Yes, I have made several attempts in recent years, but unfortunately without success so far. Either the rose hips aborted very early or the very few seedlings that saw the light of day were susceptible to disease and not vigorous. The genes simply seem to be too far apart.
The only chance of success is probably to find a Rugosa hybrid with Chinese blood influence that roughly matches the Chinensis strain fairly accurate of the Portland rose. This would certainly require a large number of parent roses and pollinations. Nevertheless, I still make a few crosses every year and let you know if I notice anything interesting.
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I started embarking on this cross this year on accident! I have rose de rescht that i have tried to use and cross, but no hips ever took. On a whim i decided to cross it with basyes purple and blanc double de coubert to see if they would take. The goal was to see if reblooming carried through to the seedlings. Both pollens took and now i have ripening hips! I dont know what i am expecting, but i have high hopes for both crosses.
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I am excited about the result, rose de Rescht has given me empty hips before… I hope you don’t get the same fate
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James, i have also gotten empty hips from rose de rescht before, i am hoping there will be at least one seed per hip. Ive noticed that these hips have swelled more and stayed on the plant longer than the empty ones i have gotten in the past, so i have my fingers crossed.
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Please keep us posted, even into potential germination!
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You can try to use Portlands as pollen parents. I found ‘Comte de Chambord’ is difficult to set hips, but if add its pollen on very fertile seed parents, it works.
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