This is a photo of R. spithamea, which has red stigmas. There are some roses whose stigmas darken with age (like Tuscany Superb), but this one is red when it opens. Does anyone know any other roses with colored stigmas?
Jim,
I’ve noticed that virginiana and carolina clones usually have pinkish to red stigma pads. I have one virginiana clone (I call “Glenstone” after the location it was collected from) that could be a twin (colorwise) for your spithamea. Basye’s Purple has very dark reddish purple stigmas. Although the whole flower is relatively dark, so there’s not so much contrast. I think my palustris has pink stigma pads also, if I’m remembering right. I really like the dark “eyes” of the “Glenstone” virginiana, and I’m hoping to breed this trait into reblooming types someday.
I may have some seeds forming right now (the hips haven’t dropped yet) on a Floribunda from “Glenstone” pollen. Time will tell.
Wouldn’t it be neat, to combine the red stigma pad with the red “eye” pattern of Hulthemia persica or Ralph Moore’s Halo roses.
I forgot to mention the other rose in my garden with colored stigmas - Austrian Copper (R. foetida bicolor). It has dark reddish-brown stigmas.
I call this R. spithamea clone ‘Casa de Tierra’ (or just CdT), because it grows wild on my property, and my house is called ‘Casa de Tierra’. I’ve been looking at other pictures of R. spithamea on the internet, and it seems that most of them don’t have colored stigmas. A few have pink stigmas, but none as deeply colored as CdT. I’ve also seen clones of R. californica and R. arkansana that have pale pink stigmas.
R. spithamea is a dwarf species. CdT only grows to about 1 foot tall. I like big roses, so I haven’t bred with CdT before, but I do like that red dot, so I did a few crosses with it this year.
Tom, would be interested in trading Glenstone for CdT?