Hybridising season is over, partly because my once-bloomers are done for the year and also because it’s hard to stay outside very long with all the smoke from the wildfires. We did have some relatively clear time yesterday, so despite temperatures in which eggs dropped on the hood of a car simply turn to charcoal, I went outside to see what took and what didn’t.
Curiously, R. woodsii ultramontana, which I crossed with almost everything I have, has produced fine hips, and all non-species with which I crossed it have nice-looking hips as well.
My zillions of varieties of R. arkansana, which I used only as a pollen parent, was a little more iffy. It took with the OGRs, but not with any of the modern roses.
R. persica was used only as a pollen parent because while it sets hips, there is never anything in them. FMM, ‘New Dawn’ and ‘Tuscany Superb’ all have large hips, but whether any seeds inside will be viable, we’ll have to wait and see.
Curiously, none of the crosses I made on the 8th and 9th of June took. I haven’t a clue why, but looking at my notes those were especially smoky mornings, and I wonder if that made any difference.
Mongol’s Hat does not seem to be willing to actually set hips. The hips aren’t dropping off, but they’re not growing, either.
42, however, is doing very well. I only allowed it one hip this year, hoping that instead it would consider making suckers so I can
spread it around. I crossed quite a few roses, including ‘Golden Celebration’ and ‘Dragon’s Blood’ with it, and all have nice hips growing.
The summer has been extremely hot and dry and already some of the hips are showing color. Fortunately those @#$% beetles have not been a real problem this year. Now the problems are rabbits and voles, but Vinny, and Seymour the Barn Cat can deal with those.
How’s the hybridising for you this year?
