The Great History Of Roses

It was roses, roses all the way.white rose represented York , and the red rose
- Robert Browningsymbolized Lancaster . Not surprisingly, the conflict
What's in a name? That which we call a rose; Bybetween these factions became known as the
any other name would smell as sweet.War of the Roses.
- William Shakespeare, Romeo and Juliet, Act 2In the seventeenth century roses were in such
scene 2high demand that roses and rose water were
Roses have a long and colorful history. Accordingconsidered as legal tender. In this capacity they
to fossil evidence, the rose is 35 million years old.were used as barter in the markets as well as for
Today, there are over 30,000 varieties of rosesany payments the common people had to make
and it has the most complicated family tree ofto royalty. Napoleon's wife Josephine loved roses
any known flower species.so much she established an extensive collection at
The cultivation of roses most likely began in AsiaChateau de Malmaison, an estate seven miles
around 5000 years ago. They have been part ofwest of Paris . This garden of more than 250
the human experience ever since and mentions ofrose varieties became the setting for Pierre
the flower are woven into a great many talesJoseph Redoute's work as a botanical illustrator
from the ancient world.and it was here Redoute completed his
And there are so many beautiful stories thatwatercolor collection "Les Rose," which is still
include roses through out the ages that we all canconsidered one of the finest records of botanical
recognize.illustration.
Greek mythology tells us that it was AphroditeCultivated roses werent introduced into Europe
who gave the rose its name, but it was theuntil the late eighteenth century. These
goddess of flowers, Chloris, who created it. Oneintroductions came from China and were repeat
day while Chloris was cleaning in the forest shebloomers, making them of great interest to
found the lifeless body of a beautiful nymph. Tohybridizers who no longer had to wait once a
right this wrong Chloris enlisted the help ofyear for their roses to bloom.
Aphrodite, the goddess of love, who gave herFrom this introduction, experts today tend to
beauty; then called upon Dionysus, the god ofdivide all roses into two groups. There are old
wine, who added nectar to give her a sweetroses (those cultivated in Europe before 1800)
scent. When it was their turn the three Gracesand modern roses (those which began to be
gave Chloris charm, brightness and joy. Thencultivated in England and France around the turn
Zephyr, the West Wind, blew away the clouds soof the 19th century).
that Apollo, the sun god, could shine and makeUntil the beginning of the 19th century, all roses in
the flower bloom. And so the Rose was...Europe were shades of pink or white. Our
In another story, an ancient Hindu legend, Brahmaromantic symbol of the red rose first came from
(the creator of the world) and Vishnu (theChina around 1800. Unusual green roses arrived a
protector of the world) argued over whether thefew decades later.
lotus was more beautiful than the rose. VishnuBright yellow roses entered the palette around
backed the rose, while Brahma supported the1900. It was the Frenchman Joseph
lotus. But Brahma had never seen a rose beforePermet-Ducher who is credited with the
and when he did he immediately recanted. As adiscovery. After more than 20 years of breeding
reward Brahma created a bride for Vishnu androses in a search for a hardy yellow variety, he
called her Lakshmi she was created from 108luck changed when one day he simply stumbled
large and 1008 small rose petals.across a mutant yellow flower in a field. We have
Several thousands of years later, on the otherhad yellow and orange roses ever since
side of the world in Crete , there are FrescoesThe rose is a phenomenal plant and is rightly
which date to c. 1700BC illustrating a rose withknown as the worlds favorite flower. No other
five-pedaled pink blooms. Discoveries of tombs inflower has ever experienced the same popularity
Egypt have revealed wreaths made with flowers,that the rose has enjoyed in the last fifth years.
with roses among them. The wreath in the tombIn temperate climates, roses are more widely
of Hawara (discovered by the Englishgrown than any other ornamental plant, and as
archaeologist William Flinders Petrie) dates tocut flowers they are forever in fashion.
about AD 170, and represents the oldestIt has been estimated that 150 million plants are
preserved record of a rose species still living.purchased by gardeners worldwide every year,
Roses later became synonymous with the worstand sophisticated breeding programs have
excesses of the Roman Empire when theproduced a plant that dominates the worlds cut
peasants were reduced to growing roses insteadflower market; the annual crop is calculated in
of food crops in order to satisfy the demands oftons. Roses have also made a tremendous
their rulers. The emperors filled their swimmingcontribution to the perfume industry.
baths and fountains with rose-water and sat onRoses boast an ancient lineage, and they are
carpets of rose petals for their feasts and orgies.intricately entwined in our history and culture. As a
Roses were used as confetti at celebrations, formotif, the rose has been and still is depicted in
medicinal purposes, and as a source of perfume.many national emblems. It has been adopted by
Heliogabalus used to enjoy showering his guestscountless political factions, and even by businesses
with rose petals which tumbled down from theand several international events. It is no wonder
ceiling during the festivities.so many of the beautiful rose varietals are
During the fifteenth century, the factions fightinggreatly appreciated and cultivated by hobby
to control England used the rose as a symbol. Thegardeners around the world.