''Rosa'' 'Wildeve' (aka AUSbonny) is a pink blend

shrub rose Garden roses are predominantly Hybrid (biology), hybrid roses that are grown as ornamental plants in private or public gardens. They are one of the most popular and widely cultivated groups of flowering plants, especially in temperate climates. A ...

cultivar, created by British rose breeder

David C. H. Austin David Charles Henshaw Austin (16 February 1926 at Albrighton, Bridgnorth, Albrighton – 18 December 2018 in the same village) was a British rose breeder and writer who lived in Shropshire, England. His emphasis was on breeding roses with t ...

in 1995. The rose was named for the character, Damon Wildeve, in Thomas Hardy's book,

The Return of the Native ''The Return of the Native'' is Thomas Hardy's sixth published novel. It first appeared in the magazine ''Belgravia'', a publication known for its sensationalism, and was presented in twelve monthly installments from January to December 1878. Be ...

. The rose was introduced into the UK by David Austin Roses Limited (UK) in 2003.

Description

'Wildeve' is a medium-tall bushy shrub rose, in height, with a spread, on long, arching branches. The rose has little or no fragrance. Its flowers are in diameter, with a quartered, rosette bloom form. Bloom colour is light pink, sometimes with touches of apricot, and the colour fades to near white at the edges. Flowers are carried in small clusters. Leaves are large, semi-glossy and dark green. The rose blooms continually blooms throughout the growing season.

History

David Austin roses

David C. H. Austin (1926–2018) was an award-winning rose breeder, nursery owner and writer from

Shropshire Shropshire (; alternatively Salop; abbreviated in print only as Shrops; demonym Salopian ) is a landlocked historic county in the West Midlands region of England. It is bordered by Wales to the west and the English counties of Cheshire to th ...

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

. When he was young, he was attracted to the beauty of old garden roses, especially the Gallicas, the Centifolias and the Damasks, which were popular in nineteenth century

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

. Austin began breeding roses in the 1950s with the goal of creating new shrub rose varieties that would possess the best qualities of old garden roses while incorporating the long flowering characteristics of

hybrid tea rose Hybrid tea is an informal horticultural classification for a group of garden roses. The first hybrid tea roses were created in France in the mid-1800s, by cross-breeding the large, floriferous Hybrid Perpetuals with the tall, elegant Tea roses. T ...

s and floribundas. His first commercially successful rose cultivar was 'Constance Spry', which he introduced in 1961. He created a new, informal class of roses in the 1960s, which he named "English Roses". Austin's roses are generally known today as "David Austin Roses". Austin attained international commercial success with his new rose varieties. Some of his most popular roses include 'Wife of Bath' (1969), 'Graham Thomas' (1983), 'Abraham Darby' (1985) and 'Gertrude Jekyll' (1986).

'Wildeve'

Austin developed the new by crossing an unnamed seedling with 'Golden Celebration'. Six resulting seedlings of that cross were chosen and grafted onto 'Laxa' ( Rosa canina 'Laxa') rootstock. This new cultivar was given the name 'Ausbonny'. 'Wildeve' was introduced into the UK by David Austin Roses Limited (UK) in 2003. The rose was named for the character, Damon Wildeve, in Thomas Hardy's book,

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Rosa 'Wildeve' Wildeve 2003 introductions