Nice list of roses you've found, Jackie. I don't think I've seen any old roses around here. Too much new construction I guess. Too bad, it would be a very exciting project. Lisa

Has anyone else found old roses growing near where they live? I actually could have listed some more which I could have taken cuttings of near us, but I did not because I already had them, or didn't want them:

banksia lutea (appears to have naturalized here - many many large trees burst forth in all tiny yellow roses every Spring)

Maman Cochet

de la Grifferaie

Garden Party

Perle d"Or

Jackie

I have quite a few found roses since I took part in a national rustling program but the problem with these roses is that they wander too much. Over here in Sweden we are not used to own root roses so it's a new problem for me. Most of them are as bad as Charles de Mills and Belle de Crécy so I've realized that they are too much for my half acre garden. If I had more space I'd be happy to let them roam.

mariannese - Do you know what kind of roses they are? Are they just growing too large, or are they putting up suckers and spreading? "Own root" should not make any difference unless the rose has the habit of suckering in the first place. Not all roses do that. None of my "found" roses do it.

Jackie

Though this area was settled in the later 1800's, there are no roses here leftover from earlier days. There WAS what I think was likely 'Mme. Gregoire Staechelin' (1927) but it was bulldozed before I could root it.

There are, however, other things. A monstrously-large Kalanchoe, a Hylocereus undatus, some very unusual aloes, and a neat epiphyllum.

Some of these, I think, are due to the fact that an early State Senator, who lived not far away, did a lot of business with this area. He was an amateur botanist and an importer of rarities, and I think he shared plants with people he wanted to strengthen ties to. There are a few other things, too . . .

There's something really special about preserving the plants that made your area special in earlier times.

You go Susan!

Susan - I am so curious - can you post pics of your found mystery roses? That is how I got many of mine identified. Not necessary, of course, but fun. The rest I got identified by taking blooming cuttings of them to the Celebration of Old Roses - they have a table where you can put "unknowns", and so many rose experts come to it that it usually does not take long to get a name.

Jackie

Jackie I tried and GW wouldn't take them from my phone. I will send some in the morning from my desktop. Would love to know the names.

My foundlings are mostly gallicas and spinosissimas and they spread like wildfire by suckers. Two found bourbons do the same.

I'm always looking for old irises, and old roses, growing in people's yards as I walk, drive or ride my bike. It's really a lot of fun and the thought of finding something one of a kind is exciting. When it comes to roses, I most often come across New Dawn. This was one of the first roses I obtained cuttings from and rooted back when I was a teenager living with my parents. It quickly took over the side yard where I had planted it, and eventually had to give it away. I also see lots of multiflora ramblers along the lines of Dorothy Perkins. I've come across American Pillar, what I think is White Dawn and also Banshee more than once. The two more interesting I've found are ones I posted about here on gardenweb. The first I'm pretty sure now is Charles Lawson:

http://forums.gardenweb.com/discussions/1669416/help-id-pink-gallica

The second I thought was Cramoisi Picotee, but others say no:

http://forums.gardenweb.com/discussions/3961002/you-think-its-cramoisi-picote

-Chris

mariannese - that explains why they spread so much! I have been lucky - the ones I have found have not been suckering types.

Chris - those are gorgeous roses! Now you have done it, and I am lusting after Charles Lawson, particularly since it would like our warm climate.

Susan - I am looking forward to seeing your pictures!

Jackie

Banshee grew happily on my great grandparents' family farm in Penobscot County, Maine. My father rooted it and distributed it among various relatives. I kept mine in a pot for a few years, but it never ever opened without balling here. Great in the brutal climates of northern Maine, but not so good in sunny Mediterranean climate of California. It suckers madly, which no doubt contributed to its survival far and wide.

The house I live in here in California was built in 1940, which makes it an old house for my area. There were a few houses here earlier, but most of those are long gone. When we first moved here 20+ years ago, there were several roses, mostly mid-century HTs and mostly not of much interest to me. However, there was one huge, magnificent climber. It turned out to be Cl Shot Silk, a 1931 release, therefore modern for the time in which I believe it was planted. Unfortunately we needed to move it for foundation and sewer line repairs. It struggled for a year, then died. If it was planted when I think it was, the rose was about 60 years old at the time. In the meanwhile I rooted several which I gave away. A few weeks ago, one of the recipients in turn rooted several and gave two back to me. And one of those is now awaiting planting at the SJHRG. The other I passed along to a woman who was getting a divorce and starting a garden in a new home.

I have since re-planted Cl Shot Silk which I obtained from another source, and so far (it is only three years old), it is not as robust as the one that originally came with the house. Of course it is not on direct feed from a damaged sewer line, either. I'm going to give it another year, then if it is still smallish, see if I can get another cutting from my friend.

Rosefolly

Charles Lawson seems like a good rose. Once-blooming, but very disease resistant and fragrant: Paul Barden on Charles Lawson

I would join your hunt Susan! Ive always gone scouting for roses. In general I collect cuttings along with hips. I've collected Blanc Double De Coubert and a number of others who I didn't recognize. I was part of an Antique rose show and at the end the blooms were given away. I mentioned I was interested in trying them as cuttings so a number were given to me along with a friend of mine. So a few more unnamed little guys till they grow out a bit more! As recently of yesterday a woman gave me six roses that had been growing in her garden from the previous owner. So far I'm not sure of their names or how old they are but I am quite happy to get them planted up :D two of the roses which were hacked back had root systems with a base so thick it was a tree trunk and I could't dig it up simply with my small shovel, I did find a tag buried at the base of one said it was from Roses of Yesterday and Today, its name was Kathleen a hybrid musk from 1922 so maybe not considered an Heirloom but still a fun find I think.....I better go get there six ladies planted!

Anyone who wants to hunt is welcome! Come on to Nashville. I posted back in the summer that I drove up to Knoxville to dig up some roses that a gal who used to post here was kind enough to give away. Those suckers were six feet tall and some of them were rooted in one gallon pots! It was near 100 degrees that day. I took cuttings first but I think all of them made it. Gruss an Zabern was one. Can't think of the others. Also took some cuttings out at the Hermitage. They have a pretty garden. Not too many roses tho (well there are never enough).

So these are the roses from my neighborhood.

I named this one Vanderbilt Crimson, CL. Very thorny. Asked here for ID before and no luck.

This one is Belmont Estate Peace CL. It is the most healthy, vigorous neglected climbing rose I have ever seen.

This is Hazelwood. Reminds me of Pegasus or some kind of Austin. Nice fragrance and super tough! It grows near a ratty apartment complex built in the 60s and gets blazing sun all day.

The others haven't bloomed yet. I took cuttings of a rambler and two climbing polys at the Belmont Estate. All of them rooted well. Can't wait to see them in the spring. Actually the little polys are giving some blooms. Fairy type roses. One is pink and one is white....in mostly shade. The Belmont Estate has the kind of grotto and fish pond I remember playing near as a kid. It was like a fairy wonderland. There are still fish in that thing and it has been vacant for years. If the dozers come I'm taking hydrangeas and lots of other stuff. May need U Haul.

Susan

Susan - the second rose certainly looks exactly like several pictures of Cl Peace on HMF - including the dark pink edging on some of the blooms. The general form of the blooms look like it too. I have a bush grown from a rooted cutting of a very old Cl Peace - the old one got about 12 feet high, climbing up a pomegranite bush. Vigorous indeed. Yours is probably a clone of an old bush also - they tell me Peace has "declined in commerce" from being cloned zillions of times - I think you and I have the original - only cloned once. We are lucky.

No thoughts on the other two pictures, but maybe someone else will have some. Thanks so much for posting them.

Jackie

Jackie, you are welcome! I love to show them off to like minded folks. I agree with you about the found Cl Peace. It is a beauty. Likely not virused either. Hazel wood is a real beauty! Nice fragrance too.

Uhhh . . . Susan, Peace was introduced 1935-1939 in Europe ... at the end of WWII in the U.S.

So, it came along long after virus had become widespread.

By maybe 1920, virus was merrily rolling along. After that, fuggetabahtit.

There's no real hope of ANY Peace that's virus-free ... unless someone has virus-indexed it.

Virus -- just because you don't see it -- that don't mean it ain't there.

That's scary, makes me kind of paranoid my roses could be infected. I've never seen any tell-tale signs of RMV but many of the bushes do seem to be rather feeble and the leaves are always browning (that could just be the hot dry climate).

Are you saying that all Peace roses are infected?!

Jeri, I stand corrected -- although I know when Peace was hybridized -- it may be virused but it's stronger and healthier than any other clone I've grown. Thanks.

I have never (being 27 years) seen any sign of RMV on my Peace either, although we do have 3 other HTs planted in the 1940s/50s which do show definite signs of it.

I know my Peace was grafted onto Dr. Huey, because that was the first rose I ever saw a root stock sucker on, and I remember my FIL telling me what it was and how to get rid of it. I think I did a good job, because after a couple of years it stopped putting out Dr. H suckers, and it lived for a total of over 50 years (about 22 years after the suckers disappeared). So, I think it had finally gotten on its own roots. It (and its baby clone which is happily growing in my garden) may well have been/be virused, but I don't care. The baby one is definitely on its own roots (I rooted it), and has never shown any signs of virus, and even does NOT (so far - about 4 years) get rust, although its parent did, badly. I think that might be because the old one was growing in too much shade, competing and tangled up with a large bush, while the baby one is planted out in the open and gets 4-6 hours of sun each day.

Anyway, I do think having a clone of a very old bush is the reason it is doing so well, virused or not.

Jackie

I agree Jackie.

I think I've already told my found rose story but don't mind repeating it. My husband was a mail carrier and had a walking route in a rough area of Knoxville for 10 yrs. in the 90's. He used to walk by an old deserted church and happened to notice that it had a big rosebush beside it. Eventually the church was torn down and the entire lot was bulldozed in preparation for some project or other. After awhile my husband noticed a little sprout from the bare ground and the little sprout bloomed. It was a rose! He dug it up, put it into a baggie from his lunch with a wet napkin wrapped around it and brought it home to me. We call it the Mechanicsville Beauty after the area where he found it.

I still have it but nearly lost it during the polar vortex. It hasn't been helped by the deer chomping on it recently. I have no idea what it is but it seems like an old rose. It is a cool medium pink double flower with a slightly darker reverse. It has a nice fragrance but not a heavy one. It is a slow grower. It looks a bit like some of the pictures of Mrs. Woods Lavender Pink Noisette. The next time it blooms I will try to post a picture. I should probably consider propagating somehow.

Not in yards, but there are many old roses in Oakland Cemetery in Atlanta. They have an annual plant sale and many are roses rooted from the ones in the cemetery. I bought Cramoisi Superieur and Perle d'Or and Mutablis from them.

For you, Jackie . . .

"Schmidt's Smooth Yellow":

Susan, just a wild and crazy guess, but do you see a resemblance between your "Hazelwood" and 'Jenny Wren'? I can't tell how large a bloom your rose has, nor what the habit or foliage look like, but the flower looks sorta similar to me. Your photo doesn't show the orangey inner petals, but that could be situational?

Or perhaps 'Claire Jacquier'?

I don't recognize your "Vanderbilt Crimson", either, but am curious if it is fragrant and if it ever has a white eye (white at the petal bases)?

I agree that 'Climbing Peace' is likely for your other foundling... they are all very nice finds.

Virginia

Well, I know New Dawn isn't considered an "old" rose, but it's been growing in my yard for over 80 years. My 100 yr old home has only had two prior owners and I have a record of most of the original plantings. I've replanted 3 natural rootings along with the two mother plants. There was another deep red, once bloomer that I thought was Dr Huey, but that died so I'm guessing it was something else. :( I also have two smaller beds with Orlean polyanthas of various colours. Mme N. LeVavasseur and another that looks similar, but isn't fragrant. I've Id'ed the ones that died as being in the Koster family and am replacing them. So far I have Margo Koster.

My neighborhood is oldish with wonderful mature plantings most originally done with a lot of thought and expertise, but new owners have tended to have a scorched earth policy towards this aesthetic. I fondly remember an old couple in their late nineties carefully tending to what I now realize were probably OGRs and other amazing plants, but I was too shy to ask for cuttings back then. I so regret it now. They died within a week of one another and the new owners pulled out every last plant and almost every tree. It broke my heart and looked ridiculous as the humongous house looked disproportionate to the lot size, whereas before it snuggled right it. (I do admit a few of the trees did need removal.) Their new plantings have now grown up, but when I see the house, I always see it how it used to look.

Jackie, did your fire station HT ever bloom?

Ha! My fire station HT (calling it Firehouse #51 at the moment) has not bloomed yet, although it has put up 2-3 additional canes to the original ones, and has grown taller, and taller, - it is now still in a pot in its deer cage ( the deer are neatly nipping off any leaves which protrude beyond the cage), and the tallest cane is about 6 feet high and going UP (our deer are short, so the top of the rose is not on their menu). All I can think of is that it is a climber (I do not think it is Dr. Huey - I have seen that come up all over our garden, and it does not look the same, especially not the new growth, which does not have the classic red edging to the new leaves).

Anyone have any thoughts?

Jackie

Oh, I forgot to add, "firestation #51" is very fragrant, and sometimes has 5, and sometimes 7 leaflets.

Several of the early 20th C. red Ht's had climbing sports, such as 'Climbing Richmond', 'Climbing Gen. MacArthur' and 'Climbing Meteor'. So whether you have a climber or just a shrub that's being trained to climb by the deer, those are worth a look.

Hopefully, it won't be several years before you have blooms.

Virginia

Thanks - when it DOES bloom, I will add those roses to my list of things to compare it to.

Jackie

"Are you saying that all Peace roses are infected?!"

Sure. But -- so what?

As long as it does well for you, don't worry about it. It's not likely to kill the plant, or even substantially impair it. For the most part, you might see some siz-zaggy lines on some leaves. And you might never see it.

But you MIGHT want to look around and see if a virus-indexed clone exists. If it does, I'd probably get that, if I wanted to grow 'Peace'. (I don't, it rusts horribly here. But if I did . . . )