Portland, what thoughtful gift. I hope that your friend can smile everytime her beautiful rose blooms.

What a sweet story, Portland. Very heartwarming.

Titian gosh I would have been so disappointed if that had happened to me, but I hope as the years have passed that it's become a funny story for you now.

Carol,

What a thoughtful gesture. Is the story of Five Yuan explained somewhere?

Trish

A box with a stick inside! Those dogs must have thought it was Christimas!

That is incredibly generous of you, Carol. What a thoughtful memorial! My most expensive rose so far? Probably Prairie Peace, which was very hard to find. Alas, I couldn't take one of my rooted baby roses with me when I left Seattle because spinosissimas don't do well in my region, according to a paper I read about our specific local blackspot fungus. I did give a small plant to my parents, hoping that it survives and that I can dig a runner someday if I move to a region where it will flourish.

Carol, it looks like a rose that will make your neighbor smile with its delightfulness. Very kind. Money well spent.

Your neighbor is so lucky to have you. The best gift is a thoughtful gift. I hope it brings her years of joy♡

Probably, the "most expensive" rose here was not ordered, and not paid for in dollars. It is a rose that grew for a century or more in my family's cemetery in Adina, TX. and we found it when we travelled there.

We THINK it came from my Great-Grandfather's home there. It's gone from there now, sadly, but "The China From Adina" flourishes here.

In the cemetery

In Camarillo

I bet your neighbor loves the gift.

Prices just keep going up these days, but I guess my most expensive would probably be 'Belle Isis'. It wasn't available anywhere in the US last Spring when I was looking for it so at that time I ordered a custom root from Freedom Gardens. If all goes right, it will ship this fall.

But this past November it briefly became available at RVR for the first time I can remember, so I bought one. I'm not sure it's the right rose as it doesn't look like other Gallicas. But 'Belle Isis' is not a typical Gallica so....waiting for a flower or the Freedom Gardens one to confirm. I figure this one has cost me the most in time and money when all is said and done. Hope it can adapt to conditions here.

We grew 'Belle Isis' for a time, long ago. You're right! It's not (as far as my limited experience with them goes) a "typical" Gallica . . . but it DID bloom here more than some. We finally removed it because it suckered more than any other rose we'd grown, and it became not worth the hassle. Lovely, however.

@jerijen I don't have a whole lot of experience with them either, but the foliage of the others I bought this spring match their pictures at HMF, Not Belle Isis, though. The foliage looks a little too smooth, and the new leaves are red. Should they be red?

Like you, I had it briefly a long time ago for one season just before I moved, but I don't remember it well enough to ID the one I have now. One thing I DO remember is it sending out runners as soon as I put in it the ground. So I can imagine it would spread far and wide if given the room.

I don't remember it well enough, either. It must have been around 1990. The suckers . . . Those DO sound like it! That's sure what it did here.

Take a look at these leaves in HMF:

'Belle Isis ' Rose Photo (helpmefind.com)

They don't seem very "Gallica-ish" do they? (Though, the buds do.)

No, they don't. Without knowing, I would have guessed it was maybe a Damask. Most of the references speculate it's some kind of hybrid of Gallica with Centifolia or Damask. Whatever it is, it's beautiful.

Nice gesture. 5 Yuan is an odd name for the most expensive rose. I think it equates to about 80 cents USD.

Personally, I rather prefer the name "5,000 Camellias Temple Rose".

Thanks for the stories. I hope your neighbor loves it!

Personally, I try not to think about how much I spend/spent on my roses.

Noseometer - yeah, LOL, me too.

Lovely gesture, Carol, and I hope it gives your neighbor some comfort. I can think of few things worse than losing a child.

Re 'Belle Isis', could it possibly have some R. arvensis in its ancestry? If I remember correctly it has the myrrh fragrance. Mine, fortunately, grows in a ditch, and has all the room to expand it can seize, as it's surrounded by large unconquerable varieties and equally invasive neighors.

My budget philosophy is that, once the bills are paid and financial obligations met, the rest cannot be better spent than on plants.

I never add up how much I’ve spent on roses, or even how many roses I have. Rose math is as over rated as algebra, it’s not needed for real life.

@Melissa Northern Italy zone 8 You're right! R. arvensis / Ayrshire is another one that is suggested as a parent. I wonder if 'Belle Isis' will ever have it's DNA done.

I love your budget philosophy!