When I first developed an interest in roses, these were simply called old-fashioned. That is the name I always used, and it comes naturally to me to refer to something like a damask or alba as old-fashioned rather than antique. But times change, and now they are officially “Antique”. Though for me, they are still, and always will be, “old-fashioned”. Perhaps it’s me who fits that description.
Remember This Date: 1867
Antique, old-fashioned, heirloom, old garden roses (OGR). Call these what you will, they are all different names for the same thing… roses bred or existing before 1867. Why that date? Because that was when the very first ‘modern rose’ was released, the Hybrid Tea La France.
The only trouble with such a precise date is that you then technically shouldn’t call a rose bred in 1868 an Antique, even if it is part of a family that goes back before that date. Some of the Moss roses for example, were being bred right up to 1880, but they shouldn’t be classified as “modern roses” just because they happened to be created a couple of years too late.
An example of this, is an old Moss rose called “Soupert et Notting”. This was bred in 1874 so I suppose it meets the criteria of being called a modern rose. But I refuse to do so 😉
Speaking of Moss roses, have you ever noticed how most of them have French names? The French were very passionate about a lot of things back then (they had finished cutting off aristocrats heads about 80 years previously), and they contributed greatly to the popularity of roses.
Vive la France!
Making Sense of Rose Classifications
It’s confusing for anyone other than full-time rosarians… How exactly are roses classified? Here is the beginner’s guide to rose classification.
First, let’s remember that important date, 1867.
- Rose types (or classes) before 1867 are classed as Old Garden Roses.
- Roses after that date are defined as Modern Roses.
So far, so good. Within that broad definition of Old Garden, we have the classes. Gallica, Alba, Damask, and so on. And within that, the different varieties. And in the modern roses, it’s the same thing. We have the various classes, such as Hybrid Tea, Floribunda, etc. Anything in the definition of modern roses that cannot be placed into a type can be classed as a shrub rose. This is really a catchall for those roses that simply will not fit into a type.
An example of that is David Austin’s English Roses. It’s a complex subject, and this guide only gives the very basics.
More History On The Old Fashioned Roses
Around 1820 was the time that crosses between European and China roses began. This was the beginning of a whole new era in roses – my favorite! Before this time, roses from the West had a short single bloom in summer, and a limited color range. The Oriental roses, on the other hand, were repeat flowering, with more colors, but tended to be less hardy in the colder European climate.
So began the period of crosses between the varieties – breeders of the time were looking for a hardy, repeat flowering rose. Also missing, was a true deep yellow…although it was still another 60 odd years until a good yellow was produced.
Cross a single bloom rose with a repeat bloomer, and what do you get? Actually, you get another single blooming rose. But cross that back with repeat blooming varieties, and you begin to see more repeat varieties …that was the start of what I consider the “golden age” of rose breeding. Never before (or since) has so much rose breeding taken place, particularly by the French.
Let’s look at the complete “Old Fashioned” or “Antique” rose classes so we can get a sense of the development of roses up until the start of modern roses in 1867.
The Old-Fashioned Rose Classes
Species / Wild Roses
The foundation of all garden roses. Not always listed as “Old Garden Roses,” but they are the starting point.
Gallica Roses
Among the oldest cultivated European roses, usually compact, once-flowering, richly colored, and very historic.
Damask Roses
Famous for fragrance and perfume use, including Summer Damasks and Autumn Damasks.
Alba Roses
Tall, elegant, hardy roses with pale flowers and grey-green foliage.
Centifolia Roses
The classic Cabbage Roses, full of petals and strongly associated with old rose art and perfume.
Moss Roses
Closely related to Centifolias and Damasks, famous for their mossy, resinous buds and stems.
China Roses
Important because they brought repeat flowering and new breeding possibilities into European roses.
Tea Roses
Graceful, warm-climate roses with refined blooms, tea-like fragrance and major influence on modern roses.
Portland Roses
Compact, fragrant, repeat-flowering roses that bridge old European roses and later repeat bloomers.
Bourbon Roses
Fragrant, repeat-flowering roses that combined old rose beauty with China rose influence.
Noisette Roses
Important repeat-flowering climbers and cluster-flowered roses, with a strong American/French connection.
Hybrid Perpetual Roses
The great Victorian roses: large, fragrant, richly colored, and a major stepping stone toward Hybrid Teas.
Other Historic Rose Groups
There are other historic rose groups that rose enthusiasts may come across, including Ayrshire roses, Boursault roses, Sempervirens hybrids and early Hybrid Musks. These are interesting in their own right, especially for climbers, ramblers and old garden collections, but they are more specialist than the main Old Garden Rose classes covered here.
Ayrshire Roses: vigorous old rambling roses, often associated with Rosa arvensis, useful historically for covering walls, banks and trees.
Boursault Roses: early thornless or nearly thornless climbers, often with flexible canes and spring to early summer flowers.
Sempervirens Hybrids: old evergreen or semi-evergreen ramblers/climbers descended from Rosa sempervirens, valued for graceful growth and clusters of flowers.
Hybrid Musk Roses: technically later than the classic Old Garden Roses, but often loved by old-rose gardeners for their graceful shrub habit, clustered blooms and soft musk fragrance.
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