Lorraine Lee: Perhaps Alister Clark's Finest legacy
Probably breeder Alister Clark’s finest legacy, Lorraine Lee is a pink to coral Hybrid Gigantea-Tea rose, available either as large shrub or climber. You can read a bit more about Clark on our rose breeders page.
We have the climber in our back garden, and it seems this rose is always in flower. Even in winter when everything else is dormant, Lorraine Lee seems to have a few flowers. The perfume is delightful, full and fruity, and the cut flowers last well.
Just watch out for those prickles! They are large enough to make shark-fin soup, and come pruning time it’s almost certain that there will be blood spilt and bad language used, no matter how careful you are.
This variety is now over a century old, and it’s stood the test of time exceptionally well. On our particular specimen, I have never seen any hint of disease or blackspot.
Extremely vigorous, Lorraine Lee can get to 20′ as a climber, and has long arching canes that are thick and well protected with large thorns. You do need to be on top of training these, otherwise you will end up with what we had… massively tall canes with flowers on the ends, totally out of reach.
This has always been a very popular rose in Australia, being well suited to the very hot and dry inland conditions.
- Class: Hybrid Gigantua -Tea
- Origin: Breeder Alister Clark, Australia 1924
- Habit: Shrub,Climbing
- Blooms: Large, double, cup shaped. Good fragrace, and will bloom all year
- Parentage: Jessie Clark x Capitaine Millet