Of all the modern rose breeders, David Austin is the one I admire most. His roses changed the way many gardeners thought about modern roses, bringing back the charm, fragrance and fullness of old garden roses while still giving gardeners the repeat flowering and wider color range expected from modern varieties.
- born 1926 in Shropshire, England
- Died 2018 at home (age 92)
- British rose breeder, nursery owner and writer
- began breeding roses in the 1950s
- founded David Austin Roses
David Austin’s aim was to combine the beauty and fragrance of old garden roses, such as Gallicas, Damasks and Albas, with the repeat-flowering habits and color range of modern Hybrid Tea and Floribunda roses.
What Made His Roses Different?
At a time when many modern roses were bred for pointed buds, long stems and exhibition form, Austin looked backwards as well as forwards. He wanted roses that looked like old roses but behaved more like modern garden roses.
- old-fashioned flower form
- strong fragrance
- soft romantic colours
- repeat flowering
- shrub-like garden habit
- cottage garden appeal
A Few Of My Favourites
My Personal Top 5 Most Important English Roses
While it’s hard to find a dud in the English rose collection, there are naturally going to be some that are special in some way… whether that is for their form, fragrance, or any other reason. So here is my “top 5” list, the most significant English Roses (to date).
1: Constance Spry: The Beginning Of English Roses
Constance Spry holds a special place in my heart, as not only the very first of the English roses, but as a variety that I grew and cherished when I lived in the South Island of New Zealand.
Yes, it was a bit finnicky, and yes, it did “nod” a bit. And it’s true it is not a repeat bloomer, but grown as a small climber those beautifully fragrant cupped blooms were spectacular.
Unfortunately, Constance Spry does not seem to be widely available in Australia, and I have not yet found an easy retail source for it. 🙁
I’d put Constance Spry at number one because it was the breakthrough rose — the one that really launched David Austin’s English Rose idea. It gave gardeners that old-fashioned, deeply cupped, romantic rose shape and strong myrrh fragrance in a modern breeding program. Its big weakness is that it only flowers once, but historically that almost doesn’t matter; it proved the whole concept. David Austin lists it as a 1961 climbing rose with large, pink blooms and strong myrrh fragrance
2: Graham Thomas
This is probably the most internationally famous English rose. I rate it highly because it made yellow English roses iconic. A rich yellow, old-rose-style flower was a huge part of showing that English roses didn’t have to just be pinks and soft pastels. It was introduced by David Austin in 1983, and the Australian David Austin listing describes it as repeat flowering, rich yellow, upright and vigorous. It also won the RHS Award of Garden Merit and was named the World’s Favourite Rose / entered the Rose Hall of Fame in 2009, which gives it real historical weight.
3. Mary Rose
Possibly a surprise selection in a list of the most significant Austin roses, but I’m including Mary Rose because it helped define the practical garden value of English roses. Compared with Constance Spry, this was a much more useful repeat-flowering shrub for ordinary gardens. It came out in 1983, the same important period as Graham Thomas, and has that softer, looser, mid-pink old-rose look. David Austin Australia lists it as repeat flowering with medium-strong Old Rose fragrance. In my mind, Mary Rose is one of the roses that helped move English roses from “interesting breeding idea” to real garden plants people could grow and enjoy through the season.
4. Gertrude Jekyll
This one earns its place mainly for fragrance. If someone asked what an English rose should smell like, Gertrude Jekyll would be one of the first names that comes to mind. David Austin described it as repeat flowering, bright pink, and strongly Old Rose scented; the European David Austin listing calls the fragrance the “quintessential Old Rose fragrance.” It also has a strong visual identity: upright growth, bright pink rosettes, and those classic scrolled buds.
5. Heritage or Abraham Darby
I just couldn’t separate these two, so I have put them tied for 5th spot.
I’d choose Heritage as the representative of the softer, graceful, shell-pink English rose style. It is not as loud or famous as Graham Thomas or Gertrude Jekyll, but it captures a very important side of David Austin breeding: delicacy, perfume, and old-fashioned charm in a repeat-flowering shrub. David Austin Australia lists it as introduced in 1984, with soft pink cupped blooms and a myrrh fragrance with fruit, honey and carnation notes. It is one of those roses that helped define the “English cottage garden” look many people associate with Austin roses.
A very strong alternative for the fifth spot would be Abraham Darby. It has huge apricot/coral blooms and strong fruity fragrance, and is extremely popular, and loved by so many gardeners. David Austin Australia describes it as a vigorous, repeat-flowering large shrub with very large apricot-yellow flowers ageing to coral-pink and a rich fruity fragrance.
David Austin’s roses did more than add new varieties to gardens. They changed the direction of modern rose breeding by reminding gardeners that fragrance, form and romance still mattered. For me, that is why his work remains so important.