DUCHESSE DE ROHAN – pink historic Portland rose – pharmaROSA® NEONATAL rooted cutting
Portland character and historic appeal make Duchesse de Rohan a focused choice for premium-container production where a compact, upright habit, strong fragrance and reliable remontant performance support added value. The moderately dense mid‑green foliage and sparsely thorned shoots simplify handling in 5–7 L routes aimed at selection and specialty positioning, while its documented Victorian exhibition pedigree underlines collector demand. As an own‑root pharmaROSA® NEONATAL cutting, it offers a stable propagation base for thematic and heritage rose collections, supporting consistent quality across nursery networks, including in cooler, exposed regions where robust winter hardiness helps maintain planning reliability. With a development arc where roots establish in year one, framework builds in year two and full ornamental value follows from year three, it is well aligned to UK nursery scheduling and long‑term, renewable stock strategies.
Usage options
Finished-product ideas
- Heritage 5–7 L premium shrub – Bush‑trained, discreetly supported plants in 5–7 L premium containers, marketed as a historic Portland with strong fragrance and remontant flowering, aligned to specialty/selection branding – target audience/channel: nursery ranges for heritage‑focused retail.
- Thematic rose‑garden modules – NEONATAL‑based batches grown on for coordinated delivery as curated heritage assortments, using compact habit and disease resistance to support low‑maintenance display beds – target audience/channel: public‑realm and show‑garden contractors.
- Collector’s signature line – Individually labelled Duchesse de Rohan shrubs emphasising Victorian awards and rarity, produced from own‑root 5–7 L stock for authenticity‑driven buyers – target audience/channel: specialist rose nurseries and mail‑order collectors.
- Fragrant hedge concept – Rows of bush‑trained plants from 5–7 L containers for low, scented hedging, leveraging upright habit, disease resistance and remontant bloom – target audience/channel: landscape contractors and park departments.
- Large‑container feature series – Selected, well‑branched plants stepped into 40–50 L tubs as long‑term feature shrubs, using own‑root longevity and stable structure for multi‑year use – target audience/channel: high‑end garden centres and design‑build partners.
Technical cultivar profile
| Name and registration |
Historical Portland rose marketed as Duchesse de Rohan, with heritage‑rose positioning; unregistered cultivar with authenticity verified for professional trade use and supported by traceable product identification data. |
| Origin and breeding |
Bred in France by René Lévêque, introduced by Lévêque, Paris around 1846; parentage unknown, representing classic Damask Perpetual and Portland heritage from a recognised nineteenth‑century breeding house. |
| Awards and recognition |
Recognised in American Rose Society Victorian classes, including awards at the Great Lakes District Show and Medford Rose Society Show in 2001, underscoring its value as a historic exhibition shrub rose. |
| Growth and structural characteristics |
Upright shrub with moderately dense, mid‑green, slightly glossy foliage, sparsely thorned shoots, and a height of about 90–140 cm by 100–150 cm spread, suitable for borders, hedges and specimen use. |
| Flower morphology |
Double, cup‑shaped blooms with 26–39 petals, medium flower size and clustered inflorescences of three to five flowers per stem; remontant with a lighter second flush and poor self‑cleaning requiring deadheading. |
| Colour data and phenology |
Medium pink with slight carmine tones, coded ARS MP and RHS 55C–55D; colour gradually fades to pastel and almost powdery whitish shades before senescence, with softer edges and lighter outer petals. |
| Fragrance and aroma |
Strong, long‑lasting, classic old‑rose scent characteristic of historical Damask Perpetual types; double flowers with reduced stamen access limit pollinator value, making it primarily an ornamental fragrance shrub. |
| Hip characteristics |
Hip set is expected to be limited because of the full, double flower form and high petal count; decorative fruit effect is not a key ornamental or production feature for this cultivar. |
| Resistance and winter hardiness |
Rated resistant to powdery mildew, black spot and rust, with hardiness to roughly −26 to −23 °C (RHS H7, USDA 5b, Swedish zone 4), suiting colder and more exposed planting sites with controlled care inputs. |
| Horticultural recommendations |
Recommended for borders, specimens, hedges, park planting and some cut use; best as bush‑trained with discreet support in 5–7 L premium containers, low maintenance requirement and generally good disease resilience. |
Duchesse de Rohan combines compact, upright structure, strong historic fragrance and reliable disease resistance on predictable, long‑lived own roots, making it a solid option for heritage ranges where we can align capacity and scheduling together.
