Of the 350 roses I currently grow, only 18 are old garden roses (OGR) also
known as antiques, or heritage roses. My yard is small, about 1/5th of an acre,
in a housing tract, so I have to be very selective when choosing any new roses,
especially the OGRs as some can get quite big.
If I could grow only one old garden rose, Yolande d’Aragon would be the
one. I simply adore Yolande d’Aragon! I remember seeing her at the rose
shows years ago and was awestruck by her intense fragrance. I just had to have
her. The intense fragrance, heavily-petalled bloom form, and lush plant growth
are awesome.
In Southern California Yolande d’Aragon can be grown as a large bush
or a climber. I started my plant as an own-root cutting from a friend about
5 years ago, and now she is 8 feet tall and 8 feet wide. She would be even bigger
if we didn’t keep her contained.
Each winter we prune Yolande d’Aragon lightly, strip off all the foliage,
remove a few older canes, then self-peg all the long canes that have shot up
the previous fall. We contain the bush close to the side of the house by anchoring
it with a large arc-shaped piece of rebar and tying the canes with green plastic
tape.
In spring, over 100 blooms will grow along the laterals during the month-long
peak blooming period. Each 3- to 4-inch mauve-pink bloom is displayed on individual
stems of from 8 to 12 inches long that are great for cutting. There are few
thorns on this rose. The generous foliage is particularly handsome as it fully
clothes each stem right up close to the bloom, so the foliage nicely frames
a bouquet of multiple stems -- an effect that I call “angel wings.”
The spectacular spring bloom is followed by lighter sporadic blooming the rest
of the year. Yolande d’ Aragon can get a little bit of mildew under certain
conditions, but it is easily controlled with occasional spraying with Funginex.
Yolande d’Aragon is one of my favorite OGRs for exhibiting. I have won
a number of trophies with her and she was included in my winning entry of the
Dorothy Stemler national trophy, as well as in my Los Angeles Rose Society district
trophy on two occasions, plus several Dowager Queen trophies.
Although currently classed as a portland by the American Rose Society, Yolande
d’Aragon was previously classed as a hybrid perpetual. So there is some
confusion, since some rose catalogs still list Yolande d’Aragon as a hybrid
perpetual. Another confusion is its color class. Although the ARS says she is
mauve, she looks pink to me.
Small own-root potted plants of Yolande d’Aragon are readily available
from Sequoia Nursery, Ashdown Roses, Heirloom Roses, and Pickering Nursery in
Canada.
