Albas are much more difficult to breed with than gallicas. So there aren't nearly as many.

One hybrid alba you should probably try is Madame Plantier.

Gallica,

HMF has Mme. Plantier listed as a cross between R. Damascena 'Mill.' X R. Moschata 'Herm.'

Would that truly count as an Alba Hybrid?

Josh

There are sites besides HMF.

Google is your friend.

This is the first I've heard of Madame Plantier as a Damask hybrid. Seriously, the more usual listing replaces the R. damascena with R. alba.

Several Austen roses are alba hybrids.

Great write-up by Rick here: http://forums2.gardenweb.com/forums/load/roses/msg100002585603.html

I know no information to share on my own, but I've had this thread bookmarked for a long time :D

Good luck! I adore albas...there's just something about the blue-green leaves that I find really appealing.

Cheers!
~Anika

The oldest references call 'Mme Plantier' a Hybrid China or Hybrid Noisette. In-person, I see (and smell) recent 'R. moschata' ancestry in there somewhere.

'Mme Plantier' is listed as being triploid, which pretty much negates the possibility of it being an Alba hybrid. Owing to their 'R. canina' ancestry, Albas breed with unbalanced meiosis. If an Alba was the pollen parent and a Noisette or 'R. moschata' was the seed parent, the resulting rose would be diploid. If the reverse parentage occurred, the result would probably be pentaploid or hexaploid, like many Albas -- but at least tetraploid. A triploid once-blooming 'Mme Plantier' suggests one non-Alba tetraploid parent and (based on the rose's appearance) one Noisette or other 'R. moschata' derived diploid parent.

I think the Alba attribute got attached simply because it's a once-blooming fragrant white-flowered rose that didn't easily fit into other European OGR classes -- but it doesn't really look or grow like the other Albas, which all show some 'R. canina' characteristics.

:-)

~Christopher

The alba hybrids by the German hybridizer Rolf Sievers, creator of the Blush series come to mind. They are bred with a mixture of old-fashioned and Kordesii roses. A friend of mine, Helena Verghese Borg, grows most of the Blush roses and they are all lovely. I think I like Tender Blush the best. She's put up several photos on HMF of her Blush roses.