They had a small selection of roses for sale. I purchased a Lafayette rose. They had some really healthy American Pillars, but I didn't think I had room for one. I was hoping they would have White Pet, since I have been wanting one and I know they grow it, but they didn't have any. Not to worry, I am happy with Lafayette!

I wish I could have brought even more home, but money and space are always an issue. All in good time, though. I am sure I will come across White Pet at some point, and I imagine I will be back at Wyck during the season, hopefully to purchase more roses. :)

Lafayette on HMF:
http://www.helpmefind.com/rose/l.php?l=2.62271

Wyck Rose Garden:
http://www.wyck.org/home#!__garden

I can't grow it, too wimpy in cold winters, but I think it a perfect addition to more temperate gardens.

Charming is a great word for her (or him, I suppose).
I am looking forward to seeing it grow.

Ingrid

Lafayette

Bloom Color: Dark Pink
Class: Gallica/Damask Hybrid
Disease Tolerance: Yes
Hardiness: 6b - 9b
Fragrance:yes
Height: 5'-6'
Bloom Frequency: Once
History: A rare rose, "Lafayette" is available only through Wyck. It is believed to have been planted in honor of Marquis de Lafayette's visit to Wyck in 1825 during a return trip to Philadelphia.
Maintenance: Prune in early summer after blooms are spent. Fertilize once in early spring before bloom and once after summer pruning. Rose will bloom on old growth.

There is a horseshoe shaped planting of these directly outside the door of the main house entering the rose garden there. They were currently pruned to about 4+ foot or so. They were not blooming yet so I didn't take a picture, but I may have an old one.

Okay, as I look back on photos from last year, I see I do not. At least I think I don't. I see a photo of where they are planted, but I can't tell if the photos on the roll that are next are the same bushes. The shape is close, but the photos I have seem lighter pink. This may be it. but I am not 100% sure. I will get back to take photos when they bloom though.

Last years photos:

Door where they are planted. They are on the right of the photo behind the ferns and the little boxwood. No blooms in this picture.

This may be the stand of bushes from a different angle, not 100% sure. This may be the bloom, though it is lighter than the picture on HMF and the card it came with. It was late in the season though, maybe they were lighter when I took these pictures? Could be an all together different rose though. I tried to take pictures of the blooms and the tags when I was there, but still got some confused, for sure, on my camera roll.

On the card that came with the rose, the bloom looks much darker than my pictures from last year. It very much resembles the photo on help me find, though, which was taken at Wyck, apparently. HMF has it listed as a Noisette/tea, though.

http://www.helpmefind.com/rose/l.php?l=2.62271

The card it came with:

They had one called Crimson Slater, Should have picked that up, too. Maybe next time.

I am not even an amature rose identifier, but the picture on their card and the ones I took last year are different than the two listed on HMF, or so it seems. Now I wish I had bought that one too. The photos were so pretty!

The Gallica/Damask hybrid, of which I had never before now heard, seems lovely also. Perhaps someone who knows more about it could make an entry on HelpMeFind?

Thanks, PortlandMysteryRose! I do believe he will be scented, as per the tag.

He is just a baby now in a 1/2 gallon pot, but I have high hopes for him. The intern there said the ones they were selling that day were not rooted, but were dug up this spring from suckers in the garden beds. I hope that means he has strong roots! :)

I just had surgery for carpal tunnel on my right hand last wednesday and may be having the left done soon, so I am way, way behind on garden chores. I have slowly started to clear a place for Lafayette, though. A good spot with just about as much sun as my little garden gets.

I know that they just hired a new Rosarian at Wyck, maybe only a couple weeks ago. I had met casually the old one but she is overseas now, I think. I didn't meet the new one the other day but spoke to the new intern. Later in the season I hope to meet the new Rosarian and I will see if she may know more about the Lafayette Rose.

HMF lists it as circa 1835, though the records from the Wyck garden have it as planted in 1825. I am pretty sure that they have an extensive written record of the rose garden there, going back to its' beginning, so I will try and see if I can learn more about it from them.

I'm also hoping that someone who knows more about this rose chimes in too!

Thanks for sharing in my excitement… I love new roses for the garden! I have so little space and sun, but keep adding more, slowly. I love having an old rose with Philadelphia "roots" so to speak.

I would love to plant some of Capt. George C. Thomas, Jr. introductions, as he bred roses only about three miles from my place. Mostly for nostalgia purposes. They are kind of hard to find, though. Many seem lost to history, sadly.

He is in the lineage of many contemporary yellow roses. The shiny green foliage you can see on 'Sunflare' is inheirited from 'Captain Thomas', or so I believe because CT has the same foliage, shiny like ivy.

The excellent found rose " Darlow's Enigma" is thought by some to be a Thomas rose, 'Cascadia', according to HMF. "Darlow's Enigma" is one of a very few roses which grew and bloomed equally well for me in NY and CA.