A Rose a Day No.23

To my surprise, this year the rose named ‘Simplicity’, which we planted five years ago and that grows next to the steps up to our front door, has decided to blossom again at this late point of the year. No doubt it is celebrating the publication of my book (or the warm daytime weather - it is already dropping below zero at night).

‘Simplicity’ is classified as a ‘Shrub Rose’, and was bred by the American rosarian Warriner in 1978. Its parent is the seedling of ‘Schneewittchen’, a white Polyantha rose bred by the famous German breeder Peter Lambert in 1901. Polyantha roses are characterized by sprays of delicate flowers held above the foliage, and this class is the result of crossing climbing varieties of Rosa multiflora - which is a native of these parts but blossoms only once but from whence it gets it multifloriferousness - and Rosa chinensis, which is the parent from where Polyanthas and ‘Simplicity’ derive their capacity to repeat-flower. This parentage also explains why ‘Simplicity’ is quite happy growing in Korea. It is, in effect, a local.

As the Encyclopedia of Roses writes, ‘Simplicity’ ‘has been introduced all over the world (except Europe) as a healthy, fast-growing, easy-to-grow landscaping rose. Like its parent, ‘Simplicity’ may suffer a little from blackspot [mine does a little, as you can see), but it is extremely free-flowering [mine definitely is!]. In hot climates it flowers all year round [Korea is not a ‘hot climate’].’

Here is the same rose in full bloom in the early summer.