It's common now in the UK to hear about 'retired' varieties of rose - plants that have been discontinued which become increasingly hard to find on sale. But why do breeders take plants off the market, and what should you do if it happens to your favourite roses?
"There are two main reasons why a nursery might want to drop a variety," says world-leading rosarian Michael Marriott. "Firstly because it is no longer deemed to be garden worthy enough, mainly because it is too susceptible to disease. And secondly because sales are too poor for it to be commercially viable."
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New varieties of rose that have come through trials more successfully tend to take the places of historic ones that are no longer performing as well. "It is good to see increasing variety in new roses from the classic David Austin type through the relatively new Persica hybrids to those with smaller flowers that produce great qualities of hips," says Michael. "New ramblers and climbers are also often a great improvement on those introduced in the twentieth century."
We also spoke to Paul Constantine from David Austin Roses about the reasons behind retiring various cultivars. "Some of our varieties could be described as discontinued," he says. "Ones that simply haven't stood the test of time."
"Varieties such as Corvedale (Ausnetting) and Cordelia (Ausbottle) are less typical of the classic David Austin style, so have less appeal to gardeners," he says. "Others have simply been superseded by better performing varieties that have captured the hearts of gardeners in more recent years."
Paul also makes a distinction between roses that have been discontinued and those which are still available but in significantly reduced numbers. "That is because our ongoing trials have shown that they no longer meet our current standards for variety introduction, and we would hate for gardeners to continue buying them with the high expectations of what a David Austin rose should deliver and be disappointed."
"With a greater level of care from those dedicated and experienced gardeners willing to go the extra mile, they may actually do really well," says Paul. "So we only grow and sell small numbers, and they come with a note of caution to those buying them."
However, some varieties have been officially discontinued in the UK, including A Shropshire Lad, Francine Austin and William Morris. When we asked our readers on Instagram about varieties of rose that they miss, firm favourites that were mentioned included Munstead Wood, Jude the Obscure and Lady Emma Hamilton. Rose enthusiasts still share cuttings of these discontinued varieties, and there is even a Facebook group called 'Discontinued David Austin Roses Club' that has 5,700 thousand members.
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Jenny Barnes, head gardener at Cottesbrooke Hall who is well known for training roses into beautiful sculptural forms, explained in her recent masterclass for Gardens Illustrated: “We tend to be led by the rose breeders. They know what they’re doing; they put a lot of time, effort, money and research into coming up with these things.”
“If the rose that you want has been discontinued there is probably a valid reason for it,” she adds. “The climate is changing, the situation is changing, pests and diseases are changing. You can by all means try and find it elsewhere, but we tend to just try something else.”
Rose expert Michael Marriott echoed these thoughts, telling us: "Rose breeders are doing fantastic work in developing varieties that are increasingly disease resistant which is so important."
"As breeders," says Paul. "We assess the whole plant, including vigour, health, shape and the unique charm and elegance that was so much a part of David Austin’s vision of an English rose. Where a rose variety falls below standard in any of these areas compared to others coming through the breeding programme, we have to give careful consideration as to whether we can still confidently recommend it to our customers."
It is also important to note that a variety that is discontinued in the UK might not be in other places around the world where it will still perform well. "We admire the beauty and vigour of Heritage (Ausblush) in Texas, USA, Munstead Wood (Ausbernard) in Australia, and Snow Goose (Auspom) in Japan," says Paul. "But in the knowledge that they would not be as good an all-round performer in our gardens in Shropshire, UK"
If you're shopping for a new rose and the variety you were dreaming of has been discontinued in your region, it is good to get in touch with a local rose breeder. They will be able to tell you why and give you some recommendations for decent alternative roses.
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