Commercial Floriculture

Evolution

• In the beginning some of the rose species were hybridized in nature and the present day improved forms have been evolved over centuries.
• Till the 19th century only four species of roses played a role in the development of varieties cultivated at that time. These are

  1) Rosa gallica (Red rose) (French rose)
  2) R. canina (Dog rose) – very prickly shrub having stout stem; Root stock.
  3) R. moschata (Musk rose)
  4) R. Phoenicia (Phoenician rose)

• Rosa gallica (French rose) came originally from ‘Caucasus’ and the Middle-East and is an ancestor of Moss roses.
• R. centifolia (Cabbage rose) came to France in 1580 from Mediterranean region.
• R. damascene (Damask rose) is natural variation of R. gallica, R. damascene in course of time produced variant with a tendency to bloom in the autumn and summer and this variant was named as Autumn Damask (R. damascene bifera and R. damascene semperflorens).
• In the modern roses apart from these species R. chinensis (Pink China rose) was also used in breeding of modern roses.
• In the early 19th century itself, one or two hybrids closely related to R. chinensis, due to their recurrent flowering habit were introduced to Europe from China.
• These were actually hybrid between R. odorata and R. gigantea and these gave rise to the popular ‘Tea roses’.
• These roses so named because they had the flavour as found in the chest of leaves of China Tea which are delicately sweet with some what smoky aroma.
• “Thunberg” a Swedish botanist, described a rose which he had seen in Japan and collect it R. multiflora by virtue of its many flowers. This was later called R. polyantha by Zuccarini, the German botanist.
• “Multiflora” in “Latin” and “Polyantha” in Greek both meant “Many flowered roses. These roses were crossed with the Tea roses and gave rise to low growing, permanently flowering forms which came to be known as Polyantha roses.
• Later R. polyantha x R. moschata and produced Hybrid musk rose: This played an important part in the development of floribundas.
• In India, several species are found mostly in the Himalayan ranges.
• The cultivation of roses was perhaps taken up during the Mughal period. Babar introduced the Persian or Damask rose into India (1526).
• The Edouard rose (R. borboniana) was introduced in 1840 during the British rule.
• These two roses viz., Damask and Edourd roses are highly scented and are being extensively cultivated in the country. Commercial cultivation of roses for cut flower trade has increased during last four decades.
• The major rose producing regions in India are Karnataka, Maharashtra, Punjab, Uttar Pradesh, Delhi and Chandigargh, while in Gujarath, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Tamil Nadu and West Bengal they are grown to a limited extent.

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