For many gardeners, the true magic of roses lies not only in their blooms, but in the stories they bring to their borders and beds. Beyond colour, beyond fragrance, there are cultivars whose petals are steeped in history, each one a living thread connecting us to the hands, landscapes, and times that shaped them. To grow these roses is to invite the past into your landscape, and to experience what earlier gardeners saw, the aromas they breathed in, and the environments they created for inspiration. Some were bred to honour remarkable individuals or communities; others became icons in their own right, transforming the gardens and cultures they touched. The following five roses offer both beauty and legacy—plants that bring craftsmanship, heritage, and a touch of enchantment to any garden.
Chapeau de Napoleon
Also known as ‘Centifolia Cristata’, or its exhibition name ‘Crested Moss’, this singular rose has an unusual formation of the sepals that project from the buds in frilled festoons. They cup the buds in fringed formations, and reminded the man who introduced them to the world of the tricorn hats worn by Napoleon and his officers. Discovered by Kirche in Switzerland in 1826, the shrub was introduced in France by Jean-Pierre Vibert, himself a veteran of the Napoleonic Wars who fought under Bonaparte. He turned to gardening due to his injuries, and was one of the founders of the Société d’Horticulture de Paris in 1827. Centifolias, generally, are thought to be a complex cross between Damask, Alba, and Gallica roses, meaning they are hardy and heavily fragrant. They were bred for these qualities, and the layers of petals that give them the name Centifolia – the hundred petal rose. They became popular with growers in the late 16th century, and are the Cabbage roses we see in the Dutch master’s paintings of exquisite ceramics heavy with luxurious bouquets of fanciful roses.
‘Chapeau de Napoleon’s’ flowers are light to medium pink globular forms with a complex, old rose fragrance. They bloom just once, in late Spring or early Summer, and grow to 3 or 4 feet in height. They thrive in Zones 4-9, where they are very hardy with a healthy, verdant foliage.
La France
This pearly pink rose with silver highlights is widely recognized as the first Hybrid Tea rose. Bred by Jean-Baptiste Guillot in 1867, ‘La France’ has the high-centered bloom form, extended, pointed buds, and upright growth we have come to expect from Hybrid Teas. As with many stories in the rose world, its origins are not as simple as they are often purported to be, but what great moment in history is not complex and nuanced under the surface. Concurrent sources, and, in fact, Guillot himself, listed ‘La France’ as a Hybrid Bourbon at the time of release. Its exact parentage is unknown, and visitors to Guillot’s gardens around this time describe how it would be impossible to trace its origins, given the thousands of plants growing there from which it could have sprung. The mid 1800s was a great time of experimentation and cross breeding by French growers, who were chasing the dream of remontant, or repeat flowering roses. Additionally, some sources list two other Hybrid Teas as having possibly been recognized before ‘La France’. Whatever the true circumstances of its origin, there is no doubt ‘La France’ is a charming bridge between old world roses, and the modern roses of today. They are happiest in dry, warm climates, but will be fine in Zone 7b and warmer, reaching 3-5 feet. Their mostly solitary blooms are medium to large, very full, and average about 60 petals of elegant, slightly rolled edges. Continuing to flush throughout the season, their heavy, globular blossoms can nod and bow on the canes, giving off a lovely strong, lemony rose fragrance that some perceive as peach tea.
Kazanlik
Kazanlik is thought to be the oldest Summer Damask rose in existence. Documented in 1612, but clearly cultivated long before, this heavily fragrant rose is named for Kazanlak — the Valley of the Roses in Bulgaria. The blossoms were distilled into Attar of Rose in giant copper stills called ‘kazans’ that employed intricate condensing processes, and great skill from the distillers. These ‘gyulapans’, or distilleries, were spread throughout the Valley, and their output was extraordinary. Used in perfumes, incense, and sacred oils since ancient times, the value of these highly refined elixirs was unsurpassed. A British army officer in the 1860s once described the area near Adrianople as sitting in over 14 000 acres of Kazanlik roses, comprising the main source of wealth in the district.
Kazanlik is a good candidate to be the rose whose oil Cleopatra used in festivities celebrating youth and beauty, its scent filling the palace with divine aromas. Ancient Greeks attributed the rose’s origins and attributes to their mythology and legends. Romans had vast celebrations in honour of the rose, and arab-speaking lands used them in rituals and their cuisine. The Kazanlak Rose Festival continues to this day. Lingering in the heady scent of the Kazanlik rose, being embraced by its aroma, makes it easy to imagine the masons of ancient Persia mixing the attar into the mortar of the public buildings. As the stone was warmed by the sun, it would release the same bewitching fragrance you can experience on your garden patio, instantly connecting you to the past. One could be forgiven for overlooking the blooms that appear only once in the early summer, medium sized, in medium pink with white undertones that mature to a lighter, softer pink. They have a flat bloom form that appears in small clusters, and are armed with thorns and prickles. They enjoy Zones 4b to 9b, where they can easily reach 8 feet tall, with a comparable width.
Sydonie
This pearly pink Damask Perpetual is a Portland rose. Bred by Jean-Pierre Vibert before 1847, this vigorous grower has a tidy, upright habit, reaching up to 5 feet in height. As with most Portlands, they have a deeply enveloping damask fragrance to fill your hedges, or linger around your cut arrangements. Their romantic, old fashioned flowers have large, quartered, rosette bloom forms. So many petals seem to be tightly packed towards their button centres that they have a density you can feel as you gently lift their weighty, aromatic faces. They gather in clusters on emerald, semi-glossy foliage. They are exceedingly reliable bloomers, with flushes in Spring, early Summer, and scattered flushes later in the year. These hardy, upright shrubs reach 3-4 feet, thriving in Zone 4b through 9b, where they will return year after year with clusters of heavily scented pink perfection to charm and delight.
Blush Noisette
Noisette roses are named for the brothers Phillippe and Louis Noisette, breeders of roses in the early 19th Century, who had roses on both sides of the Atlantic. Phillipe obtained the rose in Charleston, and took it to his brother in France where they embraced the new rose, and introduced it in their horticultural community under several names. ‘Rose Noisette’ and ‘Noisette Carnee’ were two of the original monikers. This particular Noisette, with its crimson buds opening to white, or blushed pink blossoms, was introduced in 1819. From the medium sized roses emanates a very distinct, clove-like scent, that varies in strength given the warmth, conditions, and timing of the flush, which happens almost continuously during their long growing season. They are very disease resistant, and were the first frost resistant climber available that flowered repeatedly. These characteristics meant that it quickly became a desirable parent stock for other roses in the group. If you add them to your collection, you can expect a 4-7 foot, vigorous, heat and frost tolerant bush that can climb effectively if given the correct support. They enjoy Zones 6b through 9b.
As these five cultivars take root and unfold in your care, they offer both beauty and continuity, inviting you to carry their legacies forward with your own craftsmanship. By giving them a place in your beds or borders, you continue that lineage, preserving varieties that have earned their place through character, resilience, and enduring charm. If you choose to grow one in that special sunny corner, or manage to gather all five to plant a curated tableau, these roses offer a meaningful way to enrich your garden, and contribute to the stewardship of heritage plants for seasons to come.
