Rosa centifolia Fantin Latour - Cabbage Rose

Rose 'Fantin Latour' is a true ornament for the garden. In just a few years, it becomes a magnificent bush with a generous, flexible and harmonious habit, transformed in June-July, for over a month, by an abundance of roses of a beautiful size, very double, overflowing with tightly packed petals, of a delicate pinkish carnation, gradually fading into a diaphanous pink. Their fragrance, typical of centifolia roses, is both sweet and sugary, very pleasant. This variety is not perpetual.

Of unknown lineage and discovered by the English rose grower Graham Stuart Thomas, before 1938, the 'Fantin Latour' rose is a hybrid of an old-fashioned centifolia rose. It was named in honour of the internationally renowned French painter, particularly known for his romantic paintings of opulent bouquets of roses. The centifolia rose, also called the May Rose, Cabbage Rose, Dutch Rose, or Provence Rose, is a complex hybrid of uncertain origin that has left many descendants characterized by a bushy silhouette supported by long, arching stems, adorned with numerous prickles, a tendency to sucker, and inclined roses, weighed down by an impressive number of petals. Their fragrance is highly valued in perfumery. Finally, these centifolia roses only bloom once, but abundantly, in early summer.

'Fantin Latour' can reach 1m (3-4ft), sometimes more, with a spread of 1m (3-4 ft) to 1.2 m (3-4 ft). Its flexible stems bear a few prickles. In June-July, its roses bloom in clusters of 4 to 6, with a diameter of 9cm (3.5in), well double and divided into quarters. The powder pink petals are slightly lighter on the outside. Their fragrance is powerful. The deciduous foliage is grayish-green and shows good resistance to rose diseases, and its flowers do not suffer too much in full sun.

The passion for old roses is fully justified: these roses are not only the parents of our modern roses, but also the glory of our gardens. Rosa x centifolia 'Fantin Latour' is a true romantic, with a harmonious habit behind beds of light perennials such as paniculate gypsophila, tall phlox, campanulas or foxgloves. It can also be trained on a trellis or a small arch. For example, it can be associated with the sumptuous foliage of 'Grace' purple Cotinus, Prunus serrulata, Virginia creeper 'Tiger Eyes', and deciduous Euonymus, in a landscape hedge. It will be beautifully highlighted in front of a dark screen of boxwood or yew. If you have enough space, English, Old or Shrub Roses are magnificent planted in groups of three. They will grow together to form a beautiful monumental mass that will bloom even more generously.