ROSA CENTIFOLIA 
cultivation. Regel, on the other hand, believed it to be a form of 
Rosa gallica L. altered in like manner, and Cr^pin, after devoting 
much consideration to every aspect of the case, concurred in this 
opinion. He refers to Rosa centifolia as “ this so-called species,” and 
is very sceptical as to its having been found spontaneous. 1 
This Rose has always been a great favourite with painters, 
particularly with the Dutch, and Van Huysum especially excelled in 
portraying it. Of book illustrations we may first notice those by 
Miss Lawrance, who figures eighteen Roses as centifolias ; of these 
only one (plate 5 1 ) is the type ; the rest are garden varieties. Roessig’s 
plate 1 is a very pretty drawing of a centifolia Rose, and by far the 
best of his series ; he merely describes the plant without comment. 
Plate 20 is another Rosa centifolia which he calls minor , and likewise 
describes without further account. Andrews figures ten Roses as 
centifolias , but several ol these ought certainly to be placed elsewhere. 
Redoutd’s plate 25 (vol. i.) of Rosa centifolia is perhaps the most 
beautiful of all his wonderful Rose drawings, and is a most life-like 
representation of the old Cabbage Rose. Plate 1 1 1 (vol. i.) is a fine 
white centifolia , said by Thory to be of English origin; plate 79 
(vol. i.), another very beautiful drawing, is Rosa centifolia carnea . 
Plate 59 (vol. ii.) is the foliated form of centifolia now rarely seen, 
but it is so beautiful and fragrant that it deserves to be taken again into 
favour. It owed its origin to Descemet, who grew it in his nursery 
at Saint-Denis, whence it passed with the rest of his seedlings into the 
hands of Vibert. Redoute 2 has another form of centifolia which is 
both foliaceous and proliferous, and was at one time greatly esteemed 
as a curiosity. These are only some of the more striking of Redoutd’s 
drawings. 
The type of Rosa centifolia is the well-known Cabbage Rose of 
gardens. A few years ago it was rarely met with, having almost 
disappeared from cultivation ; but it is now coming into its own again 
and is being greatly appreciated. The Rose which Canon Ellacombe 
considers as the type is still the rarest form. It may be distinguished 
by its flowers, which are borne singly on the stem, and are long and 
cernuous or nodding. F rom the wild Rosa gallica it differs by its 
taller stem, more robust hooked prickles, more acutely toothed, less 
rugose leaflets, longer, more glandular peduncles, very double flowers, 
and more compound and more glandular calyx-lobes. All these 
characters have probably been developed by long cultivation. 
1 Bull. Soc. Bot. Belg. vol. xviii. p. 346 ( Primit . Monogr. Ros. fasc. v. p. 592 [1880]) (1879). 
2 Roses , vol. iii. t. 65 (1824). 
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