Rosa gallica, the Gallic rose, French rose, or rose of Provins, is a species of flowering plant in the rosefamily, native to southern and central Europe eastwards to Turkey and the Caucasus. It was one of the first species of rose to be cultivated in central Europe.
Description
Rosa gallica is a deciduousshrub forming large patches. The slender, straight prickles are various in size and frequency in this species The leaves are pinnately-compound, with three to seven bluish-green leaflets. The flowers are clustered one to four together, on glandular pedicels. Each flower has five or more petals, sometimes producing double corollas. The flowers are fragrant and deep pink. The hips are globose to ovoid, 10–13 mm diameter, orange to brownish.
Cultivars of the species R. gallica and hybrids close in appearance are considered as a cultivar group, the Gallica Group roses. Their exact ancestry is usually unknown and other species may be involved. They are easily cultivated. The Gallica Group roses share the vegetative characters of the species:
flowers can be single, but most commonly are double or semidouble,
colours range from white to pink and deep purple, and
once flowering
Apothecary's rose
Plants with semidouble deep pink flowers have been treated as either a variety, under the name R. gallica var. officinalis, or as a cultivar, R. gallica 'Officinalis'. It is also called the apothecary's rose, the crimson damask rose, or the red rose of Lancaster. It is the county flower of Lancashire. A cultivar R. gallica var. officinalis 'Versicolor', with striped pink blooms, is also known as Rosa mundi. The names Rosa gallica f. trigintipetala or Rosa 'Trigintipetala' are considered to be synonyms of Rosa damascena.
Cultivation
It was cultivated by the Greek and Romans and commonly used in mediaeval gardens. In the 19th century it was the most important species of rose to be cultivated, and most modernEuropean rose cultivars have at least a small contribution from R. gallica in their ancestry. Rosa gallica is easily cultivated on well drained soil in full sun to semishade; it can survive temperatures down to −25 °C. The following cultivars and hybrids have gained the Royal Horticultural Society's Award of Garden Merit.
