Facts on White Rose Flowers
Roses (Rosa spp.) imprint our senses so thoroughly that you can almost smell a rose at the mere mention of its name. With soft petals, sleek stems and protective thorns, roses have long survived in the wild from craggy coastlines to rugged mountains. Ancient, Victorian and modern gardens have all cultivated roses. White roses (Rosa alba) elicit images of purity and grace. Not to be overlooked by their colorful counterparts, white roses are interesting, hardy and iconic.
Modern rose cultivators surmise that the Roman naturalist Pliny the Elder, who wrote "Historia Naturalis,” was referring to the Rosa alba when he wrote about Rome’s white roses. Ancient Romans were so enamored that they cultivated roses in open fields like food crops. Today, travelers to Italy can spot wild white roses near the ruins of a villa that once belonged to Pliny’s nephew, and white albas are grown around the globe.
"Old Garden Roses" are classics from 18th century European gardens. Creative cultivators grafted tender blooms upon hardier wild rose shrubs to create many of these charmers. One such popular white rose was the "Boule de Neige" (Rosa "Boule de Neige"), the snowball. This classic, white as tundra snow, helped form some of the cold-hardy roses in Canada and does well in U.S. Department of Agriculture plant hardiness zone 5 through 10.
Shades of White
Today’s modern marvels of roses include at least 15 shades of white with names like “Iceberg” (Rosa "Korbin" Iceberg), a floribunda hardy in USDA zones 5 through 9, and “White Dawn” (Rosa "White Dawn") a climber hardy in USDA zones 5 through 9. Gardeners know that white roses, whether ivory or blazing white, can illuminate dark corners of your garden. White is not truly a color, but it is the perfect contrasting color. It can unite clashing colors or ignite the brilliance of other blooms in your garden.
Traditional brides wear white lace and carry white roses as a symbol of maiden purity. White roses also signify pure love, as opposed to the passion of the red rose. Another tradition is that of wearing a rose on Mother’s Day. A white rose honors a mother who has passed away.
- Historic Rose Group Magazine: Roses of Ancient Rome
- Heirloom Roses: Old Garden Roses
- Canadian Gardening: Secrets of Super-hardy Roses
- P. Allen Smith Garden Home: White Roses
- USDA: Plant Hardiness
- Help Me Find: Ball of Snow
- Missouri Botanical Garden: Rosa "Korbin" Iceberg
- Missouri Botanical Garden: Rosa "White Dawn"
Charli Mills has covered the natural food industry since 2001 as a marketing communications manager for a highly successful retail cooperative. She built teams, brands and strategies. She is a writer and editor of "This is Living Naturally," a consultant for Carrot Ranch Communications and a Master Cooperative Communicator.