Family : Rosaceae
Class : Rosa Pernetiana - Hybrid of Rosa foetida
Text and pictures © Giuseppe Mazza
English translation by Mario Beltramini
‘Soleil d’Or’ is an absolutely particular rose, progenitor of the hybrids of modern Tea with yellow and orange shades.
Created and marketed in France in 1900 by Joseph Pernet-Ducher, rightly surnamed by the English “the wizard of Lyon”, ‘Soleil d’Or’ is the first remontant rose with yellow shades. The start of a new line of roses to whom he gave the name of Pernetiane, as indeed had done Louis Noisette with the famous group of the Noisette.
The yellow roses were already present in Europe since 1837 with the Rosa foetida var. persiana but this bloomed only in spring. Pernet-Ducher crosses it with a pink perennial hybrid, ‘Antoine Ducher’, and gets with ‘Soleil d’Or’ a variety always blooming with yellow orange perfumed petals.
The shrub, thick and vigourous, reaches the 150 cm of height on a 90 cm base. The flower, rich of 26-40 petals, the 10 cm of diametre.
A plant for collectors, with undoubted charm, but that unluckily fears the dew. As a matter of fact, it has little defences against the Diplocarpon rosae, the fungus responsible of the black spot disease, the unaestethic black spots that cause the untimely fall of the leaves weakening the plant.
→ History of the rose : from the Wild Roses towards a perfect rose.