Article (newspaper)  (Oct 2013)  Page(s) 2.  Includes photo(s).
 
Patricia Routley: I used to think ‘Ziguernerknabe’ (‘Gypsy Boy’) was the best rose in my garden for hips. However, there is another hipster which is equally as good, if not better. Polyantha Grandiflora has large, round, orange hips which last for months on end. The birds tend to leave them alone and the hips still make a picture in mid-winter. This rose came from Alexandre Bernaix, France, in 1886 and some of the many synonyms attached to it have been Moschata Grandiflora; Moschata x Polyantha; R. moschata grandiflora; and R polyantha grandiflora, so, picking up on the word moschata, I rather think it may be a strongly fragrant rose. Apparently the styles are joined at the bottom, in synstylae fashion, and are free at the top. The parentage is currently listed as R. polyantha (which was an early synonym of R. multiflora) x ‘Blanc Pur’ (a noisette). ‘Polyantha Grandiflora’ has nothing to do with the repeat-flowering small polyantha roses like ‘Orange Triumph’, ‘Orleans Rose’ or ‘Tarrawarra’. I think the poly part of the name comes from the many-flowered clusters; and the grandiflora from the large size of the individual blooms. But really, ‘Polyantha Grandiflora’ is just a pseudo botanical name. For me, this rose forms a large shrub, but I do see signs of some long canes clawing their way up into a lemon tree and in other gardens it can grow from 3-10m high x 6m wide. It looks good here with the yellow lemons and it is under-planted with bushes of the orange-red Erica cerinthoides (red hairy heath) alongside and this plant complements the colouring of the rose hips. Elsewhere, another two bushes of this rose have big shrubs of the beautiful white Spirea behind them and the autumn colouring of the Spirea leaves and the orange ‘Polyantha Grandiflora’ hips build up some sort of colour scheme and add to the grace. It is another spring-only rose, flowering in large clusters. Each bloom is about 5cm wide, with five heart-shaped petals with no mucronate tip, as has ‘Wedding Day’. (With these white ramblers it has helped me to look at the petal shape.) There are conspicuous stamens. The petals drop off cleanly so the bush always looks good. It has large round orange hips, glandular pedicels and lacinately glandular stipules. There are large thorns on the brown-red branches and 7-9 leaflets with deep veins. It is fairly shade tolerant. This rose is one over which confusion reigns. In New Zealand we saw it labelled ‘Wedding Day. Knowing it wasn’t that, eventually someone temporarily re-christened it “New Zealand Wedding Day" so that we all knew which rose we were referring to. It took me some years to unravel the tendrils of confusion. It came to me as a cutting in 2002 from Penelope Shaw in Bridgetown, who bought it originally from Roworths near Perth as - you guessed it – ‘Wedding Day’. The only fly in my ointment is that Graham Stuart Thomas has written that the hips of ‘Polyantha Grandiflora’ are oval. Mine are round but for once in my life, I will ignore Mr. Thomas in favour of the 1887 Journal Des Roses excellent picture here that shows round hips.

Website/Catalog  (2006)  Page(s) 51.  
 
Rosa moschata Herrm. 'Grandiflora', location V/Ia7; M:NV/1a7

Book  (2003)  Page(s) 24.  
 
'Polyantha Grandiflora'

Book  (Apr 1999)  Page(s) 367.  
 
Moschata x Polyantha Hybrid Musk. Bernaix 1886... white, single... Probably Bernaix's multiflora 'Polyantha Grandiflora' of 1886...

Book  (1997)  Page(s) 249.  
 
R. moschata grandiflora Hybrid Musk. Bernaix (France) 1866. Description and cultivation... extremely large clusters of single, white flowers...

Book  (Nov 1994)  Page(s) 232.  
 
'Polyantha Grandiflora' Bernaix, France, 1886. The name...is not really permissible since it infringes the International Code of Nomenclature; Rosa polyantha is a synonym of R. multiflora and is, besides, used as a group-name for the Poly-poms. I have for many years distributed this rose as R. gentiliana in error; it is probably R. multiflora hybridized with a garden rose....the leaves are smooth, lustrous, richly tinted while young , becoming deep green, with rather deep veins, laciniate stipules, and prickles on the reverse. It bears a few large reddish prickles on its trailing stems, which will reach 20 feet or more, climbing into trees. At midsummer it is covered with creamy white single flowers...with conspicuous orange-yellow stamens...in clusters of a dozen or so. It has a powerful fragrance of orange. Bunches of...heps....

Book  (Apr 1993)  Page(s) 461.  
 
Polyantha Grandiflora Hybrid Multiflora, white, single, ('Gentiliana'); 1888.

Book  (Apr 1993)  Page(s) 391.  
 
Moschata Grandiflora Hybrid Musk (Shrub), white, prominent golden stamens, 1866, R. moschata x R. multiflora; Bernaix, A...

Book  (Feb 1993)  Page(s) 147.  
 
Polyantha Grandiflora [Moody says a synonym is R. gentiliana... she also says its parent is R. gentiliana...] Gentiliana rambler. China 1907. Description and cultivation... produces single to semi-double, creamy white flowers with orange stamens in dense, cascading clusters...

Book  (1988)  Page(s) 160.  
 
location III/14+15, R. moschata Herrm. 'Grandiflora', SYNSTYLAE, white, single, strong fragrance, large, cluster-flowered, vigorous, 2.5-3 m, many prickles, medium green large foliage, 7-9 leaflets