I
The story behind England’s
national flower.
n England, between 1455 and 1487, the
royal house of Lancaster was represent-
ed by the red rose and the royal house
of York was represented by the white
rose. Both houses competed to rule England
in the War of the Roses. Since then the rose
has been England’s national flower and today
they are used in variety of logos representing
England. the war of roses.
Henry Tudor became King after the last
Battle of the Bosworth Field and that end
the war of the Roses. King Henry VII then
married Elizabeth of York and this united the
two houses. Where the white of York and Red
of Tudor joined together to make the Tudor
Rose which marked the beginning of the Tu-
dor reign.
In Tudor times the rose was adopted as a
symbol of peace around the time of the War
of Roses and was the Tudor’s emblem from
1485 to 1603. The Tudor rose is red with a
white centre and symbolised the beginning
of the Tudor Dynasty and the end of the war
between the two royal houses, or the end of Today roses can be found in almost every
colour and shape in about 150 different spe-
cies and thousands of hybrids. Bring the 16th
century in your garden by planting the roses
of the royal house of Lancaster and the royal
house of York.
Rosa alba semi-plena
‘’Rosa alba semi-plena’’ was the rose of the
royal house of York and today you can have
this beautiful rose in your garden. Its flow-
ers are large and white and its fragrance is
strong. It is part of the Old Rose family and
it is also a recipient of Merit Award Royal
of the Horticultural Society. This rose will
grow anywhere in your garden and prefers
full or partial sunlight and not any specific
soil. It will start to flower in late spring and
it will blossom throughout the summer.
Rosa alba semi-plena will also attract bees to
your garden.
‘’Rosa gallica var. officinalis’’ or the rose of
the royal house of Lancaster has rich, deep
pink flowers. The rose is part of Old Rose
Family and will bloom in late spring to early
summer. It has rich strong fragrant flowers
and it is used in medicine and for perfumes.
It is also recipient of Award of Garden Merit
of the Royal Horticultural Society. It is best
grown in full sun and it is disease resistant.
It will also attract pollinating insects and
butterflies to your garden. It is very easy
to grow and doesn’t require much mainte-
nance.
Gallica var. Officinalis
Summer 2019 Wild Garden 3