- Gertrude Jekyll:
The Fragrance of the World’s Favourite Rose
A Rose Grown for Scent
There are roses one grows for colour, for form, for habit. And then there are those chosen simply for how they make the air feel. Rosa Gertrude Jekyll® (Ausbord) is one of the latter. Not merely scented, but steeped in scent. Fragrance is its character, its memory, its presence in the garden long after the blooms are gone.
The flowers are full and mid-pink, with petals that fold inward like pages. They open gradually, slowly releasing their perfume, as if the scent had been held within and only now, under warmth, can begin to rise.
The Damask Inheritance
What gives the rose its fragrance is not just breeding, but ancestry. At the heart of the scent lies the Damask rose - an old and generous parent, grown for centuries not for show, but for perfume. The Damask carries with it a rich, almost velvety sweetness. There is depth to it, a kind of warmth that sits low in the air. Sometimes there’s spice. Sometimes a thread of lemon. Always something soft, rounded and rooted.
This inheritance lives on clearly in Gertrude Jekyll. When in bloom, the scent is unmistakable. It doesn’t float or flicker. It settles.
A Fragrance That Unfolds in Layers
The first impression is rose in the most traditional sense - full, sweet, and lasting. But the scent doesn’t stand still. Closer to the bloom, there may be a note of raspberry or a brightness that catches at the edge of the breath. As the flower matures, the perfume deepens, becoming rounder and darker, like fruit warming on the vine. In still weather, the scent often meets the gardener before the plant does, carried quietly in the air around it.
Shaped by Light and Time
The fragrance changes as the day turns. In the morning, it is cooler and brisker, edged with green. As the sun rises, the scent warms. By late afternoon, it grows full and mellow, taking on a certain ease. On warm evenings, it drifts without effort, resting in the garden like mist. A single bloom brought indoors can scent a room for hours, even quietly after nightfall.
This gentle movement, the way the scent breathes with the day, is part of what makes it feel alive.
What Gives It Power
Roses are generous in ways we are only beginning to understand. A single bloom may hold over a hundred aromatic compounds, each one contributing to the whole. In Gertrude Jekyll, those compounds are present in generous balance. The result is a scent that feels natural and complete. It does not announce itself sharply, but reveals itself in slow, shifting layers. Familiar, yet never tired. Deep, but never heavy.
Fragrance Rooted in History
Although this rose was introduced in the late twentieth century, its scent reaches much further back. The Damask rose, thought to have arrived in Europe from the Middle East centuries ago, became a favourite in monastic herb gardens and apothecaries. It was used in oils, waters, and balms, and above all, grown for the sheer pleasure of its perfume.
Later came the Portland roses, believed to be a cross between the Damask and the China rose. These offered something rare: a compact habit, repeat flowering, and fragrance that lingered. Gertrude Jekyll belongs firmly in this line of inheritance. Bred from both Damask and Portland ancestry, it carries not only the perfume but the poise of its predecessors. Though few Portland varieties are widely grown today, their influence remains, shaping both the form and fragrance of many modern English Roses.
A Place in the Garden
This rose does well wherever its presence can be felt. Planted along a path, near a doorway, beside a bench or a sheltered wall, it rewards the passerby without calling attention to itself. It can be grown as a shrub or trained as a climber in warmer gardens. The growth is strong, the flowering generous, and the blooms are always carried with purpose.
A Lasting Impression
This rose is known first and foremost for its scent. Strong, full and unmistakably traditional, it leaves a lasting impression without ever needing to demand it. The fragrance stays with the gardener not as something remembered, but as something returned to - familiar, rooted, and enduring.
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