Rosa
Family
Rosaceae
Synonyms
Rosa damascena Miller, Rosa gallica L. var. damascena Voss, Rosa damascena Miller var. trigintipetala (Dieck) Koehne.
Vernacular Names
| Malaysia | Bunga ayer mawar, ros, gul. |
| English | Damask rose, pink damask rose. |
| Indonesia | Kembang eros, bunga ros. |
| Cambodia | Kolaab. |
| Laos | Kuhlaab. |
| Thailand | Kulaap-on (Northern), kulaap mon (Central), yee sun (Bangkok). |
| Vietnam | Huong. |
| French | Rose de damas, rose de tous les mois, rose de puteaux |
Geographical Distributions
This species is only known from cultivation and its exact origin is not known. It probably originated as a hybrid in the Anatolian region in Turkey, but semi-wild plants (escapes from cultivation) are also found in the Caucasus, Syria and Morocco. It is known from ancient times and was introduced early from Turkey into Europe and the Middle East, where Iran has been a centre of rose cultivation and rose oil production for centuries. In the Balkans and the Mediterranean it is cultivated as a source of rose oil. The most important growing areas are in Bulgaria, Turkey, southern Russia and Morocco. Elsewhere it is mainly grown as an ornamental. In Southeast Asia it is only occasionally cultivated as an ornamental.
Description
This is a robust, erect, multi-stemmed and branched shrub up to 1-2 m tall, with well-developed and extensive root system. Prickles are usually many, unequal, straight to slightly curved, reddish-brown when young and grey when old.
Leaves are arranged alternate, compound with 5-7 leaflets and waxy. The stipules are almost entire and elongated. The stalk is with red-brown hairs while leaflet is elliptical size 2-7 cm x 1.5-5 cm. Their margin is serrate, usually hairy but not glandular on the underside.
Inflorescence is a terminal raceme or composed of indeterminate axis with the determinate, bearing 3-10 flowers, rarely more. The flowers are up to 8 cm in diametre, often double, very fragrant and usually pinkish. Stalk is up to 7 cm long, with many glandular bristles. They are cup-like glandular-bristly on the outside but hairy on the inside. The sepals are glandular, triangular and broadly cuspidate, abruptly bent during pollination, falling off afterwards. The petals are red to white, preferably rosy-pink to rosy-red usually 20-30-flowered with 5-10 deformed ones. The stamens are 100-120; pistils numerous, styles free and hairy.
Fruit is an ovoid hip, up to 2.5 cm long, fleshy, bristly, light to dark red, 1-3-seeded .
Seed is rounded triangular, 3-5mm long and brownish.
Ecology / Cultivation
Cv. group Damascena is adaptable to a wide range of environmental conditions. In general a mild climate is preferred with no extremes of temperature and long periods of warm, sunny weather and an evenly distributed rainfall. In Kazanlik (Bulgaria), the major cultivation area, an average spring temperature of 5-15°C is considered as optimum. Low night temperatures of 10-12°C during flowering inhibit oil synthesis, but night temperatures up to 20°C increases it. Regular rainfall is important, especially in spring and early summer, and a daily relative humidity in May-June of 70% is considered optimum. Waterlogging should be avoided, but damask roses can withstand waterlogging to a considerable extent. Hot dry periods during flowering rapidly reduce oil yield by evaporation. Shade is inimical to flowering in Bulgaria, but in India, where temperatures in the sun are higher, shade is essential. Frost during early vegetative growth or bud formation causes extensive damage. Mature plants are frost resistant but pruned ones require protection in areas with severe winter frosts. A deep, fertile loam (pH 6-7.5) is most suitable for commercial rose growing but climate is more important than soil type. In India, alkaline saline soils of pH 8-9 are well suited for damask rose growing.
Line Drawing / Photograph
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References
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Plant Resources of South-East Asia No 19: Essential-oil plants.
