Meilland International SA is a family-owned

rose A rose is either a woody perennial flowering plant of the genus ''Rosa'' (), in the family Rosaceae (), or the flower it bears. There are over three hundred species and tens of thousands of cultivars. They form a group of plants that can be ...

growing business founded circa 1850. The business operates today out of the Domaine de Saint André in Le Cannet-des-Maures,

Le Luc en Provence Le Luc (; Provençal: ''Lo Luc''), also known as Le Luc-en-Provence (''Lo Luc de Provença''), is a commune in the Var department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region in Southeastern France. In 2019, it had a population of 11,094. Le Luc i ...

Var Var or VAR may refer to: Places * Var (department), a department of France * Var (river), France * Vār, Iran, village in West Azerbaijan Province, Iran * Var, Iran (disambiguation), other places in Iran * Vár, a village in Obreja commune, Ca ...

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan area ...

with branches all over the world.

History

The Meilland Family is a multi-generational family of French rose breeders. The family's first rosarian was gardener,

Joseph Rambaux Joseph Rambaux (1820–1878) was a gardener and rose breeder from Lyon, France. He is considered the patriarch of the legenday Meilland International SA, Meilland family, award-winning rose breeders for six generations. The rose variety he is be ...

, who first started breeding roses in 1850 in

Lyon Lyon,, ; Occitan language, Occitan: ''Lion'', hist. ''Lionés'' also spelled in English as Lyons, is the List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, third-largest city and Urban area (France), second-largest metropolitan area of F ...

. He is best known for developing the

Polyantha Garden roses are predominantly Hybrid (biology), hybrid roses that are grown as ornamental plants in private or public gardens. They are one of the most popular and widely cultivated groups of flowering plants, especially in temperate climates. A ...

'Perle d'Or'. His wife, Claudine and son-in-law, Francois Dubreuil, took over the family nursery after Rambaux died in 1878. Debreuil became a successful rose breeder and grower. In 1900, Dubreuil hired sixteen year old, Antoine Meilland, as a gardening assistant, working alongside Dubreuil's daughter, Claudia. Antoine and Claudia married in 1909 and their son, Francis was born in 1912. The couple took over Dubareuil's nursery after his death death in 1916. After

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

, Antoine and Claudia bought property in

Tassin-la-Demi-Lune Tassin la Demi-Lune () is a commune in Lyon Metropolis in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region of central-eastern France. In 2017, it had a population of 22,297. Its inhabitants are named ''Tassilunois'' in French. Geography The town of Tassin-la-De ...

, near Lyon and started a new nursery. Their son, Francis, married Marie-Louise (Louisette) Paolino, daughter of an Italian rose breeder. Francis grew the nursery into a large, international company, and became the most famous and prolific rose breeder in the family. His legendary 'Peace' rose, brought the family international attention and great commercial success it was introduced after

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

. The Meilland family merged their business with Francisque Richardier in 1946, so that Francis Meilland could focus solely on breeding roses. After Francis's early death in 1958, Louisette continued to breed roses, introducing many awarding winning new varieties. The new company, Meilland-Richardier grew into Meilland International (AKA House of Meilland), and is located in

, France. Francis and Louisette's children, Alain and Michelle, were both successful rose breeders and took over management of the company when Louisette retired. In 1978, Jacques Mouchotte was promoted to Director of Research of the company's rose breeding program. He developed a large number of new rose cultivars during his years at Meilland International. Some of his most popular rose varieties are 'Bonica 82', 'Debut', 'Carefree Wonder', 'Black Baccara' and 'Carefree Delight'. Meilland International continues to be 100% family owned and managed.

House of Meilland

Meilland Richardier grew into the large international rose growing business, the House of Meilland, also known as Meilland International. The company's headquarters are located in

, France. The company is owned entirely by the Meilland and Richardier families. The House of Meilland, has three divisions: Meilland International, which creates new rose varieties; Meilland Richardier, which grows and sells commercial roses worldwide; and Selection New Plant (SNP), which finds and acquires innovative varieties of ornamental plants. The company employs over 800 people worldwide and owns rose trial gardens and test stations in France, the U.S. and Germany. Meilland International sells over 12 million rose plants each year. The company is managed by Alain Meilland and Michell Richardier Meilland, who are also rose breeders for Meilland International. The company's rose breeding program has been led by Jacques Mouchotte since 1978.

Roses

Notes

Sources

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Meilland International Horticultural companies of France Rose breeders 1850s establishments in France Companies established in the 1850s Companies based in Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur