''Rosa'' 'Compassion' is a pink-blend climbing rose cultivar developed by

Jack Harkness Captain Jack Harkness is a fictional character played by John Barrowman in ''Doctor Who'' and its spin-off series, '' Torchwood''. The character first appears in the 2005 ''Doctor Who'' episode " The Empty Child" and subsequently features in t ...

and introduced into

Great Britain Great Britain is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean off the northwest coast of continental Europe. With an area of , it is the largest of the British Isles, the largest European island and the ninth-largest island in the world. It is ...

in 1972. It is considered to be one of the best modern climbers and is a popular selling rose in Britain.

History

Harkness Roses

The rose cultivar was developed by Jack Harkness of Harkness Roses ( R. Harkness & Co. Ltd) at

Hitchin Hitchin () is a market town and unparished area in the North Hertfordshire district in Hertfordshire, England, with an estimated population of 35,842. History Hitchin is first noted as the central place of the Hicce people, a tribe holding 300 ...

, Hertfordshire. The acclaimed nursery, which continues to sell roses today, was established in 1879 in

Bedale Bedale ( ) is a market town and civil parish in the district of Hambleton, North Yorkshire, England. Historically part of the North Riding of Yorkshire, it is north of Leeds, south-west of Middlesbrough and south-west of the county town of ...

Yorkshire Yorkshire ( ; abbreviated Yorks), formally known as the County of York, is a historic county in northern England and by far the largest in the United Kingdom. Because of its large area in comparison with other English counties, functions have ...

by brothers, John Harkness (1857-1933) and (Robert Harkness (1851-1920). Jack Harkness (1918-1994) is the grandson of the original co-founder John Harkness. The Harkness family nursery grew roses from the beginning, but did not breed roses until 1962, when Jack Harkness began managing the business.

'Compassion'

Harkness developed the rose cultivar by crossing the white, large-flowered climber, 'White Cockade' and the pink

Hybrid tea rose Hybrid tea is an informal horticultural classification for a group of garden roses. The first hybrid tea roses were created in France in the mid-1800s, by cross-breeding the large, floriferous Hybrid Perpetuals with the tall, elegant Tea roses. ...

, 'Prima Ballerina'. Harkness Roses introduced 'Compassion' into Britain in 1972. It is considered to be one of the best modern climbers and is a popular selling rose in Britain. 'Compassion' has six child plants: ''Rosa'' 'City Girl' (Harkness, 1985), ''Rosa'' 'High Hopes', ''Rosa'' 'Highfield', ''Rosa'' 'Loving Lorna', ''Rosa'' 'Paul Shirville' , and ''Rosa'' 'Rosemary Harkness'.

Description

'Compassion' is a modern climbing tea rose, in height with a spread. Blooms are large, have an average diameter of , and a petal count of 26 to 40. Bloom color is a blend of salmon, pink, apricot, and orange and fades to off-white as the flowers mature. Scent is strong and fruity. Flowers are carried mostly solitary or in small clusters of up to five and have a classic hybrid tea bloom form. 'Compassion' blooms repeatedly throughout the season. It is very disease resistant and makes an excellent cut flower as well as a garden shrub. It also can be trained as a pillar rose. Foliage is large, dark green and glossy. The plant has many prickles and a dense, upright growth habit. 'Compassion' is known in France as 'Belle de Londres'.

References

{{Rose, state=collapsed

Compassion Compassion motivates people to go out of their way to relieve the physical, mental or emotional pains of others and themselves. Compassion is often regarded as being sensitive to the emotional aspects of the suffering of others. When based on n ...

1972 introductions