Damask Roses – Old Garden Roses

Powerful fragrant and beautiful shaped, the Damask Roses are used to make rose water, essential oil and to flavor food

Rosa Damascena, known as Damask Rose is said to have been brought from the Middle East to Europe by crusaders returning from the Holy Land.

This hybrid rose derived from Rosa Gallica and Rosa Moschata.

 Most of Damask variety are once bloomer, called Summer Damasks, but some of them repeat-flower into the fall.

Facts About Damask Roses

Damasks produce quite thorny canes and most of them are very hardy and disease resistant. The once bloomers are called Summer Damasks and the repeat bloomers are called Autumn Damasks.

Damasks are also:

• Have light grey-green foliage

• Grow up to 7 feet tall

• Very fragrant and are prominent in the pedigree of many modern roses

• Used as ingredient for food and perfumes

Their coloring ranges from soft white and light shades of pink to deep red.

A Word To Pruning Damasks

With Summer Damasks, once established, remove one or two very old stems after blooming.

Autumn Damasks are repeat flowering and should be shortened by 1/3 in late winter or early spring.

However, all diseased and dead wood should be removed in late fall or early winter.

Uses For A Damask Rose

Damasks are very popular in craft projects, for cooking as a flavoring ingredient and in numerous beauty products.

The method of extracting rose water from the petals can be traced back to the 11th century.

Soaking rosebuds in water for several days releases an essence which, added to bath water, leaves your skin and hair with a soft fragrance of roses.

For culinary uses, especially in Indian and Middle Eastern cooking, rose water and powdered roses find their usage to spice dishes.

Make Your Damask Rose Choice

Ispahan

A Damask first recorded in 1832 but probably much older; it may be Persian in origin because of its name.

They are once bloomers, and the flowers are richly scented. Their double light pink flowers show a green button eye. The bush is very winter hardy. 

The glossy, rich green foliage is very disease resistant.

It has a longer flowering period than most other Damasks and is in bloom for up to six weeks.

They grow up to a height of 6 feet and spread to a width of about 4 feet.

Madame Hardy

This most beautiful white rose dates back to 1832. The characteristic green eye at the center of the bloom and its unusually leafy sepals make it easy to identify this rose.

They blooms are fragrant with a hint of lemon and grow in clusters.

The winter hardy bush has rich green foliage, is once flowering, grows up to 5 feet and spreads to a width of about 4 feet.

One of the most popular Damasks we have in commerce and highly recommended for every rose garden.

Celsiana

This graceful bush with large, semi-double soft pink flowers and nearly golden stamens is once blooming in summer.

The rose is very winter hardy, and its dense grey-green foliage has a good disease resistance.

The bush grows up to a height of 6 feet and spreads to a width of 5 feet.

Quatre Saisons or Autumn Damask

The Rose of Four Seasons with its 3” double, clear pink blooms is the oldest repeat-flowering rose in Europe.

The very fragrant bush shows grey-green foliage and is shade tolerant and has a good disease resistance.

The shrub grows up to a height of 5 feet and spreads to a width of 5 feet.

This rose has more than twenty synonyms. It was the ‘Rose Paestum’ to the Romans and is named ‘Rose of Castile’ by the Spanish and Italians.