Souvenir du Docteur Jamain

Souvenir du Docteur Jamain is probably one of the most well known Hybrid Perpetuals. It was bred by Lacharme in 1865 as a result of crossing Général Jacqueminot X Charles Lefebvre

Not long after it was released it disappeared due to the diminishing intrest in old roses. Hybrid Teas were all the new rage and extremely fashionable. As so many old roses Souvenir was forgotten until....

Sissinghurst Castle was bought by Vita Sackville West in 1930 and Vita was a big rose lover. She and her husband were always searching for plants to populate their garden, the now world-famous Sissinghurst gardens.

One day Vita was at a nursery and against an old outbuilding there was this rather in bad shape rose without flowers. Can I buy it she asked. You can get it for free the owner said. So in Autumn the rose was transplanted into Vita's garden. The next spring it started to grow and develop buds. When the first one opened she called her friend and big rose connaisseur Graham Thomas to come and take a look.

The bloom was deep, dark red, almost purple and had a very strong damask /old rose fragrance. Graham Thomas was convinced it was the lost rose Souvenir du Docteur Jamain.

The rose was propagated and send to all nurseries in the UK and the rest of Europe and within a few years the rose was easily available.

It became one of the most loved roses of all time and this till this day.

Souvenir du docteur jamain has very long slender canes and can be pegged to the ground or grown as a climber as long as you train the long canes as horizontal as possible to ensure more blooms. It can reach 350 cm as a climber. The blooms are exquisite with a heady perfume. Because they are so dark red the best position is partial shade with no afternoon sun. Try to avoid an exposure to the hottest time of day. Morning sun till 12.00 o'clock is ideal.

The rose repeats well especially in August and September. She can get mildew but she outgrows it without damage.

My specimen was planted in 2020 and it almost died in 2021. I dug it up and planted her spring 2022 in a beautiful container after treating it with mycorrhiza. This year she started to grow. First very thin shoots but in July she started to grow her famous long canes straight from the graft and I trained them on a trellis I made. Next spring and summer she will perform for the first time. Can't wait.

Being a HYBRID PERPETUAL this rose needs lots of organic material and organic fertilizer. So give her a good thick mulch of compost and give her each month a good handful of organic fertilizer starting in March till August. Water her thoroughly if it stays dry. Don't forget to WATER!

When you apply the mulch you can also give her a handful of Vulcano rock dust to provide trace elements.

I would recommend planting her against a white or white washed brick wall. Grey is also good as long as the dark red pops out against the lighter background.

It's a beauty so try her!