Sombreuil
(actually 'Colonial White')
Large-Flowered Climber; Wyant, 1959

Date Planted: Summer 2001
Source: Trade

History:  "Mlle Marie de Sombreuil (1774 - c.1823) was a true heroine of the French Revolution. She having, it is said, followed her old father, the Governor of Les Invalides, into the Prison de l'Abbaye and avoided the massacres there by drinking a glass of blood."

An interesting bit of trivia, but the rose that most of us in the USA know as 'Sombreuil' (or 'Mlle. de Sombreuil', a climbing Tea bred by M. Robert in 1850) is actually Colonial White, a climber from the 1950s. They've been confused in commerce for many years, but the correct 'Sombreuil' has recently been introduced into commerce.I aquired my plant in a trade, under the name 'Alberic Barbier'. I became suspicious of its identity for three reasons: 1) the flowers and foliage didn't look like the photos of A.B. I'd seen, 2) it reblooms (big clue) and 3) it looked exactly like the 'Sombreuil' I had growing in a large pot awaiting a spot in the ground. Hmmm...The potted 'Sombreuil' has gone to live on a friend's arbor and 'Alberic Barbier' has a new name tag. Guess I need to relabel this portrait now!

Nomenclature aside, this is a marvelous rose - vigorous, healthy, floriferous and fragrant. Really, what more could one possibly ask for?

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