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Yolande D’Aragon

After discovering the alluring world of old garden roses, I felt the need to add as many as I could. I was on a conquest looking for a rose who’s fragrance could compete with David Austin’s Gertrude Jekyll. I didn’t expect Yolande D’Aragon to fit this check box, in fact I added this rose for the large, voluptuous, old world blooms that I had seen on several Instagram accounts. She was bred in 1843 by a rose breeder called Jean- Pierre Vibert of which I have begun collecting several of his roses. Yolande is from the Portland class, a remontant class of old roses that preceded hybrid perpetuals. 



I ordered this rose from Heirloom roses months after placing my bare root orders for spring of 2021. This was a last minute, late night shopping splurge. She came well rooted but much smaller than my bare roots, which is to be expected with own root specimens. I was thrilled however when she became one of the first of my new roses to produce buds, and even more thrilled when I saw the size of the buds. I couldn’t believe such a young, immature plant was offering up these beautiful large buds. If I was a more patient rose gardener I would have most likely nipped these buds, however I become like a kid during spring, seeing all the bounty that’s about to be, especially with new varieties. Over the next week that bud grew larger and began showing pink, and even more special, her fragrance began seeping out before any petals had begun unfurling. I knew for sure that I had found something special, a rose who’s fragrance was going to be truly noteworthy. 



Once her bloom begun opening the fragrance continued to get stronger and the formation of petals was absolute perfection. Fat and cabbagy blooms with a slightly messy array of petals in traditional quartered fashion of many old roses. Her color could be described as raspberry- rose pink. 


Over the summer she delighted me with several more blooms, not bad for a first year, own root rose. I am so excited to see what she does going into spring 2022. 

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