Related Links: Basye's Blueberry Rose
Introduced:   1968, Basye, USA
Class:  Rugosa Hybrid
Zones:  4b-9
Parentage:  'Rosa rugosa' x 'Rosa foliolosa'
Flowers:  Large, single flowers.
Velvet purple petals surround yellow stamens.
Size:  4 - 7 feet
Fragrance:  Moderate.
Diseases:  None, excellent resistance
Of note:  Rich flower color on a reliable, healthy rose.  An aristocrat of the garden.

Description:
Before discussing 'Basye's Purple Rose', it is worthwhile to consider the hybridizer, Dr. Robert Basye.  Dr. Basye, a retired mathematics professor at Texas A&M, has bred roses for over sixty years; his endeavor has been to breed thornless roses of great disease resistance, especially to blackspot. His efforts have paid off with some wonderful roses, including 'Basye's Purple Rose', 'Basye's Blueberry', and 'Belinda's Dream'.   It is worth stating that breeders who strive to create roses for traits such as hardiness, disease resistance, and durability should earn rose gardeners' greatest respect.  Certainly, Dr. Robert Basye and Griffith Buck are worthy of our appreciation, not only for the roses they have bred, but for the ideals they represent.

Each flower has five burgundy-purple petals which surround golden stamens, creating a memorable flower.  Fragrance is clove.  Thorny canes may grow to seven feet, and growth habit is upright on a shrub of slender form.  As might be expected from a Basye creation, disease resistance is excellent.  All in all, 'Basye's Purple Rose' is a superb rose.