Hall owner on the scent of rose history

Goldsborough Hall has been exploring the history of its roses in advance of a brand new Rose Day on Sunday June 13, 11-5pm.

The historic stately home, near Knaresborough, comes with over 400 years of history and was home to Princess Mary in the 1920s.

Before hosting a new garden open day, owner Clare Oglesby was keen to find out more about the garden’s historic roses.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

“Princess Mary was especially fond of roses and many newspaper reports from the time mention that her roses ‘were blooming all summer in the flower gardens of Goldsborough Hall’,” Care explained.

“There are lots of beautiful old roses growing around the hall and in the grounds, but we simply had no idea what they were.”

The Rose Society stepped in to help and Clare added: “I bombarded them with pictures of the roses but identifying them was not as easy as I first thought.

“I found myself photographing their bases and leaves and sending through estimates of height, girth and habit.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

“Only then could the Rose Society start to make some identifications.

“Many of the roses have now been identified and we were fascinated to find that some of them were over 100 years old, perhaps planted by Princess Mary herself in the 1920s.”

A soft pink rose which scrambles up the side of the Hall’s drawing room window was hard to identify.

It was initially muted as rose New Dawn but it is now thought to be rose Dr Van Fleet, introduced in 1870.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

Another great discovery was rose Nevada, a large white flowered rose which climbs very tall against the south face of the hall.

“I used to call this my Yorkshire Rose as its large white face with a yellow interior reminded me of our county’s flag,” added Clare.

“However, I was completely wrong. It came from Spain, was introduced here in 1927 and the word Nevada is actually the Spanish snowy.

“Once again this rose could have been planted in Princess Mary’s era.”

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

On Rose Day, visitors will also be able to see Princess Mary’s rose garden which was replanted in 2006 with a selection of old rose varieties including Little White Pet and Old China Blush as well as borders which have been planted with the white rose Yorkshire Princess, named after Mary.

“Looking at these old roses and discovering their names has been a fascinating journey through our rose history,” added Clare.

“My huge thanks to the Rose Society for their assistance and patience.”

The hall will be open for Rose Day. To buy tickets, visit www.goldsboroughhall.com

Related topics: