Lem Hybrids
James A. Elliott, Astoria, Oregon
I shall attempt to evaluate some of the Lem hybrids strictly on the basis of how they shape up in my own garden. Mr. Lem often propagated and distributed three or four seedlings from the same cross. To identify each clone, he would sometimes add its location in the garden or possibly his wife's favorite. A fictitious example might be Bow Bells x Loderi (by shade house), (by Hildebrands or (Anna's). It would be rather difficult to accurately compare 'Bow Bells' x 'Loderi' in two different gardens unless we were dealing with identical clones. For the same reason we might be miles apart, in some instances, in our evaluation of some crosses because we might be judging different clones.
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| R. 'Norseman' |
I hesitate to suggest any actual ratings on flower and plant. In order to be meaningful the ratings must be based on many opinions on many plants in many gardens. I will arrange the hybrids in groups.
| I. Superior Group (Outstanding in all respects) |
| 1. 'Pink Walloper' ('Anna" x 'Marinus Koster') |
|
2. 'Lem's Monarch'. Same cross. It takes someone with a better imagination than I possess to differentiate
between these two. |
| 3. 'Lem's Cameo' S.P.A |
| 4. 'Replet' ( R. forrestii v. repens x 'Letty Edwards') |
| 5. 'Anna's Replet'. Same cross. This one blooms a little later than 'Replet' and is a different shade of pink. |
| II. Outstanding Group |
| 1. 'Halfdan Lem'. A good bright red. |
|
2. Isabel Pierce. This plant has a good round truss and nice green foliage. However, I would like to see the leaves
stand out a little more alert. This one gave us problems when planted in full sun. Flowers would tarnish and brown soon after opening. When moved to full shade this was eliminated. |
| III. Special Group |
|
1. 'Jingle Bells'. A popular one when flowers are not damaged. However, in our location late winter and early
spring frosts often cause some flower injury. |
| 2. 'Red Olympia'. Heavily spotted red flowers with good substance. Foliage could be a little more dense. |
| 3. 'Carlene' ( R. williamsianum x 'Lem's Goal'). Good plant form, nice foliage and flower. |
| 4. 'Rose Point.' Neat foliage and delicate flower. |
| IV. Standard Group |
|
1. 'Hansel' ('Fabia' x
R. bureavii
) 2. 'Gretsel' ('Gretel', 'Gretchen') Same cross as above. These two are fine
foliage plants. Flowers noted for large calyx. Flowers noted for large calyx. |
|
3. 'Anna'. Unusual star shaped flower. Bud blasting is a problem some years. An outstanding parent for
hybridizing. |
|
4. 'Red Walloper' ('Anna' x 'Marinus Koster') Not as compact as 'Pink Walloper'. A weak root system keeps this
one from rating higher. Perhaps grafting onto a strong plant would be the answer. |
|
5. 'Red Walloper' (Mossman form) Parentage? A lighter red which is inclined to fade. Plant could be more
compact. |
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6. 'Smokey #9' ('Burgundy' x ' Moser's Maroon') A good deep purple but plant is improved by rather severe
pruning. |
| 7. 'Unimak' ( R. lacteum x 'Mary Swaythling') x 'Loderi King George') |
| 8. 'Seattle Gold' |
| 9. 'Lem's Goal'. This one has been valuable for hybridizing. |
|
10. 'Norseman' (Parentage unknown) Well shaped plant with almost fluorescent pink flowers. Leaves are inclined
to cup up somewhat on the edges, for which I would fault it. |
|
11. 'Hello Dolly'. On older plants flowers seem to dominate the plant and hide the foliage. Large calyx. My
experience with quite a number of 'Hello Dolly' crosses made by Mr. Lem have been quite disappointing in both foliage and flower. |
| 12. 'Burgundy' |
| 13. 'Wizard' |
|
14. 'Fred Rose' (
R. lacteum
x 'Mary Swaythling)'
Not a Lem cross - seed from England. A good yellow, grown and used often by Mr. Lem in hybridizing. |
|
15. 'Red Loderi' ('Loderi King George' x 'Earl of Athlone') Not a Lem hybrid but grown and used by Mr. Lem in
hybridizing. Not especially strong root system |
| V. Promising Unnamed Hybrids - Worthy of Consideration for Registration |
| 1. White Nes Loderi ('J.H. Van Nes' x 'Loderi King George') |
| 2. Raffill-Loderi x Red Loderi (('C.P. Raffill' x Loderi King George') x 'Red Loderi') |
| 3. Raffill x R. fortunei ('C. P. Raffill' x R. fortunei ) |
| 4. R. caucasicum x ( R. lacteum x 'Mary Swaythling') (Anna's) |
|
5. Finest Pink Albatross (
R. discolor
x 'Loderi') Not a Lem hybrid. Seed from England. Grown and distributed
by Mr. Lem. |
| VI. Garden Plants (Those plants which as yet have not come up to expectations) |
| 1. 'Waxwing' ('Ole Olson' x 'Dawn's Delight') |
| 2. 'Mrs. A. T. de la Mare' x 'King of Shrubs' |
| 3. 'Smokey #1' ('Burgundy' x 'Moser's Maroon') |
| 4. 'Holy Moses' ('King of Shrubs' x 'Souv. of Anthony Waterer') |
| 5. 'Flame' |
| 6. 'Pink Nes Loderi' ('J. H. Van Nes' x 'Loderi King George') |
| 7. 'Britannia' x 'Earl of Athlone' |
| 8. R. williamsianum x R. calophytum |
| 9. 'C. P. Raffill' x R. discolor (By Hildebrands) |
| 10. 'Marinus Koster' x 'Lem's Goal' (By Hudsons) |
| 11. 'King of Shrubs' x 'Flame' (Salmon back of chicken house) |
| 12. 'Queen of Sheba' ( R. caucasicum x R. discolor) |
| 13. 'Gogetter #1' ('King of Shrubs' x R. smirnowii ) |
| 14. 'Cunningham's Sulfur' x ( R. lacteum x 'Mary Swaythling') |
| 15. 'Burgundy' x 'C. P. Raffill' |
| 16. 'C. P. Raffill' x R. discolor |
| 17. R. caucasicum x R. discolor |
| 18. 'C. P. Raffill' x 'Moser's Maroon' |
| 19. R. ungernii x R. auriculatum ) x 'Romany Chal' |
| 'Shalom' ('Anna' x 'Antoon Van Welie') is a great hybrid and has stood the test of time and weather in this area. Propagation has been difficult. Nathaniel E. Hess, Sands Point, New York |