• Bengale Bourbon Desprez

10 favorite votes.  

Dark red Bourbon.
Registration name: Madame Desprez (bourbon, Desprez, 1831)

Bred by Jean Desprez (France, 1831).
Introduced in France by Sisley-Vandaël in 1833 as 'Bengale Bourbon Desprez'.
Introduced in Australia by Darling Nursery in 1851 as 'Madame Desprez'.

Bourbon.  

Rose-pink, violet shading, ages to lilac .  Average diameter 3.25".  Large, full (26-40 petals), in large clusters, cupped, globular bloom form.  Blooms in flushes throughout the season.  

USDA zone 5b through 10b.  

Francine Emilie Bouillart (b. June 4, 1791 Guignes-Rabutin) married "Jean" Desprez.
The breeder named two of his roses 'Madame Desprez'. To add to the confusion, in a rose catalog of 1848, both were listed.
One was the 1831 lilac pink bourbon
and the other was the <1834 white china.
'Mme Desprez' at Roseraie du Val-de-Marne may be mislabeled. See References.