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'Norma Major' rose Reviews & Comments
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Initial post
12 APR by
 HeelinRoses
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Fellow rose growers,
I'm trying to determine if a plant which I encountered in a friend's garden in South Norfolk, England back in 2014 was actually a 'Norma Major'. If there were any visible differences to NM I would say the blooms might've been of lighter weight (since they didn't lean outwards as the photos on these pages seem to show) and maybe of a slightly deeper orange-pink than NM (It's hard to tell from the photos here if there is a little orange hue in the NM flowers and the Description section only says 'medium pink').
Every lantern-shaped colourfast bloom of 4 inches diameter max. kept the perfect folded form - as shown in one of Beth's photos of NM (Id. 128065) and unlike 'Duke of Windsor', 'Prima Ballerina' etc. they did not flatten out into discs of wavy petals. The peduncles were light green (like NM) very slender but only 5-7 inches long, sometimes in twos (or threes max.) at intervals along a wide-prickled, diagonal branch.
At least 5 feet tall (like NM), the plant was rather sparsely foliated and braced against a south-facing wooden shed by a single horizontal wire.
The immediate smell of the flower when sniffed, was only of mild rosiness but curiously, when I put 2 in a vase of water, the next sunny morning the entire downstairs atmosphere had been flooded with an exotic 'buoyant' aroma of sweet strawberry mousse, other fruits and a hint of lime. The fragrance greeted me halfway down our stairs from behind a closed door and 2 rooms away. This phenomenal scent production is the reason I am posting here for help - I've never experienced it from any other rose (in the vase) before or since. Similar to (but more pleasing than) the 'Special Anniversary' rose of 2003 by Edward Smith UK but I stress: NOT from big, cabbage-like blooms like SA, Fragrant Cloud etc.
The blooms lasted 5-8 days in the vase producing the scent for the whole duration - then the petals dropped cleanly.
I noticed that although in the Description page it says just 'mild' and 'sweet', the Norma Major rose has 2 member ratings of 'Excellent' for its fragrance, which begs my final question here:
Any other suggestions for the ID. or is NM the one I'm looking for?
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Initial post
22 JUL 10 by
John Moody
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I planted my Norma Major rose five years ago starting out as a budded maiden from Steve Singer at Wisconsin Roses.
It took a couple of years to establish, but now that it has, it is a wonderful garden rose for me. The bush is quite healthy and seems to handle very nasty winters with ease. IT is quick to attain a height of about 5'-6' tall in the Spring and starts blooming right away. Most flushes have 30+ blooms and they are very sturdy lasting two weeks or more while still maintaining a very nice exhibition form. They are lightly fragrant and make a wonderful cut flower. The description of Norma Major states this rose blooms in flushes, but quite frankly I think it is a continuous bloomer. Once it starts blooming in the Spring it will have at least 6 or 8 blooms on it all the time. And during flushes, it may have as many as 40 or 50 flowers on the mature bush. My bush has gotten so large now that it has to be moved out of the regular bed and planted all alone because it encroaches on its' neighbors, hiding them from view. All in all this rose makes quite a stunning pink display rose for the garden that is second to none.
My one criticism of this rose is that the foliage could be more dense. It can look a bit skimpy of leaves when it is fully grown. The spacing of the stems is the problem. The stems need to be a bit closer together to give it a fuller look, but this is really nit-picking to be honest.
Other than that one very slight drawback Norma Major makes a very nice garden display since the blooms are so beautiful and plentiful and the foliage does stay quite healthy. It never shows any signs of blackspot or mildew since I have had mine this past 5 years. I do spray my roses regularly.
John
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#1 of 3 posted
23 JUL 10 by
HMF Admin
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Your sharing of your experience and expertise is greatly appreciated.
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#2 of 3 posted
1 MAR by
HeelinRoses
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Could 'Norma Major's scent be described as fruity?
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#3 of 3 posted
2 MAR by
Michael Garhart
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Sadly, he is no longer with us, Heelin, so he can't answer.
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Initial post
19 AUG 20 by
Dianne's Southwest Idaho Rose Garden
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This is a gorgeous rose. Mine has a strong, sweet scent, and I am the first to admit that I don't smell as well as I would like to. I am sad that this rose is not widely available.
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#1 of 0 posted
16 FEB by
HeelinRoses
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Initial post
7 FEB 16 by
Patricia Routley
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Responding further to Ray (member Mondo) on 'Norma Major'.
Thanks for that Ray. I actually have the 1998 issues of the English The Rose and have flicked through them all. I was unable to pick up any mention and so for the moment, it is a mystery as to who bred the rose. There is a nursery R. V. Roger in North Yorkshire on the internet saying they thought they have the only stocks of 'Norma Major' but unfortunately no internet address. Anything further you can find out about 'Norma Major' would be most acceptable.
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