Proc. and Bull. American Rose Society (1908) pp. 55-61 Essay on Hybridisation. By Alex. Dickson, Acting Director of Alex. Dickson & Sons, Ltd., Royal Irish Nurseries, Newtownards, County Down.
Out of many hundreds of crosses with this rose [La France], only in one single instance did we succeed in making it produce seed, but we feel that the labour we spent was amply repaid, as the ultimate result of it was the introduction of Mrs. W. J. Grant, known to you as Belle Siebrecht, in our opinion one of the finest roses in cultivation, at least from the Britishers' standpoint. In addition to this, we have always found from practical experience, the roses descended from this particular cross have always impressed their offspring with some at least of the more prominent qualities of the parents, and it was pursuing this particular line of breeding that enabled us to produce varieties, which from a British standpoint are ideal exhibition flowers, and at the same time the plants are floriferous and of excellent constitution. In this group we might mention ... Mrs. David McKee ...
