‘Cuisse de nymphe émue’ and ‘Félicité Parmentier’ in France.

There is apparently a confusion between a rose sold in France as 'Cuisse de nymphe émue' by several nurseries (Guillot, André Eve, Loubert) and 'Félicité Parmentier'. Their 'Cuisse de nymphe émue', always described as a more colorful 'Cuisse de nymphe’ (Maiden’s Blush), is in fact very different from this one and much paler too ; but it is very similar to 'Félicité Parmentier' and probably identical. This ‘Cuisse de nymphe émue’ is also grown at Bagatelle, in Paris.

Like 'Félicité Parmentier', 'Cuisse de nymphe émue' has light, almost yellowish-green leaves, instead of the greyish blue-green leaves of 'Maiden's Blush' ; small rounded yellowish buds with shorter calix, instead of the slightly more pointed buds and the longer ovoid-shaped calix of 'Maiden's Blush' ; very double and well-formed flowers of clear flesh pink, shaped almost like a ball and fading to cream at the edges, where 'Maiden's Blush' has flowers of a "soft, warm blush-pink on opening" as described by Graham Thomas, in an informal shape. What Graham Thomas said about 'Félicité Parmentier' applies to our 'Cuisse de nymphe émue' : "No other variety in this section has such densely packed buds, opening to such full-flowers of clear flesh pink".

In addition to that, the rose sold by Loubert as 'Félicité Parmentier' is quite surely not the right one. Contrary to the others, Guillot and Eve, where 'Cuisse de nymphe émue' and 'Félicité Parmentier' seem to be the same rose, Loubert has effectively three distinct roses : their 'Cuisse de nymphe émue' resembles the right 'Félicité Parmentier', their 'Cuisse de nymphe' seems to be the right one (Maiden’s Blush), and their 'Félicité Parmentier' is a third Alba rose.

The Alba rose sold by Loubert as 'Félicité Parmentier’ is actually very close to 'Cuisse de nymphe' (Maiden's Blush). Yet there are some differences between them. In comparison with ‘Cuisse de nymphe’ (Maiden’s Blush), flowers are slightly smaller and more colorful. Buds, similar in form, are more promptly tinted with pink, and a more vivid pink. Leaves are a bit darker, almost olive green, and the prickles, not numerous, are clearer and less reddish. Calix bear maybe a little less prickles, not being glabrous either. All of this corresponds to the description of ‘Small Maiden’s Blush’ ; and particularly to the rose described here as ‘Alba Incartana’ from Sangerhausen, which should be ‘Small Maiden's Blush’ : flowers, buds, leaves, calix, prickles, it seems identical in everything.

I may conclude that Loubert ‘Félicité Parmentier’ is in fact ‘Small Maiden’s Blush’ and that ‘Cuisse de nymphe émue’ as we know it is probably ‘Félicité Parmentier’, at Loubert and elsewhere. I thus may add that there is probably not such a rose corresponding to the description of ‘Cuisse de nymphe émue’ in commerce, if not ‘Small Maiden’s Blush’ itself. A question remains : was ‘Cuisse de nymphe émue’ a french name for ‘Small Maiden’s Blush’, or was it only, as it is often said, a ’Cuisse de nymphe’ with well-colored flowers ? And, as ‘Cuisse de nymphe émue’ is sometimes called ‘Belle Thérèse’, was ‘Belle Thérèse’ a synonym of it or was it another rose ?