Article (newspaper)  (Nov 2010)  Page(s) 2.  Includes photo(s).
 
Patricia Routley: I have in the past few days identified one of my roses as being Golden Spray which was bred by Hugh Dickson in 1917. Everything matches, except I am unable to confirm its "apple perfume" until my bush starts to flower. The rose's temporary study name had been "Hatchell-Brown Yellow" (to distinguish it from another rose found at the same Victorian site "Hatchell-Brown Pink"). This rose was found by Rob Peace, a former editor of the Heritage Roses in Australia journal and he wrote to me in 2005 about meeting the gentle and charming Laurel Hatchell-Brown who "was a lovely lady who was one of my warfarin patients when I worked at Alexandra. Laurel lived in Yea, a neighbouring town. Her parents and siblings had all been great gardeners and Laurel had come to own the old family home. The yellow (rose) had been bought by her mother as 'Mermaid' and that's why the name was not known. We worked out it wasn't Mermaid and Laurel had no other reference - it was a nursery mistake. As we came to be good garden chums, Laurel would bring pieces of flowering sprigs as gifts when she came for her blood tests. So enjoy the rose, knowing a bit more about the gentle soul Laurel was." Possibly the path my rose took to get to Northcliffe may have been Brundrett Nursery, Vic-1; Hatchell-Brown garden-2; Found by Rob Peace-3; John Nieuwesteeg-4; Ruston's Roses-5; Melville Nursery, WA-6; Noelene Drage-7; Billy West-8; who sent me down cuttings in 2009. Identifying this rose is belying the old adage that your foundlings are more likely to be one of the more popular roses. So, how can I be so sure about an old rose I have only had for such a short while? Because I took lots of photographs of the young rose in its pot last year and the rose has such distinctive features as being single, a pale lemon yellow colour, a large boss of very long stamens, extremely long buds, and long and floppy canes. For once there were good descriptions in the few old catalogues. Obviously my rose has not had time to produce those long canes in my garden, but Billy, who sent it down to me, wrote: "Hatchell-Brown Yellow" (as it grows in my garden) is a moderately tall, sparse, sprawling rose. There are not a lot of branches and quite large distances between the leaves, so the foliage looks sparse - and because the foliage is sparse, the prickly stems are prone to sunburn. It sets hips readily - if the spent blooms are not removed it puts its energy into making many large hips, at the expense of rebloom. The flowers are lovely, fleeting things, but as a garden subject, the plant looks coarse, prickly, and bare. I've seen this rose at Ruston's looking more compact and well-covered, but no amount of regular trimming has made my plant thicken up. Perhaps it is a rose that prefers a cooler climate, or with time, it just may end up being a bit of a dog. I hope not, because I have given it a prime spot.

Book  (Apr 1993)  Page(s) 218.  
 
Golden Spray Hybrid Tea, clear lemon-yellow, 1917, Dickson, H. Description.

Book  (1936)  Page(s) 677.  
 
Spray, Golden (hybrid lutea) H. Dickson 1917; golden-yellow, fades to lemon-yellow, very large, single to semi-double, long clusters, floriferous, repeats well, growth 6/10.

Book  (1933)  
 
‘Golden Spray’ (H.T.): Flower in bud state deep Maréchal Niel yellow, opening to very large, almost single, blooms of great beauty; when fully expanded the colour is clear lemon-yellow. Growth quite distinct, sending up long arching shoots forming elegant sprays; every bud opens in succession, followed by others from the base of the plant.

Book  (1930)  Page(s) 92.  
 
‘Golden Spray’ HT (H. Dickson, 1917) Bud very large, long-pointed, deep golden yellow; flower very large, semi-double, clear lemon-yellow, huge boss of prominent anthers. The plant sends up long, arching sprays, buds opening in succession. Gold Medal, N.R.S. 1915.

Website/Catalog  (1926)  
 
p15. Rose Perfumes. 'Golden Spray' reminds you of an apple....

p57. No. 163 [in order of popularity of orders in 1925]. ‘Golden Spray’. (HT) (Hugh Dickson, 1917). F2 or 3. A spreading decorative variety with loose, open flowers of lemon yellow. Where singleness is no bar, this is a free and good variety; would make a good bed or clump. Apple scented. Hobart, Melbourne, Mountains, Sydney.

Website/Catalog  (1922)  Page(s) 28.  
 
‘Golden Spray’ (Hybrid Tea). Elegant sprays; deep ‘Marechal Niel’ yellow.

Website/Catalog  (1921)  Page(s) 15.  
 
‘Golden Spray’. HT Deep yellow, almost single.

Website/Catalog  (1921)  Page(s) 17.  
 
Roses.
Golden Spray, The flowers in the bud state are very long, pointed, and beautifully formed, of deep Marechal Neil yellow, opening to very large, almost single blooms of great beauty; when fully expanded the colour is clear lemon yellow. Gold Medal N.R.S.; class: Hybrid Tea Single; habit of growth: vigorous.

Magazine  (Jul 1920)  Page(s) 146.  
 
GOLDEN SPRAY. — (Hugh Dickson), variété très vigoureuse, jaune, superbe, mais fleur .semi-double.