Rosa 'Chrysler Imperial'


Rosa 'Chrysler Imperial' is a strongly fragrant, dark red hybrid tea rose cultivar. This variety was bred and publicly debuted by Dr. Walter E. Lammerts of Descanso Gardens, La Cañada Flintridge, California, US in 1952. Its stock parents 'Charlotte Armstrong' and 'Mirandy' are both 'All American Rose Selections'-roses.
The elegantly tapered buds open into high-centered blossoms with a diameter of about and can have up to 45–50 petals with a rich, deep, velvety red color. The cultivar flushes in a chronological blooming pattern throughout its local season, starting in late spring until fall. The long-stemmed rose flowers are long lasting and showy and make excellent cut flowers, though they "blue" badly with age.
The rose bush reaches height, and a diameter of. The shrub has an upright form with very thorny canes and semi-glossy dark green foliage. It is not a very cold hardy rose and needs good sun exposure. Without good air circulation it is susceptible to mildew and blackspot, particularly in cool climates.
A distinguished descendant is Rosa 'Papa Meilland'.
Cultivar, United States Patent No: PP 1,167.

Honors

In the 1954 Pasadena Tournament of Roses Parade, 25,000 Chrysler Imperial roses in individual refreshment tubes of water covered the base of the float entered by the City of Detroit, Michigan, US and Chrysler Corporation. The theme of the float was Life of an American Workman, as Chrysler Corporation founder Walter P. Chrysler had titled his autobiography. The center of this float featured the figure of an American Workman striding out from the pages of a book to strike a heavy hammer upon an anvil from which floral "sparks" flowed, their trains leading in several directions to various Detroit signature products: an automobile, a truck, an airplane, a tank, and a boat.

Literature and references