POULesta

Rose

Variety Description

Variety used for comparison: 'POULprima'

Summary: The flowers of 'POULesta' are very double whereas they are double in the reference variety, 'POULprima'. The petal spots at the base of the inner and outer petals of 'POULesta' are very pale yellow and medium sized whereas they are a more intense yellow and slightly larger in the reference variety, 'POULprima'. The flower colour of 'POULesta' is more of a true pink than 'POULprima' which has more red tones.

Description:

'POULesta' is a miniature pot rose with an upright to bushy growth habit. The young shoot has a very limited amount of reddish brown anthocyanin colouration on the underside of expanding leaflets. Short and long prickles on the stem are sparse, linear in shape with a slight downward hook and nearly white. Prickles/thorns on the pedicel are absent or very few. The leaves are dark green, have weak glossiness with 5-7 leaflets. The terminal leaflet is thin/flexible to leathery texture with a serrate margin and an obtuse to rounded shape of base.

'POULesta' begins flowering early and flowers almost continuously for more than 10 weeks. Usually, there are 2-3 flowers per flowering shoot with medium to many hairs or prickles on the pedicel. The flower buds are ovoid in longitudinal shape with weak sepal extensions.

The deep pink, very double flowers of 'POULesta' are round to irregularly rounded when viewed from above. When viewed from the side, the upper part of the fully opened flower is flattened convex to convex and the lower part is flattened convex. The flower centre is infolded to normal. Spots on the inner and outer sides at the base of the petals are medium in size. The petal margins have medium reflexing and weak undulation.

The filament of the outer stamen is yellow and the style is long, white with no hairs on the upper half. The stigma is positioned above the anthers. The receptacle is small to medium in size, has no hairs and is pitcher-shaped. The fragrance is absent or very weak. Resistance to mildew is moderate.

Origin & Breeding History: 'POULesta' arose from a mutation in the variety, 'POULprima', in the breeders' greenhouses in Fredensborg, Denmark in 1996. First selections were made in the spring of 1996 and propagated for further evaluation.

Tests & Trials: Tests and trials for 'POULesta' were conducted at Aldershot Greenhouses Ltd., Burlington, Ontario. The trials consisted of six 11.5 cm pots per variety, with four rooted cuttings per pot, originating from single node cuttings. Propagation was performed in high pressure fog. After moving to the production area, the plants were pinched after four weeks and again at eight weeks. The plant were grown by the sub-irrigation method, with a daytime and night time temperature of 22-24 C and HID lighting during the night. At the time of examination the plants were 12 to 14 weeks old.

Comparison tables for 'POULesta' with reference variety 'POULprima'

Flower colour (RHS)

Colour of inner side of petal (RHS)

Colour of outer side of petal (RHS)

Petal Count