Hybrid teas are known for producing individual blooms on long stems, but they can also produce multiple blooms on each stem. Climbers, floribundas, polyanthas, miniatures, shrubs, and old garden roses all are capable of producing one-bloom-per-stem, or multiple blooms per stem which are often called sprays, candelabras, or clusters.

The American Rose Society’s Guidelines for Judging Roses refers to these multiple blooms on a stem as a spray. For exhibition purposes, a spray must have at least two blooms. A stem containing multiple sprays is called an inflorescence. Whatever we call them, a specimen of multiple blooms on a stem looks like a bouquet of roses. Some sprays are very small with only 3 or 5 blooms, while others can have more than 20 blooms on a stem.

Floribundas are the most popular type of rose for having the capability of producing sprays. But even floribundas have different growth habits depending on the particular variety. For example, French Lace, Kanegem, and Sheila’s Perfume grow more like a small hybrid tea, producing one-bloom-per-stem, with some small clusters of perhaps three blooms. Exhibitors will usually remove the side buds of the clusters of these rose varieties to enable them to enter the one-bloom-per-stem class in the rose shows. Other floribundas that also have a tendency to grow this way are Summer Fashion, Margaret Merril, and Sea Pearl.

There are many floribundas that produce large clusters or sprays, and every spray looks like a lovely bouquet. Some have single-petalled blooms like Playboy, Playgirl, and Playfair, while others are many-petalled like Gene Boerner, Bill Warriner, and Sexy Rexy. The rose exhibitor should remove the central bud of the spray early in the stem’s development because this central bud will usually bloom long before all the other blooms on the stem and will then create a gaping hole in the center of the spray if left on too long.

The single-petalled floribundas are usually the earliest to bloom in the spring, and they tend to recycle fairly quickly. For me, Playboy is the first floribunda to bloom. The many-petalled floribundas take quite a bit longer to produce the sprays and will have their first bloom cycle even after most of the hybrid teas have finished their first cycle. French Lace, Margaret Merril, and Kanegem will bloom next. Then finally, Europeana, Dicky, and Sun Flare will bloom, with Glad Tidings, William Warriner, and Sexy Rexy finishing last.

What this usually means is that the lower-petalled floribundas can sometimes produce 5 or 6 bloom cycles during the year (in Southern California), and the heavier-petalled ones can produce perhaps 3 or 4 cycles. It simply takes longer for the many-petalled varieties to produce all those petals and huge sprays. The biggest and best sprays are usually produced in the spring.

FAVORITE FLORIBUNDA SPRAYS

Brass Band (Christensen, Apricot Blend, 1993)Classed as an apricot blend, the blooms of this floribunda often look a vivid orange-gold. It produces good-sized clusters of frilly blooms on strong stems, and the bush grows to medium size. All-America Award Selection (AARS) winner.

Dicky (Dickson, Orange Pink, 1984)This is one of my favorite floribundas because it produces the most sprays, sometimes up to 48 stems in one bloom cycle. Oddly, it produces nice sprays of 5 to 15 blooms in the spring, and then will only produce one-bloom-per-stem in the fall. The orange-pink (actually light coral with white reverse) blooms are on the small side.

Europeana (de Ruiter, Dark Red, 1963This dark red floribunda not only has lovely velvety red clusters of blooms but can have the most beautiful glossy, dark green and bronze foliage as well — IF you spray fungicide on a regular basis. Otherwise, it can get some powdery mildew. AARS winner.

Iceberg (Kordes, White, 1958)White blooms in a multitude of clusters cover a clean bush that is the landscaper’s delight. Not a favorite for exhibiting because the blooms want to droop, but for the garden it will look like a cascading fountain and can be used as a hedge. Slight fragrance, but very disease resistant.

Nicole (Kordes, White, 1985)Oddly classed as white, the blooms of this floribunda are actually white with deep pink, almost red picoteed edging. The sprays are stunning when the blooms are fully open with fresh yellow stamens. While some rosarians say this plant can grow tall, my three plants have never grown more than 3 feet high.

Playboy (Cocker, Red Blend, 1976)Flashy red-blend (actually more like orange and yellow) single-petalled blooms make this floribunda a handsome plant for the garden as well as a workhorse for the exhibitor. The first floribunda to bloom in the spring, it repeats very quickly. Hard pruning will encourage production of bigger sprays. Glossy, very disease resistant foliage.

Playgirl (Moore, Medium Pink, 1986)The "daughter" of Playboy, this single-petalled floribunda has hot pink blooms with flashy yellow stamens. Playgirl is a somewhat smaller bush than Playboy, but the fragrance of both are a similar "apple" scent.

Sexy Rexy (McGredy, Medium Pink, 1984)This light pink rose has got to be the best all-around floribunda for producing massive, incredibly beautiful sprays. The plant is very bushy and rarely gets more than 3 or 4 feet high. I grow five plants and it is my favorite. Because of the big sprays and many-petalled blooms, Sexy Rexy will usually produce only three bloom cycles per year in Southern California.

Other Good Floribundas

Playfair, Sun Flare, Gene Boerner, George Burns, H. C. Anderson, Lavaglut, Fragrant Apricot, Stadt den Helder, and William Warriner are other favorite floribundas that produce good sprays.

FAVORITE MINIATURE SPRAYS

Floribundas aren’t the only type of roses to produce "a bouquet of roses on every stem." Many of the miniature roses are quite capable of producing huge sprays as well as one-bloom-per-stem. In cooler climates, the sprays will be smaller, while in the warmer growing regions the sprays can actually get quite large with a multitude of blooms.

Behold (Saville, Medium Yellow, 1996)This short, bushy miniature has the most intense, clear yellow blooms of any rose on the market today. The exquisite form is produced one-bloom-per-stem for Queen, as well as many compact sprays.

Child’s Play (Saville, White, 1991)Classed as a white, the blooms of Child’s Play usually look pink-blend in my garden. Excellent form in clusters as well as one-bloom-per-stem. I can see how Child’s Play probably looks white in the grower’s greenhouse, as the bloom color varies dramatically depending on the weather. Won both the AARS and AoE awards.

Incognito (Bridges, Mauve, 1995)Incognito grows similar to Jean Kenneally. The sprays are loose, with each bloom on its own long stem. For individual blooms you will need to remove the side buds. Bloom form is excellent, it refrigerates well, but can blow fast if not cut tight. The color is a unique mauve with pale yellow reverse.

Irresistible (Bennett, White, 1989)One-bloom-per-stem or lots of sprays, Irresistible is capable of producing whatever you want. Go for the Queen or enter a group of 3 sprays; you’ll have plenty of blooms from which to choose. The blooms are very attractively spaced in small clusters. The bloom color is white yet you may see hints of pink and green. The plant can grow tall.

Jean Kenneally (Bennett, Apricot Blend, 1984)The petite apricot blooms of Jean Kenneally come individually or in sprays. However, the sprays are much looser than sprays of other minis. The blooms on the sprays are all on long stems, so you could actually cut the blooms individually — each with perfect, queenly form. Hybridized by Dee Bennett, this very fragrant, tall mini won the Award of Excellence in 1986.

Kristin (Benardella, Red Blend, 1992)This red-blend mini produces abundant sprays as well as one-bloom-per-stem, but needs to be disbudded. I’ve seen massive sprays of 20 or more tightly-clustered blooms in addition to smaller sprays of 5 to 10. Kristin blooms exhibit well and are a joy to groom with a sable artist’s brush. Award of Excellence (AoE) winner.

Miss Flippins (Tucker, Medium Red, 1997)Velvety red blooms make gorgeous little sprays and many long stems for individual cutting. The foliage is dark and glossy and the blooms have superb exhibition form.

Show Off Your Beautiful Sprays

There’s no better way to share your beautiful sprays than to exhibit them at local, district, and national rose shows. They make a dynamic presentation in the exhibit hall.

The American Rose Society features the William H. Mavity trophy in its Spring National Rose Show, which calls for five floribunda sprays each of a different variety. This is difficult for out-of-town exhibitors to win, because transporting sprays of floribundas can be a challenge in itself. But, Louise Coleman won the Mavity in 1996 when she transported floribundas by airplane from New York to Seattle. In 1998, Ron Bronitsky of Albuquerque won the Mavity with a collection of Cathedral, Dicky, Showbiz, Stadt den Helder, and Tony Jacklin. Most recently Lionel Austell of Clarksville, Tennessee won the Mavity at the Nashville convention in 1999 with the floribundas Festival Fanfare, Showbiz, H. C. Anderson, Nicole, and Lavaglut.

The Pacific Southwest District offers the Pacific Rose Society trophy in their annual District rose show. This challenge class requires 5 floribunda sprays, each a different color class, in separate vases. This challenging entry is so tremendously difficult that it was not won for several years, and has only been won by Bill & Connie Wilke. Because of that, the requirements for this entry have been changed from "5 different color classes" to "5 different varieties." In 1999, the Wilkes again won this trophy with a collection of First Edition, Playfair, Playgirl, Sun Flare, and Winifred Coulter.

The Santa Barbara Rose Society has a Pacific Southwest District Challenge trophy that calls for three miniature sprays, each a different color class, in separate vases. This challenge is also difficult but has been won by several different people over the years. Here again, the requirements for this entry have recently been changed to "3 different varieties" instead of "3 different color classes." In 1994, I won this trophy with sprays of Irresistible, Pierrine, and Maurine Neuberger. In 1997, I won it with sprays of Herbie, Figurine, and Chelsea Belle.

The Phoenix Rose Society, and the San Fernando Valley Rose Society have Pacific Southwest District Challenge trophies that both require three floribunda sprays. The Phoenix trophy asks for three sprays of all the same variety, while the San Fernando requires three sprays with single-petalled blooms, any combination of varieties. I’ve won these trophies with three sprays of Dicky in 1994, and three sprays of Playboy in 1993 and 1995.

The Scottsdale Rose Society offers a district trophy for a collection of nine or more large flowered stems (blooms or sprays), four or more varieties, with floral foam permitted. The first year this trophy was offered (1995) I won it with a beautiful collection of about 18 sprays of Playboy, Playgirl, Nicole, and Olympiad all in one vase.

My all-time favorite challenge entry was the stunning collection of Playboy and Playgirl that I entered into the inaugural rose show of the Pasadena Rose Society in 1993. I had staged a collection of about 24 sprays into a round bowl using Oasis, and the wild color combination "knocked the socks" off the judges. Needless to say, I won the Waterford Crystal trophy that day.

Grow A Bouquet of Roses on Every Stem

The roses discussed here are some of my favorite floribundas and miniatures that produce wonderful sprays. With proper feeding, spraying, watering, and pruning, these roses can produce armloads of blooms. Grow a few and you, too, can have a "bouquet of roses on every stem."

Reprinted from the December 1999 ARS Annual.