Robert M. Erskine

(Information about these plants was given to me directly form Robert Erskine, most of  the plants are not for sale at this time. )

Bob's main goal in all his hybridizing work has been to add hardiness and vigor to the plants.

 FRUIT

1. HONEY QUEEN RASPBERRY:  large yellow, sweet fruit, 2 crops in mild areas. Extremely hardy, because it is 1/4 wild.   Honey King X Herbert

Bob recalls that "Bert Porter's Honey King" is from a "Wild Raspberry" X "Viking"  it had small red fruit,  "Herbert, " had large fruit that tasted really good but was not quite hardy here.

2. BOB'S PURPLE RASPBERRY: has large, sweet, tasty, purple berries.
    Honey Queen  X a purple seedling of Bobs.

3. BOB'S RED RASPBERRY: has large sweet,  tasty red berries seed came from "Honey Queen" and was presumably crossed with either Killarney or Boine

4. LEAFLAND GOOSEBERRY: Berries are larder than Pixwell and of better flavor, red when ripe, thorn less up to 3/4 inches in size.

5. PRICKLY PEAR GOOSEBERRY: Compared to Leafland it is prickly but not as much as most gooseberries.  It is the hardiest one Bob know s of that is sweet enough to eat raw.  Pear shaped red fruit to 3/4 inches.

APPLES

6. ROSINA BROOKS: APPLE: A rosy bloom crab. The seed came from Bob's sisters,  Roses Brooks garden,  in Rocky.  Extra large clear red flowers.  Its parents are Carlos Queen and Wild Rose ( a rosy bloom) both of which Bob raised from seed.

8. MANALTA  APPLE: grown from a seed from Manitoba.  Around 3 inches in diameter, red and yellow skin. Very good for apple sauce.

9. LEAFLAND APPLE:  good for pies, best while still green 2-3 inches

10. BONANZA APPLE:

11. ALBERTA DOLGO:

12. AL-MA SWEET APPLE-CRAB: TO 1.5 INCHES OR MORE.  Juicy and sweet, hardier that Dalgo or Osman

13. WILD ROSE CRAB: ROSIE BLOOM,

Bob also crossed and developed various other fruits such as Nanking cherries, Choke cherries, Currents, Hazelnuts,

Erskine PEONY

14. ROSALITA:  DOUBLE BRIGHT PINK peony
	15.  Sheila Holmes :  large flowered single dark pink Peony

Pictured below is   Prairie Peace

There are about 20 varieties of "The Erskine roses" still in existence today. Some of these are selections of our native wild roses the Rosa Woodsii species, and Rosa Acicularis. Bob selected them because of their superior or unique characteristics. Some had extra petals, some had better color,  while in others their form or foliage was unique. He was always very observant of plants and would notice things about them that others would not necessarily have seen.  He also had a terrific memory and could remember from year to year where each plant was growing in the wild. If the plants proved to be worthwhile he would eventually move a piece to his garden.

For a few years Bob did raise and crossed, "Hybrid Tea" roses and he raised one that he had great hopes for. It was pink with about 4 inch flowers with 45 petals. Unfortunately the mice ate it one winter, while it was buried  to protect it from the cold.

Most of his roses are ones that he raised from hips that set seeds he had pollinated. Bob’s main goal in growing roses, as in all aspects of his plant breeding, was to develop hardier plants with equal or superior qualities to the parent plant. He used a wide variety of the old rose species to achieve these goals.

Bob only "named" the plants that he felt were the very best. Several were named for the Carlos and Leafland districts in our area. The names he gave usually had a particular meaning, and often reflected his sense of humor.

There were about another 20 roses that Bob had named, but which are now extinct. Some were lost because they weren’t hardy enough, but most because of some kind of predator.  I am no rose expert and I don’t have a very good memory, and so a few years ago I started photographing his rose and other plants and writing down the information he told me about them.  It was an honor and privilege to know Bob and to learn so much from him.

ROBERT ERSKINE'S ROSES

1.          ALBERTAN: (Athabasca x Rosa Woodsii). 15 bright pink petals, [semi-double] 2" flower,  3' shrub, very hardy (Developed approx 1962) it was the only seedling that came up out of a bunch of seeds. Bob said this may be an ALL wild rose if it can be proven that Athabasca is a wild rose. This is the mother plant of Bob’s Double Carlos Red.

2.    AURORA: Single red variety of Rosa Acicularis. It has larger flowers than most wild roses and has a bluish foliage. Bob found it many years ago. He said it is the best variety of the Alberta Provincial Emblem that he has seen in the wild. It is named for the old Aurora school north of Bob’s home. The name Aurora means "Rosie Red" and it also means beginning. (It is Interesting to know that this is the first rose that Bob named)

3.    BEAUTY OF LEAFLAND: (Butterball [F. Skinner] x Haidee [F. Skinner]) (Developed approx. 1963) It has scrolled buds, much like the Hybrid Tea form. It has a strong fragrance, and is a double, pale bicolour, (Pale yellow and pale pink but nearly white) It doesn’t do well in cool damp weather; then the buds & flowers go brown. This is the mother plant of Prairie Peace.

4.     BETTY WILL: (George Will  [F. Skinner] x Betty Bland [F. Skinner]). Flowers are pink.  A similar cross to Therese Bugnet, [Georges Bugnet] but has more and larger flowers, and it doesn’t fade as much as Therese Bugnet.  It is fully double with 35- 40 petals, prickly,
recurrent, good fragrance. [Betty Bland was a pioneer rose developed by Frank L. Skinner
from Rosa Blanda crossed with a Hybrid Perpetual]

5.  CARLOS BEAUTY: Rosa Acicularis species. It is soft pink, with extra petals (7-15 petals.)  This is another rose that Bob found. The land where it originally grew has since been broke. Bob only had one plant left of it, and in 2004 pocket gophers dug around its roots and grasshoppers stripped its leaves. This rose is now extinct (2005).

6.    CARLOS DAWN: (Hansa x Rosa Acicularis) Large, semi-double bright pink flowers, blooms once. Has 15 petals [This is the first Hybrid rose that Bob raised and named] It is a sister plant to Daybreak; both seeds came from the same hip.

7.     CARLOS PERPETUAL: A seedling from Lac La Nonne. [Georges Bugnet] Double soft pink 2.5" flowers, ever blooming, doesn’t set hips, doesn’t sucker much. (Was originally called Carlos Dwarf Perpetual, but it grew taller so Bob changed to just Carlos Perpetual)

8.    CARLOS RED: Rosa Woodsii species, very dark single red flower. Bob found this in the wild. Grows over 6 ft. tall. Very dark bark and leaves.

9.    CAROYAL: (Hansa x Lac La Nonne [Georges Bugnet] ) Semi double(about 20) large burgundy red petals which hold upright. Blooms are 3" in diameter, 4 ft. bush; just blooms once. Non fragrant. A hardy rose.

10.     DAYBREAK: (Hansa x Rosa Woodsii) Fully hardy about 5 ft tall. Flowers have 30 petals, are bright red fading to a pleasant soft pink. Has a long flowering period. This is a sister plant to Carlos Dawn. Both seeds came from the same hip.

11.     DOUBLE CARLOS RED: (Albertan x Carlos Red.) Same red color 
                    as Carlos Red and has 15 petals. 5 ft bush

12.     GLEAM (Will Alderman [F. Skinner] x Marie Bugnet [Georges Bugnet]) Double white, shows a hint (gleam) of pale pink. This is a young plant and still being tested. It first bloomed in 1999.

13.     HARIS: A seedling from (Harison's Yellow x Rosa Acicularis), good shade of pink semi-double (about 20 petals) small narrow leaves, suckers readily. Just blooms once. Has some fragrance.

14.     KINISTINO: (Aurora x Leafland Glow [extinct]) Single, dark red, some years has some scarlet petals, has noticeably better color than Aurora, also has bluish foliage. Has bigger,  rounder leaves than the parent plants. (Bob told me that Kinistino is, "the English word for the
French word that means Cree." Bob says he chose this name, because it is a RED NATIVE  ROSE named after a RED NATIVE MAN.)

15.     LEAFLAND DOUBLE ALTAI: (Harison's yellow x Rosa altaica) also 
                    sometimes called Bob's Double White Altai)

16.     LEAFLAND PERPETUAL: (Will Alderman [F. Skinner] x Victory Year [P. Wright]) this is a miniature rose with double white flowers, a true ever-bloomer. (Bob once called this rose Premier) Gleam is from the same cross but a different hip.

17.     MADELINE'S CHOICE: (Rosa altaica x Scotch Rose(Rosa spinosissima)) Developed in the mid 1970's. Single bi-color, (pale yellow and pale pink.) Very fragrant, blooms once but has a long season. 8-10 ft. tall. Bob named this rose after my mother. (Madeline Holloway) She had seen t blooming in his garden and commented to him on how lovely she thought it was. Some time later he told us he had decided to name it Madeline’s Choice. When it is in full bloom we open the window near where it grows and the whole house is filled with its fragrance.

18.     PRAIRIE PEACE: (Beauty of Leafland x Hazeldean [P. Wright]) Developed in the mid 1970's, this rose was Bob’s pride and joy. The bush will grow 10 ft tall and is 100% hardy. Usually it has 2 crops of semi-double to double fragrant bi-colored flowers, [mostly yellow with some pink blended in.] Bob has found as many as 50 petals on its flowers. It is similar in color to the Hybrid Tea Peace  rose. (Hence the name)

19.     ROBERT ERSKINE likely from (Hansa x Daybreak) double, bright pink Naming the rose..... Carolyn Rallison grew on a pot of seedlings for Bob at her place, Last West Gardens. This rose was one of those she planted and when Bob saw how good it was he suggested it should be named "Last West Rose" (after her garden). Carolyn and Bob were discussing it again in the Spring of 2003. This was just shortly before Bob died and Carolyn said she thought it should be called Robert Erskine. The idea pleased Bob very much, and he said that would be ok with him,  so it was re- named.

20.     SWEET ADELINE: (Will Alderman [F. Skinner] x Victory Year [P. Wright]) Soft double pink flowers, blooms once, good fragrance, grows to be 5" tall.

21.     WASKASOO: (Little Betty [P. Wright] x Rosa Rugosa Hybrid (possibly Hansa)) Double red Rugosa, very fragrant, like a dwarf Hansa with neater leaves. The flower is superior to Hansa in form, but doesn’t reproduce as freely. Waskasoo is an Indian word for Red Deer.

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Erskine Rose that are now believed to be extinct

1.     BOB'S HYBRID T ROSE Now extinct medium shade of pink, extra long stems CARLA  Will Alderman X Hansa   This rose is now Extinct. (Developed approx. 1963)     Bob has not had it for many years and says he doesn't even remember what it looked like.

2.    CARLSHAM. (Developed approx. 1964) This rose is now Extinct......Bob says that it was much the same color, but not as good as Alsham is. It was a cross between two sister varieties of Alsham. It had 5 large petals on the outside and 5 smaller petals on the inside row.

3.    FRINGED BETTY.  Wasagaming X Betty Bugnet  This rose is now Extinct.   It had 15- 20 petals each of which was divide into 3. So it was as though it had 45-60 very narrow petals. Bob says that he guesses it was not very hardy.

4.    LEAFLAND CABBAGE ROSE not sure if it is still alive pink, bud opens like a cabbage.  Sweet Adeline also opens like a cabbage sometimes.

5.    LEAFLAND JEWEL Athabasca X with our wild Rosa Woodsii (Developed approx. 1963) This rose is now Extinct. Bob says that it was a smokie pink color. It always had 14 petals.

6.    LEAFLAND GLOW   It was a Rosa Acicularis, with extra petals 
                    and a fluorescent pink color. This rose is now Extinct.

7.    SWEET MARIE     (Will Alderman X Victory Year)  Discarded Similar to the sister plant Sweet Adeline but not as good.
 The following Rose developed by Bob were included on a list sent to him from Rodger Vick,  according to the notes Bob added, these are also all dead now.
 
8.    BRILLIANT seedling of Little Betty 15 red petals, on a low shrub, non- recurrent 2 ft tall.

9.     CARLOS also called "Dwarf Yatkan" as it had a flower like Yatkan, but a little deeper in color and more double.   Slightly Recurrent.  A good mother plant.

10.    CARLOS GAMES  pale pink, 2.5" flowers, no repeat bloom, 2 ft. tall plants

11.    LEAFLAND HEDGE a seedling of SUZANNE doesn't resemble scotch rose, but is in effect a double form of R. laxa with deep pink petals.

12.     LITTLE CHARMER   parentage unknown, but it is a hybrid with R. rugosa & wild rose in its ancestry.  A low bush, to 2 ft.   double pink blooms, with good form, color and fragrance. Just blooms once.

13.     NOONTIDE Rugosa  X R. Acicularis medium pink, up-facing , about 
                30 petals non- repeat blooming.  approx 2.5 ft.

14.    MINAWASA Wasagaming x (likely) Mrs. Mina Lindell.  About 15 pink petals, 3.5 ft. tall, non-repeat blooming.  Bob said it probably had all 3 species native to Alberta in its ancestry.

15.    Unnamed HANSA X WASAGAMING large double flowers with quite a lot of purple in thier pink.  Very hardy,  sturdy 5 ft.  bush, fertile, non-repeat bloom.

16.    VIOLET BLUSH (Developed approx. 1973) Little Betty X Hansa Double 3" pale violet flower, Shrub 2.5' now extinct
 
17.     CARLA  This rose is now Extinct.  Bob has not had it for many years and says he doesn't even remember what it looked like)
18.  (no 5 above)  CARLOS BEAUTY: Rosa Acicularis species. It is soft pink, with extra petals (7-15 petals.)  This is another rose that Bob found. The land where it originally grew has since been broke. Bob only had one plant left of it, and in 2004 pocket gophers dug around its roots and grasshoppers stripped its leaves. This rose is now extinct (2005).

 MARTAGON LILIES

1    BERYL LAYTON: registered / 1c /  good Bright yellow with lots of small maroons spots/ dark, greenish brown midribs / also some yellow color and spots on back of petals.

2.     CAROLYN RALLISON: registered 1c  lavender pink bud and flowers small redish spots flowers are recurved. a sister plant to Devon Dots / Flowers are smaller and curl back  more.    A clump of this makes a nice show in the garden, because the buds are the same color as the flowers.

3.    CHAMELEON pink buds, flowers open pink and turn yellow .  Its value for plant breeders in that it boomed very really from seed.

4.    DEVON DOTS registered lavender pink flowers with conspicuous dark line shaped spots / a sister plant to Carolyn Rallison,  Flowers are larger and less recurved.   It won first prize, the year Bob took it to the Lily Show in Edmonton.  Seed came from Devon Botanical Gardens

5.    ERSKINE HYBRID # 9  good bright yellow 1c / maroon spots / lavender back stripes

6.    ERSKINE HYBRID # 10 (Registered as FRED TARLTON)   a good bright yellow  with lots of small maroons spots/ 1c / recurved / backs are creamy white / green stem / orange pollen (FT)

7.    ERSKINE HYBRID # 11   Teardrop shaped buds small soft yellow flower petals with cream tips / a few maroon red spots [some flowers have almost no spots] / green stem / orange pollen / lavender midrib / creamy white on back of petals recurved flowers

8.     ERSKINE HYBRID # 12   1c / soft yellow petals with maroon spots  [flowers are larger than those on Erskine Hybrid # 11] / lavender midrib / few spots and creamy white on backs of petals recurved /

9.     LEAFLAND RUBY  (seed from Dalhansonii) 1c / wine red recurved flower with mahogany throat /  wine red spots / early / green stem / orange pollen /

10.    LEAFLAND WINE wine red color.

11.    MADELINE HOLLOWAY: golden yellow-pink tips / spots / 1c / large flowers , a very     vigorous lily.

12.     MAROON KING registered, dark red has more flowers per stem than most Martagon Lilies

13.     WINE SEEDLING wine red, with darker wine spots most of the spots are surrounded by white

14.    WHITE MARTAGON pure white / green throat 1c /

THE ASIATIC LILIES OF ROBERT ERSKINE