The Madame

Madame Alfred Carrier is a noisette rose dated 1897. It was raised by Joseph Schwartz of Lyon, France but its parentage is unknown. The Madame was the wife of a rose lover from the province of Dauphine. This climbing rose was very popular during the Victorian era for it's beautiful fragrance, form and repeating blooms.
Source:
Olympia Rose Society, Centennial Garden Visitors Guide www.olyrose.org

I've seen references to the Madame from all over the country on various web pages. She seems to thrive everywhere roses grow. She's a hardy girl, fast growing, relatively disease free, free blooming, perfumed and ready for guests from early April through January here in Fullerton. Unlike the more common Cecil Bruener whose flower is similarly colored but much smaller, the Madame has few thorns by comparison.

I planted her in her present location about 5 years ago. The location gets shade from ground level to about 4 ' up during the winter months, so the lower canes are exposed without much foliage or flowers. This allows for some great under-plantings of shade plants and a birdbath and sculpture. I've trained her on a couple of Monet Arches from Smith and Hawkin. Pruning in January is pretty much a several hour job involving ladders, leather gloves and some ticked off hummingbirds. I pick off all the leaves and trim back the weak canes, leaving much of the height. I sprayed with dormancy spray this year and gave it a systemic fertilizer about two weeks after pruning. Five weeks ago, I gave it an epsom salt dump. (1/2 cup epsom salt to 1 gallon of water.) The result is stunning. And the hummingbirds are once again happy.