Anyone used Lorraine Lee for breeding?

Aussies love it, and although I think it's an exceptional bloomer with a fine tea fragrance, I don't like its growth habit and overall look -- it's not a very pretty bush.
However, has anyone tried to use it in breeding? Is it fertile? I can imagine that crossing it with some better looking bush could potentially create some lovely, floriferous offspring.

G'Day Zvonimir,

I have used it this season and have been impressed by how fertile it has been. My bush is in its first year here and every flower has produced a hip. I also put 'Mutabilis' pollen on it (this stuck but made small numbers of seed per hip) and put its pollen onto a range of roses and it stuck on these too. I think there is potential there as a breeder, however, talking with Viru Viraraghavan he mentions that he's not had much luck with Lorraine Lee as a parent. Instead he uses, and is experiencing a good degree of success with, one of LL's offspring; 'Lady Mann'. This is unusual given that 'Lady Mann, is a sport of 'Lorraine Lee' and as such should breed in an identical manner. For this reason I am going to persist with 'Lorraine Lee' in teh coming breeding season as I too believe it has much to offer. There actually isn't much I don't like about it. Once it puts on some size the shape and habit of the bush changes considerably. As a small bush it builds up slowly and has an awkward unbalanced look to it. It makes twiggy growth (a habit I personally like and prefer) but very long stemmed sprays of flowers that seem to tower over the plant. I look forward to mine looking like some of the ones shown on HMF: http://www.helpmefind.com/rose/l.php?l=2.3890.1&tab=36

I have her, she is HUGE climber, one of my best roses and your right smells bootiful Pic 12 months old, she is now bigger again

Awesome photo Cheryl!

thanks Simon, gave her a slight trim this arvo, sick of getting rose thorns in my scull maybe that is why I get so cranky easily, rose damage to the brain

Is Lorraine Lee only a climber?

Nope... I grow the bush form

Rose Petal wrote:I have her, she is HUGE climber, one of my best roses and your right smells bootiful Pic 12 months old, she is now bigger again

Rose Petal, that is a gorgeous picture. What aspect? Is LL facing north by any chance?

Ummm not sure It gets all afternoon sun after it gets over the top peak of the house , does that make sense ?? and guess what is was a $5 toss out at Bunnings only about 5 - 6 years ago , No pic no just said climber , and my neighbours name is Lorraine so I bought it

Yep the climber is one big thorny girl. I had one on the verandah corner which was spectacular every spring (and nothing much after that) She had to be chainsawed to the ground and is now sulking because she was replaced with G Nabonnand. On the opposite verandah corner I've got the bush form of LL which is 3 m high and easy to manage. I grow Mutabilis through her instead of clematis.

I've used the bush form for hybridising and have a plant of LL x Chaucer. LL was the pollen parent. It is not a strong plant yet, but has pretty flowers a bit like Chaucer. As Simon says, she's very fertile. Well worth pursuing.

Yes my girl needs a going over with a

Dave wrote:
I've used the bush form for hybridising and have a plant of LL x Chaucer. LL was the pollen parent. It is not a strong plant yet, but has pretty flowers a bit like Chaucer. As Simon says, she's very fertile. Well worth pursuing.

Oh, great, thanks Dave. Looking forward to it.

Took these this arvo as you see I have only front pruned LL , I cant get up that high above the fence

Yes the lawn/mud patch is a mess, will be raked/mowed up after I finish making a mess

Last year I used Lorraine Lee, made various crosses and the results were

Hips formed and after 1 month yellowed and fell off

Hip formed and after 4 mths ripened with no seed germinating

Hip formed and was quite large and full looking, stayed green, when split
open had no seed only fibres

Made one cross using its pollen , with a modern, resulting in a dk red, and extremely doubled