One of the parents of our modern Hybrid Teas.

[From Gardening with Roses, by Judith McKeon, pp. 26-7:] Very fragrant forms of the China group, tea roses were developed from crosses between Rosa chinensis (China rose) and R. gigantea (a giant Chinese rose that climbs to 50 feet [15 m]). One of these crosses produced Rosa x odorata, also known as 'Hume's Blush Tea-scented China', an early tea rose. Like the Noisettes, tea roses bring soft yellow and apricot colors to the antique rose palette... urn-shaped buds... high-centered flowers on long stems... much loved in Victorian times and often worn as lapel flowers. The familiar flower form of the tea rose was transmitted to its hybrid tea offspring... extremely tender.

[From Gardening with Old Roses, by Sinclair and Thodey, p. 30:] Not well suited to the cooler climate of northern Europe, where they are often grown under glass, but they thrive in New Zealand, Australia, the watmer parts of America, South Africa, and the Mediterranean.

[From Tea Roses Are Coming Back, by Bessie Mary Baird, p. 60:] Slow to get started, they are apt tp prove a disappointment the first year or two, but if allowed to grow along without much pruning, they will develop into fine, long-lived plants.

[From Origin of Rose Types, by Roy Shepherd, p. 34:] 'Adam' (or 'President')... the first of the so-called tea rose family...