Magazine  (2020)  Page(s) 29. Vol 42, No. 4.  
 
Billy West.  Some Favourite Fragrant Roses. 
The perfume of Ophelia (Paul, 1912) is richer and deeper and quite heady. This has been passed on to many of its descendants, including the generous Hybrid Musk rose, Felicia (Pemberton, 1926) which has a perfume so opulent it is almost too strong.

Article (newspaper)  (Oct 2014)  Page(s) 2.  Includes photo(s).
 
Never mind about that wimp, Shakespeare’s naïve Ophelia of Hamlet who topped herself, Ophelia the 1912 rose was gifted with prodigious fecundity. The introducing nursery, William Paul, in England couldn’t quite pin down exactly where the rose came from, but thought that it might have come with a shipment of plants from France, and that it might have been a seedling from ‘Antoine Rivoire’, 1895. With all these “mights”, to contend with, in time it ended up being the mighty mother of a mighty number of beautiful offspring. ‘Ophelia’s first generation descendants numbered 134; the second 302; third 497; fourth 750 etc. etc. In total, HelpMeFind.com are listing 13,119 roses that were descended from ‘Ophelia’. It seems that it was the Queen Mother of all roses! But not in my garden. For me, it has been a different rose. I took a cutting from the Pinjarra Heritage Rose Garden in 1998 but it never did much where I planted it. So I moved it in 2005 to a new spot and it has still never done much. I know it is a famous and beautiful old rose and I really want to know it well (“Milly Richards” is very similar or descended from it), so last April I called into Eileen Giblett in Bridgetown and brought home four cuttings from her tall and healthy bush of ‘Ophelia’. I never did ask Eileen where her rose came from, but her mother had planted most of the roses in the garden. It was planted on a north facing wall of a garage and both mother and daughter would have spent their lifetimes loving this rose. A visitor to Eileen once told her the rose was ‘Ophelia’ and Eileen promptly wrote the name down on a piece of paper and was able to retrieve it when I asked her what the rose was. It is an absolute joy to visit someone who has grown old roses – we instantly have rapport, interest and laughter. Eileen is 91 now and I am 74 and we both have a wonderful sense of humour, so you can imagine the cackling. I am going to plant ‘Ophelia’ so I can see it every day outside my study window. It is a rose of few petals, delicate cream, blushed with pink, prominent stamens (a friend calls them eyelashes) and fragrance. One unfurling bud on the desk can fill one with awe and happiness. The difficulty comes in trying to distinguish between it and the numerous descendants. ‘Mme. Butterfly’ 1912 is said to be similar. Apparently many ladies went to the altar with either ‘Ophelia’ or ‘Mme. Butterfly’, but not our poor Ophelia of Hamlet, unfortunately.....

Book  (2005)  Page(s) 297.  Includes photo(s).
 
'OPHELIA' Although William Paul's nursery is credited with introducing this Hybrid Tea ...as a seedling of 'Antoine Rivoire' in 1912, the firm believed it might have come as a mislabelled item with other plants ordered from France.

Book  (Apr 1999)  Page(s) 558.  
 
Ophelia Hybrid Tea. William Paul 1912

Book  (Dec 1998)  Page(s) 440.  Includes photo(s).
 
Ophelia Description... elegant, double, marshmallow pink flowers with lemon centers...

Book  (1996)  Page(s) 61.  
 
Ophelia Large-flowered (Hybrid Tea). Description. Flowers: creamy blush. Parentage uncertain, possibly a seedling of 'Antoine Rivoire'. Paul (England) 1912... "one of the world's most outstanding foundlings, because William Paul & Sons did not know how they came by it. They thought it might have reached them as a mislabelled item with plants ordered from France."

Book  (Sep 1993)  Page(s) 307.  
 
Large-flowered. Turned up as a foundling at the English nursery of William Paul in 1912. "The Queen Mother of Roses" it was called, for it not only produced no less than 36 sports, including such beauties as 'Madame Butterfly' and 'Lady Sylvia', it was used by every hybridist to create yet more beautiful roses. Description. Parentage Unknown. Repeats. Is fragrant.

Book  (Apr 1993)  Page(s) 420.  
 
Hybrid Tea, light pink, 1912, Perhaps a chance Seedling of Antoine Rivoire; Paul, W. Bud long, pointed; flowers salmon-flesh, center tinted light yellow, double (28 petals); fragrant; foliage leathery; vigorous growth. A famous parent rose.

Book  (Feb 1993)  Page(s) 202.  
 
Ophelia Large-flowered hybrid tea. Parentage: unknown. England 1912. Description and cultivation. Flowers: marshmallow-pink, almost white flowers have lemon centres... a good cutting rose...

Book  (1993)  Page(s) 140.  
 
Hybrid Tea. Paul (Britain) 1912. Repeats. Very fragrant.