Father of English rose David Austin dies aged 92

Famed English rose breeder David Austin has died aged 92.

His family said in a statement that he died peacefully at his home in Shropshire, England, surrounded by his loved ones on December 18.

Austin was regarded as the father of the English rose having dedicated his life to developing 240 new cultivars, changing the face of English gardens forever.

His company, David Austin Roses, was launched in 1969 and went on to become a thriving international business, supplying nurseries around the world. His roses adorn home gardens in all corners of the globe and are renowned for their bold colour and rich scents.

Austin developed a passion for gardens and roses in particular from a young age. His sister Barbara gave him a book about roses for his 21st birthday and he soon became enthralled with their beauty and the idea that he could create his own unique blooms for his garden.

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Preferring Old Roses and not being too impressed with the Hybrid Teas that were in fashion at the time, Austin began the painstaking process of breeding his first rose in his early twenties. His mission was to incorporate the variety of colour available in the Hybrid Teas with the fragrant scent and old-world beauty of the Old Rose.

After a failed first attempt, he created his first rose, ‘Constance Spry’ (Ausfirst), in 1961.

Eight years later he had refined the breeding process and launched his first range of repeat-flowering ‘English Roses’, the name he coined for his ground-breaking varieties that fused the old with the new.

Despite his dedication to developing new breeds it wasn’t until the 1983 Chelsea Flower Show that Austin’s career really took off. It was that year he introduced three stunning new roses, one of which was named after his friend and mentor Graham Thomas.

The response from the media, as well as the general public, to Rosa ‘Graham Thomas’ (Ausmas) was overwhelming and people scrambled to catch a glimpse of the stunning blooms. The following year saw the first of many gold medals at the RHS Chelsea Flower Show, and the David Austin garden was soon a must-see at the famed event.

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Aside from his beautiful roses, Austin is remembered for creating the world’s first horticultural brand.

A statement on his website said he was “absolutely passionate about developing new varieties of English Roses until the very end [and] died already knowing what the future may hold, having planned and undertaken the next crosses, which will hopefully create a new rose that will be introduced in nine years’ time”.

“Despite continually discovering new found inspiration his dream, broadly speaking, remained the same as when he first started breeding roses as an amateur, all those years ago: to create the perfect garden worthy rose that combines beauty, fragrance, repeat-flowering ability and good disease resistance with great charm,” the statement read.

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In his book The English Rose, Austin wrote about wanting to create roses that were unparalleled in their beauty and scent, saying “we should strive to develop the rose’s beauty in flower, growth and leaf”. Of fragrance he wrote, “[It] may be said to be the other half of the beauty of a rose”.

Austin’s work will be carried on by his family, who now runs his business.

He is survived by his three children, David J. C. Austin, James Austin and Claire Austin, from his marriage to his late wife, Pat Austin, and his eight grandchildren. He is also survived by his sister Barbara Stockitt, who gave him his first rose book all those years ago.

Do you have any David Austin roses growing in your garden? Are you sad to hear of his passing?