| Rosa 'Madame A. Meilland' (Peace) | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Genus | Rosa |
| Hybrid parentage | Unnamed seedling × 'Margaret McGredy' |
| Cultivar group | Hybrid tea |
| Cultivar | 'Peace' |
| Marketing names | Gioia, Gloria Dei, Mme A. Meilland |
| Origin | Francis Meilland, France, 1935 to 1939 |
The Peace rose, formally Rosa 'Peace', synonym Mme A. Meilland, is a well-known and successful garden rose. By 1992, over one hundred million plants of this hybrid tea had been sold. The cultivar has large flowers of a light yellow to cream color, slightly flushed at the petal edges with crimson-pink. It is hardy and vigorous and relatively resistant to disease, making it popular in gardens as well as in the floral trade.
It was developed by French horticulturist Francis Meilland, in the years 1935 to 1939. When Meilland foresaw the German invasion of France, he sent cuttings to friends in Italy, Turkey, Germany, and the United States to protect the new rose. It is said that it was sent to the US on the last plane available before the German invasion, where it was safely propagated by the Conard Pyle Co. during the war.[1]
- ^ Meilland, Alain; Lambert, Gilles (April 1984). Meilland, a Life in Roses. Southern Illinois Univ Pr. pp. 65–71. ISBN 0809311119.