Abstract
Rosa damascena, Rosa gallica L., Rosa centifolia L., Rosa bourboniana and Gruss an Teplitz are important species which are being used in the production of rose oil. The improvement of existing rose germplasm is necessary to sustain the public demand of rose oil globally. In the present study, five Rosa genotypes (Rosa damascena, Rosa gallica L., Rosa centifolia L., Rosa bourboniana, Rosa indica and Gruss an Teplitz) were crossed bred to check genotypic compatibility and seed setting potential under local climatic conditions. The results indicated that maximum fruit set percentage (83%) was exhibited by Gruss an Teplitz followed by Rosa indica (70.33%) and Rosa damascena (53.33%). Significant variations were recorded for time to maturity of hips, number of seeds per hip, and weight of hips in all crosses. Overall, Gruss an Teplitz and Rosa indica proved better female parents and yielded high values of number of hips per plant and fruit set percentage.
