Wilhelm Kordes I was a German horticulturist.

His sons, the breeder Wilhelm Kordes II (born 30 March 1891 in Elmshorn, died 11 November 1976) and Hermann Kordes (1893-1963) continued to expand the business, now known as W. Kordes’ Söhne (W. Kordes' Sons). They were followed by the equally important breeder Reimer Kordes (born February 19, 1922; died 3 February 1997). Wilhelm Kordes III (born 1953), son of Reimer, joined the firm in 1977.

The company has about 150 employees and annually sells more than two million rose plants retail and wholesale worldwide. Each year, about 50,000 florist's and garden roses are used to make around 30,000 crosses; after a trial period of eight or ten years, these produce only four or six varieties worth marketing.

History

Wilhelm Kordes I created his Rose Garden in 1887 in Elmshorn

Elmshorn

Elmshorn is a town in the district of Pinneberg in Schleswig-Holstein in Germany. It is located 32 km north of Hamburg at the small river Krückau, close to the Elbe river, is the sixth-largest city in the state of Schleswig-Holstein, Germany...

, specializing in growing garden roses. In 1918 he moved the firm to Klein Offenseth-Sparrieshoop

Klein Offenseth-Sparrieshoop

Klein Offenseth-Sparrieshoop is a municipality in the district of Pinneberg, in Schleswig-Holstein, Germany....

 in Schleswig-Holstein

Schleswig-Holstein

Schleswig-Holstein is the northernmost of the sixteen states of Germany, comprising most of the historical duchy of Holstein and the southern part of the former Duchy of Schleswig...

.

Wilhelm Kordes II and his brother Hermann renamed the business "Wilhelm Kordes Söhne" and made it world famous. Wilhelm Kordes II's varieties made them one of the biggest rose firms of the twentieth century. He had been interned during the First World War on the Isle of Man and spent his enforced seclusion studying the genetics of Mendel, put to good use when he took over the family business after the war. His general aim was to breed hardy and healthy varieties for the German climate. From 1920 he concentrated entirely on rose-growing, leaving management to his brother Hermann. By the mid-1930s, the company had grown to considerable size.

[Wilhelm's] experiments focused at first upon the native European species, including Rosa canina, R. rubiginosa, and R. spinosissima: the results include such important shrub roses as 'Harry Maasz' (1939), 'Louis Rödiger' (1935), 'Raubritter' (1936), 'Karl Föster' (1930), and the early-flowering "Frühling" series. He also experimented with the Hybrid Musks such as 'Elmshorn' (1950), 'Erfurt' (1931), and 'Eva' (1933). [His son Reimer later bred the world's favourite white rose 'Iceberg', also a Hybrid Musk.] Hybrid Teas were not neglected: 'Crimson Glory' (1935) has an unusually long reign as the world's favourite crimson rose.

During the Second World War Wilhelm Kordes II crossed the East Asian Rosa wichurana with the Japanese Rosa rugosa eventually to obtain a new species, Rosa kordesii, able to withstand the harsh winters of north Germany. From it he later bred such famous post-war varieties as 'Parkdirektor Riggers,' 'Leverkusen,' Hamburger Phönix' and 'Heidelberg.' "The dark, glossy foliage of many modern roses can be traced back to 'Kordesii'."

Wilhelm Kordes II was also very involved in implementing ADR testing (general testing of new German roses) in 1950, established by the rose breeders in the Federation of German Nurseries.

Above all, it is as a rose breeder than Wilhelm Kordes [II] will be remembered. He and his son Reimer bred some of the world's best-known roses, including 'Crimson Glory' and 'Schneewittchen' ('Iceberg'). Kordes knew that it was through introducing new genes that all the great advances in plant breeding had been achieved. His experiments focused at first upon the native European species and Rosa rugosa; his aim was to develop new bush roses for small gardens.

From 1955, his son Reimer Kordes ran the company; since 1977 Reimer's son Wilhelm Kordes III.

Reimer moved on from shrub roses to concentrate on brilliantly coloured Hybrid Teas and Floribundas for private and public gardens. Nevertheless, he introduced roses of every type: large-flowered climbers such as 'Alchymist' (1956) and 'Antike 89' (1988); ground cover roses such as 'Immensee' and 'Sommerwind'; Hybrid Teas including 'Duftzauber 84' (1984) and 'Kupferkönigin' (1996); shrubs such as 'Chiarivari' (1970), 'Lucinde' (1988), and 'Rosenstadt Zweibrücken' (1989); Floribundas such as 'Golden Holstein' (1988) and 'Crimson Bouquet' (1999); and cut-flower roses such as 'Champagner' (1985).

Rose varieties

The variety 'Iceberg' ('Schneewittchen') was named the World's Favourite Rose in 1983. 'Aprikola' in 2005 won the title of The Golden Rose of The Hague.

The following is a sortable list of the most popular rose varieties bred by the Kordes firm.

Name	Form	Colour	Date	ADR-recognised	Photo
Adolf Horstmann	hybrid tea	yellow and pink	1971
Agnes Bernauer	hybrid tea	light pink	1989
Alchymist	bush	apricot	1956
Angela	bush	carmine pink	1984
Ankori	hybrid tea	orange blend	1980
Antike 89	floribunda climber	white blend, red edges	1988
Aprikola	floribunda	yellow-orange to apricot	2001	2001
Asso di Cuori	hybrid tea	dark red	1981
Ave Maria	hybrid tea	strong salmon-orange	1981
Bad Birnbach	floribunda, shrub	carmine-pink	2000	2000
Bad Füssing	floribunda	red	1980
Bad Neuenahr	bush	mid-red	1958
Bad Wörishofen (Pink Emely)	floribunda, shrub	carmine pink	2005	2003
Ballet	hybrid tea	deep pink	1958
Belami	hybrid tea	orange-pink	1985		|
Bella Rosa	floribunda	strong pink	1982		|
Bengali	floribunda	orange-red	1966
Berlin	bush	red	1949
Berolina	hybrid tea	citron yellow	1986
Black Boy	bush	dark red	1958		|
Blühwunder	floribunda	bright pink to salmon pink	1995	1994
Bonanza	bush	golden-yellow, copper edges	1983	1984
Bride's Dream	hybrid tea	light pink	1985
Burghausen	bush	bright crimson	1991	1989
Caramella	shrub	yellow	2001
Cervia	floribunda	apricot and pink	2003
Charmant	dwarf	strong pink	1999	2004
Cherry Girl	floribunda	red	2007
Chiarivari	shrub	yellow blend	1971
Colour Wonder	hybrid tea	orange-red, cream reverse	1964
Crimson Bouquet	grandiflora	dark red	1966
Crimson Glory	hybrid tea	dark red	1935
Cubana	shrub	apricot blend	2001
Diamant	floribunda, Shrub	white	2001	2002
Die Welt	hybrid tea	orange-red	1976
Dortmund	climber	carmine-tinted crimson, white centre	1955	1954
Duftzauber 84	hybrid tea	dark red	1984
Dusterlohe	climber	deep pink	1931
Eifelzauber	shrub	light pink	2008
Eliza	hybrid tea	pink to silver-pink	2004	2005
Elmshorn	bush	cherry red	1951
Elveshörn	bush	bright red	1985
Escimo	miniature	bright white	2006	2006
Esmeralda	hybrid tea	white and pink	1980
Eva	bush	cherry	1933
Erfurt	bush	pink, white on a golden base	1939
Eureka	floribunda	apricot blend	2002
Eutin	bush	cherry	1940
Fairest Cape	hybrid tea	apricot, orange shading	1994
Fantasia Mondiale	hybrid tea	apricot, salmon-pink edges	2006
Fee des Neiges	floribunda	white	1958
Felicitas	bush	dark red	1998	1996
Flammentanz	small shrub	crimson	1955	1952
Flirt	floribunda shrub	deep pink	2000
Florentina	hybrid tea	crimson	1973	1974
Fortuna	floribunda, shrub	dark red	2002	2002
Fritz Nobis	bush	bright pink	1940
Frühlingsanfang	bush	bright yellow	1950
Frühlingsgold	bush	muted yellow	1937
Frühlingsmorgen	bush	pink-yellow	1931
Funkuhr	hybrid tea	yellow, red edges	1984
Garden of Roses	patio shrub	cream, apricot centre	2006
Gärtnerfreude	shrub, floribunda	bright red	2001	2001
Gartenzauber	floribunda	red	1984
Gebrüder Grimm	floribunda	orange-red uppers, peach backs	2002	2002
Gelber Engel	floribunda	bright yellow	2002	2004
Goldbusch	bush	copper	1954
Golden Gate	climber	bright yellow	2005	2006
Golden Medaillon	hybrid tea	deep yellow	1991
Goldener Holstein	floribunda	deep yellow	1988
Goldrausch	floribunda	yellow	1961
Grande Amore	hybrid tea	intense dark red	2004	2005
Hamburg	bush	dark red	1935
Hamburger Deern	hybrid tea	orange-pink	1997
Hamburger Phönix	floribunda climber	red	1954
Hannah Gordon	floribunda	white, pink edges	1983
Hansa Park	shrub	mauve	1994
Harlekin	climber	cream, red edges	1986
Harmonie	hybrid tea	orange-pink	1981
Heidelberg	hybrid tea	carmine-red	1959
Harry Maasz	hybrid macrantha	crimson-violet, white centre	1939
Heckenfeuer	floribunda	red	1983
Heidelinde	floribunda	mauve	1991
Heinzelmännchen	floribunda	bright crimson	1983
Helmut Schmidt	hybrid tea	yellow	1979
Herkules	shrub	white, pink undertones	2007
Holstein	floribunda	carmine-red	1938
Ilse Krohn superior	bush	bright cream and white	1964		|
Innocencia	shrub, floribunda	bright white	2003	2004
Immensee	shrub	light pink	1982
Jasmina	climber	violet and pink	1997
Juanita	shrub	pink, carmine pink	2007	2006
Karl Förster	bush	white	1931
Karl Herbst	hybrid tea	carmine red	1950
Karl Ploberger Rose	shrub	yellow, lighter outer petals	2007
Kleopatra	hybrid tea	red and yellow	1994
Knirps	shrub, ground cover	carmine pink	1997	2004
Königin der Rosen	hybrid tea	uppers salmon-orange, backs yellow-pink	1964	1964
Kordes Brilliant	shrub	orange blend	1983
Korelasting (Lindenhof)	bush	bright pink, yellow centre	1999
Korona	floribunda	orange-red	1955
Kupferkönigin	hybrid tea	deep yellow	1996
Lady Rose	hybrid tea	orange-pink	1979
Laguna	hybrid tea	deep pink	1995
Larissa	shrub	light pink	2007
Las Vegas	hybrid tea	orange, yellow reverse	1981
Leverkusen	climber	bright yellow	1954
Lichtkönigin Lucia	bush	strong lemon-yellow	1966	1968
Lili Marlene	floribunda	dark red	1959
Linderhof	shrub	pink, yellow centre	1983
Lions-Rose	floribunda	ceam-white	2002	2002
Lolita	hybrid tea	apricot blend	1972		|
Louis Rödiger	climber	pale orange to orange	1935		|
Lucinde	shrub	deep yellow	1988		|
Lupo	miniature	mauve blend	2006		|
Lydia	shrub	orange blend	1973		|
Mabella (New Day)	hybrid tea	yellow	1972
Magenta	bush	dark red	1954
Maigold	bush	orange	1952
Mandarin	miniature	apricot blend	1987
Mandy	hybrid tea	dark red	1987
Manita	climber	pink, yellow centre	1998	1998
Marondo	shrub	pink	1991
Maxi Vita	floribunda, shrub	dark pink, yellow-orange base	2001	2001
Medeo	shrub	white	2001
Mein schöner Garten	shrub	pink, salmon-pink	1986
Memoire	hybrid tea	white	1992
Meteor	floribunda	scarlet	1959	1960
Mireille Mathieu	floribunda	orange-red	1988
Mondiale	hybrid tea	old rose pink	1993
Moonlight	florist's rose	light yellow	2004
Neon	floribunda, shrub	carmine pink	2001	2001
Neue Revue	hybrid tea	red blend	1969
Nicole	floribunda	white, red edges	1985
Novalis	floribunda	lavender	2010
Nymphenburg	bush	bright pink	1954
Out of Rosenheim	floribunda	red	2010
Palmengarten Frankfurt	shrub	carmine pink	1988	1992
Parkdirektor Riggers	climber	hard red	1957
Parole	hybrid tea	deep pink	2002
Peer Gynt	hybrid tea	yellow, red edges	1968
Perfect Moment	hybrid tea	red, yellow reverse	1989
Pepita	dwarf	bright carmine pink	2004	2004
Peter Frankenfeld	hybrid tea	deep pink	1966
Petticoat	floribunda	white, apricot centre	2004	2004
Pink Bassino	shrub	pink	1995	1993
Pink Robusta	shrub	pink	1987
Pomponella	floribunda	deep pink	2005	2006
Ponderosa	floribunda	salmon-pink	1995
Postillion	shrub	copper-yellow	1998
Prominent	floribunda	orange-red	1971	1971
Queen Mother	floribunda	light pink	1971	1971
Queen of Hearts	hybrid tea	orange-pink	2008
Ramira	climber	pink	1988		|
Raubritter	rambler	bright pink	1936		|
Raymond Chenault	shrub	red	1960		|
Rebell	hybrid tea	red	1996		|
Ritter von Barmstede	shrub	pink	1959		|
Rosanna	climber	salmon pink	2002		|
Rosarium Uetersen	Climber	pink	1977
Roselina	shrub	deep pink	1992
Rosenfee	floribunda	light pink	2006
Rosenprofessor Sieber	floribunda	pink	1997	1996
Rosenresli	Shrub, bush	salmon-pink	1986	1984
Rosenstadt Zweibrücken	shrub	pink blend	1989
Rosenwunder	hybrid rubiginosa	deep pink	1934
Rosmarin	miniature	deep pink	1989
Rote Mozart	shrub	orange-red	1989
Roter Korsar	bush, shrub	dark velvet red	2004
Rotilla	floribunda	crimson	2000
Roxy	miniature	violet, red	2007
Rugelda	bush	lemon yellow	1989
Saarbrücken	shrub	scarlet	1959
Salita	climber	orange-red	1987
Samba	floribunda	red and yellow	1964
Scharlachglut	gallica	scarlet	1952
Schneewittchen (Iceberg)	bush	white	1958
Schwarzer Samt	Kordesii climber	dark red	1969
Shocking Blue	shrub	mauve blend	1985
Sommerabend	shrub, ground cover	bright red	1995	1996
Sommerwind	ground cover, floribunda	pure pink	1985	1987
Sonnenröschen	dwarf, ground cover	white, yellow eye	2005	2003
Sparrieshoop	bush	pink	1953
St. Pauli		pink-yellow	1958
Sunny Rose	shrub, ground cover	bright yellow, light yellow	2001	2004
Sunsprite	floribunda	deep yellow	1973
Sylt	Kordesii hybrid	dark red	1980
Sylvia	hybrid tea	pink	1978	1977
Sympathie	Kordesii climber	deep scarlet	1964	1966
Tatjana	hybrid tea	dark red	1970
Tradition	climber	red	1995
Träumerei	bush	lobster and salmon orange	1974
UNICEF-Rose	floribunda, shrub	bright pink	2007	2005
Uetersens Rosenkönigin	bush	orange to mid-red	2009
Uetersens Rosenprinzessin	bush	light pink	2009
Valencia	hybrid tea	amber-yellow	1989
Vogelpark Walsrode	bush	light pink	1988	1989
Walter Schultheis					|
Wedding Bells	hybrid tea	pink	2010
Weisse Immensee	shrub	white	1982
Weisse Wolke	climber	white	1998
Westerland	bush	orange to apricot	1969	1974
Wilhelm	climber	dark red	1934		|
Wilhelm Hansmann	Kordesii shrub	dark red	1955		|
Winter Sun	hybrid tea	yellow	2010		|