Fragrance heritability in Hybrid Tea roses

Most of the Hybrid Tea roses that are sold as cut flowers are non-scented, despite the long-standing interest of the perfume industry to rose scent. In the absence of comprehensive knowledge on the genetic and biochemistry of volatile biosynthesis in roses, we decided to characterize a Hybrid Tea progeny obtained from parents that emit very different scents. First, we identified the 11 most abundant volatile compounds synthesized by the progeny, and a short review is given for each one that describes their occurrence in the genus Rosa, in the parents and the studied progeny. We have then used statistical analysis on the distribution of volatiles among individual progeny members to unveil the laws of segregation of the scent traits in this cross. As a general rule, the quantity and quality of volatile compounds was lower in the progeny members. Variations in scent quality were mostly linked to the quantity of monoterpenes that was present. Offsprings emitting a pleasant fragrance were, in practice, found to be rare.