Book  (1912)  Page(s) 246-247.  
 
[Listed under Microphylla Roses (Macartney)] Rubra or Burr (Bush Microphylla) Evergreen foliage, robust growth, bush. Roses deep pink, very double, petals small, calyx with bristling sepals which give the bud and appearance of a green burr. Exceedingly hardy and long-lived.

Website/Catalog  (1897)  Page(s) 68.  
 
Miscellaneous Roses.
Rubra (Microphylla) rosy crimson, margined with blush; full. 

Magazine  (1887)  Page(s) 278.  
 
[From an article titled "Rosa microphylla Roxb." by Rudolf Geschwind]:
Striata, medium size, full, crimson, with white stripes.

Magazine  (1877)  Page(s) 278.  
 
[From an article titled "Rosa microphylla Roxb." by Rudolf Geschwind]:
Rubra (Rouge à centre strié blanc), medium size, richly filled, beautifully rounded form; light "laughing" red, with white stripes inside.

Book  (1877)  Page(s) 159.  
 
Rosa microphylla rubra from which we have derived all our varieties of this pretty family, was introduced from the East in 1823. It is nearly allied to the Macartney, and is most probably a Chinese hybrid of that rose. The original imported plant bearing double flowers makes it appear more probable that it is a mere garden variety. I have received seed from Italy of this rose, and find that plants from it, to use a florist's term, sport amazingly, no two appearing alike. Several varieties were formerly cultivated, but having no fragrance and but little beauty, they have gone out of cultivation. The original sort is by far the prettiest, as its prickly calyx is very remarkable.

Website/Catalog  (1874)  Page(s) 32.  
 
Microphylla rubra  carmine, mottled with white.

Book  (1869)  Page(s) 51.  
 
Microphylla Roses this species, originally from the Himalyan Mountains, was first brought to Europe in 1823. Its foliage is small and singular, and its growth is very robust. Its flowers bloom from midsummer til frost, and have a striking appearance; they are very double, with a calyx of which the small, bristling sepals give the opening bud the appearance of a small chestnut. The plant is hardy, and has endured the winter in our grounds for the past twenty years without protection, losing only a portion of the tops of its shoot. Of the several varieties, one of the best is
Rubra, which has very double and cupped flowers, of a blush and often rose color, with deep red centre.

Book  (1866)  Page(s) 197.  
 
Rosa Microphylla - this is an introduction within the present century from the Himalaya Mountains, and is rather a curiosity than an ornament. The leaves are very small and very numerous; and, by a curious freak of Nature, all the spines seem gathered together on the calyx, or outer overing of the flower-buds. The original variety, Microphylla Rubra, is perhaps the best. Among others may be named Carnea, Coccinea, Rosea, and Purpurea. There is a rose, commonly sold uner the name of Microphylla Rugosa, which is very desirable from the abundance of its autumnal bloom, and from its hardy nature; a point in which it differs from the true Microphyllas. It grows vigorously, and in autumn blooms profusely in large clusters of purplish-red flowers.

Book  (1864)  Page(s) 42.  

Book  (1864)  Page(s) 64.  
 
Rosa microphylla, the small-leaved rose, introduced from China in 1823, bears such close resemblance to the Macartneys, and is generally believe to be one of its hybrids [now known not to be true]....Of the Microphyllas, Rubra plena, deep red, with prickly calyx, and Rugosa, with fine large crimson-purple flowers, are the only kinds that are worthy of attention...