I would like to start 2023 by being perfectly honest with you in regard to this year’s roses, and there is both good and bad news to share. The bad news is that there continues to be a North American-wide shortage of roses, so you may not be able to find a favourite variety. The good news is that we have engaged with a new supplier, Star Roses, so now we have many new cultivars to offer you this season.
That scarcity also applies to David Austin roses and although we have secured more plants than last year, I am still unable to order them by variety…so essentially, we get what we get. That said, I noticed that many of the new cultivars we were ordering from Star Roses had that English-rose look. These are efforts of other breeders looking to mimic the appearance of antique old-world roses with cupped or quartered flowers, often with that same intoxicating fragrance.
So here is a sampling of just a few ‘English Rose Look-Alikes’ that we will be offering to you this year and if you would like to peruse the entirety, then just follow the link at the end of this article to our presale rose webpage.
Rose ‘Arborose Quicksilver’
This short climber features dense lavender-purple flowers beautifully contrasted by rich green foliage. It repeat-blooms throughout the season and is quite disease resistant. Grows 7’ tall. Hardy to USDA zone 5.
Rose ‘Centennial Star’
A highly scented hybrid tea that was the recipient of the Portland Rose Society Gold Award and features a high petal count of golden-yellow with a blush of pink. It is reminiscent of an intensely coloured ‘Peace’ rose and makes an excellent cut flower. Grows 3-4’ tall. Hardy to USDA zone 7.
Rose ‘Cloud 10’
Another eye-catching climber that features classic ivory-white quartered flowers which emit an intoxicating musk fragrance. It repeat-blooms quite well and is very resistant to common rose ailments such as black spot. Grows 7-8’ tall. Hardy to USDA zone 5.
Rose ‘Colette’
A traditional-looking climber with dense coppery-pink flowers that emit an old-fashioned strong damask scent. The lush green foliage is disease resistant, and this cultivar is also quite cold-tolerant. Grows 8-10’ tall. Hardy to USDA zone 5.
Rose ‘Michelangelo’
A vibrant yellow hybrid tea rose with a strong, sweet lemon fragrance to complement the blooms. The old-rose-shaped flowers make a good cut for the vase and they often have paler edges. Grows 5’ tall. Hardy to USDA zone 6.
Rose ‘Princess Charlene de Monaco’
This stunning hybrid tea rose bears deeply cupped apricot to shell pink blossoms and a heady fresh fruit and perfume scent. It has won an American Garden Rose Selection award and has disease-resistant semi-glossy foliage. Grows 5-5.5’ tall. Hardy to USDA zone 5.
Rose ‘Romantica Moonlight’
An award-winning (Biltmore International Rose Trials) hybrid tea featuring fully double light-yellow flowers with pale edges and a sweet honey fragrance. It is quite cold hardy, it makes an excellent cut flower, and it has disease-resistant foliage. Grows 6’ tall. Hardy to USDA zone 5.
Rose ‘Sunbelt Plum Perfect’
As the name implies, this compact floribunda rose bears flawless dense clusters of quartered plum-purple blooms. The glossy mid-green foliage also performs well in our humid coastal climate. Grows 2.5’ tall. Hardy to USDA zone 5.
Rose ‘Sweet Mademoiselle’
This American Rose Society award-winning hybrid tea features large-cupped flowers of apricot-pink with a strong classic rose and sweet fruit fragrance. The bloom colour will be more intense in cooler climates and a bit lighter in the heat. Grows 5’ tall. Hardy to USDA zone 5.
Rose ‘Veranda Roxanne’
The dense, rich red flowers mimic old-world roses perfectly and their small size makes them ideal for containers. The blooms are beautifully contrasted by the bright green foliage on this Kordes rose. Grows 2’ tall. Hardy to USDA zone 5.
