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Features
This is a ‘cluster-flowered bush‘ rose, also considered a ‘Polyantha‘ rose because of its size. It forms a compact shrub which bears clusters of small, light pink, double flowers from mid summer through to autumn. Its mid green leaves are glossy and the stem has small prickles. This rose has no noticeable fragrance.
What to use it for
This rose is ideal for beds and borders in cottage style gardens. Can be useful as low hedging, ground cover and for cut flowers.
How to look after it
It’s often cheaper, and generally better, to purchase roses as bare rooted plants over the winter (their dormant season).
Adding mycorrhizal fungi when planting can help roses establish well. Ensure roses are well watered, particularly if they are newly planted.
How to prune it
Prune in the dormant season (from late autumn to early spring). If the plants are new, just trim the stem tips lightly. For established roses you can cut the main stems back by about 1/3 and side shoots by about 2/3, and remove any dead, diseased and damaged growth.
Roses should be deadheaded regularly to encourage further flowering.
How to propagate it
Hardwood cuttings can be taken in late summer or autumn, from this year’s growth, and planted into 20cm deep trenches, with each cutting about 15cm apart. They should be ready to be planted out the following year. Quicker results can be achieved by keeping the cuttings under cover and applying a bottom heat of 21°C.
Alternatively the rose can T-budded onto an appropriate rootstock (eg Rosa laxa) in early summer.
Roses can also be hybridised, although many cultivars, when cross bred, will produce sterile seeds.
Common problems
Drought conditions can cause smaller flowers, although the plant itself should be able to survive short term drought conditions due to its deep tap root.
Pests including aphids, rose leafhoppers, two-spotted spider mites, scale insects, caterpillars, rose chafers, rose thrips, pollen beetles, capsid bugs, leaf-cutter bees, rose slug sawflies and rose leaf-rolling sawflies may be a problem. Rabbits and deer can also find this rose a tasty treat. Roses may suffer from rose black spot (and other leaf spots), rose rust, rose powdery mildew, grey mould, rose downy mildew, silver leaf, crown gall, rose cankers and viruses.
Disorders can include replant sickness and nutrient deficiencies.
Other useful information
This rose is a hybrid of Rosa ‘Paul Crampel’ and R. ‘Lady Gay’ which was developed by J.A. Bentall in 1932. Bentall had taken over the British nursery of the Rev. Joseph Pemberton, who created the Hybrid Musk roses, after Pemberton’s death in 1926.
This rose has been given the Award of Garden Merit by the RHS.
