Staff Picks: The 5 Best Roses for Landscaping
Roses are the flower of love and typically make their grocery store debut a week before Valentine’s Day. And while we love seeing all the bouquets during February, we like to enjoy roses longer than just a few days. Did you know you can bask in the beauty of a rose without having to wait for a holiday (or reason to say I’m sorry)? We know. Crazy.
5 Best Roses For Landscaping
Spruce up those drab gardens with some roses. There’s a lot to consider, of course, when designing a yard, and choosing roses adds a natural beauty few other plants can bring. Considering the variety, color, dimension, texture, and even fragrance roses bring to a space, they are an easy choice for many yards.
When choosing the right roses for your yard, you will want to consider factors like light, slope, soil type (to amend soil as necessary), maintenance requirements, and disease resistance. Roses can be fairly low maintenance, but most varieties need a little TLC to thrive.
Clearly, there’s a lot to think about when you are choosing roses for your yard. We share our 5 favorite roses that are perfect for adding to any residential landscaping design, but if you need help (or it still feels too overwhelming), contact a local professional to help you choose the right roses for your yard.
Hybrid Tea Rose
We drool over the wide variety of colors the Hybrid Tea Rose has to offer. From multi-colored roses with splashes of red to peach or yellow, the Hybrid Tea Rose will have a color for every landscape. Their long stems and perfectly centered blooms are some of the most recognizable types of rose. Lavender, catmint, and geraniums are excellent companion plants for this variety. These all compliment the beauty of the Hybrid Tea Rose and help ward off pests. Hybrid Tea Roses shine in formal, English, and cottage gardens, but when pruned correctly, they can fit in contemporary spaces. Well-draining, slightly acidic soil and full sun will provide the biggest blooms for your yard.
Image Courtesy David Austin Roses
Knockout Roses
You can’t pass up Knockout Roses! These are perfect landscaping roses because of their small blooms and shrub-style growth. Even with smaller blooms, these roses still pack a delightfully fragrant punch. Don’t mistake Knockout roses with Grandma’s perfume! Their fragrance is a perfect addition to any landscape garden where you can spend time outside enjoying their beauty and smell.
These are ideal for mass planting because of their dense and vibrant growth patterns, and this same feature makes them excellent choices for borders along paths or garden beds. These are low-maintenance roses and hardy for colder zones. Coneflowers, daylilies, and lavender make beautiful companion plants for contrast and pest control. Knockout roses work beautifully in many styles of yards, including every style from traditional to xeriscaped spaces.
Image Courtesy University of Michigan
Pearly Gate Climbing Rose
The Pearly Gate Climbing Rose is a gorgeous addition to pergolas, fences, or arbors. Because they are climbing roses, they will make their way around whatever structure you plant them near. You can even grow them in a container and let them vine around a poll or other structure. These blooms will go strong until the fall when they need light pruning. Clematis, another vining plant, pairs beautifully with the Pearly Gate Climbing Rose. Lavender’s silvery and fragrant blooms are a lovely contrast to the white roses.
These roses work beautifully in many spaces, but due to their climbing nature, they work great for small space gardens or vertical gardens. They prefer well-draining, slightly acidic, loamy soil. They thrive in full sun and will bloom more roses with more sun! Create your own secret garden moment with the soft-colored and full-bloomed pearly gate climbing rose.
Image Courtesy Spring Hill Nursery
PeachDrift Rose
Consider adding the PeachDrift Rose in your landscaping design because of their beautiful bloom’s peach-colored variations. Considered a dwarf shrub, this perennial will fill in large garden beds with touches of color while also being disease-resistant. It is also excellent for ground cover and edging in traditional, English, or cottage gardens.
These are excellent pollinators, and planting salvia, catmint, and geraniums with these roses will help prevent pests and attract bees! PeachDrift roses do best in well-draining, slightly acidic, loamy soil. Deep watering is best for this variety of roses, especially during hot months.
Image Courtesy Drift Roses
Carefree Wonder Rose
The Carefree Wonder Rose will transport you to a cozy English garden where you will definitely want to sit down for an afternoon tea. We adore the Carefree Wonder Rose because of its irregular growth pattern and scrumptious pink and white blooms. A nice side benefit to the Carefree Wonder Rose is that they are disease-resistant and easy to grow.
This low-maintenance variety prefers neutral to slightly acidic, well-draining soil. It will produce the most blooms in full sun but will tolerate shade. During hot months, deep watering is a must for this plant, as is mulching the ground around the base to retain moisture. These pollinator-friendly roses are beautiful in cottage and informal gardens, and their continual blooming makes them a lovely choice for many styles of gardens.
Image Courtesy Heirloom Roses
How to Design a Landscape With Roses
Adding roses to your landscape isn’t as simple as choosing a variety and digging a hole. Choosing the right rose bush for your garden could make or break your design depending on the style, size, shape, scope, colors, maintenance levels, and more.
First, decide if it is a formal or informal garden. Formal looks will have structured layouts, symmetrical designs, and clean lines. Think of regency-era gardens that Jane Austen might have strolled. Roses are typically used in well-manicured rows or beds. Choose a rose with a consistent size, shape, and color for blooms. An informal garden embraces more of a charming, relaxed, neutral feel. The roses used in this garden can be less uniform, asymmetrical, and paired with more varieties of other plants.
Existing landscape structures can shine with a vining rose. Think of a pergola with cheery white blooms decorating the structure. You can also plant roses in containers with stakes to easily move them from place to place. Adding roses to frame a path is an excellent way to add color and texture to the walkways in your landscape design. Remember our potted roses? They would look beautiful near a fountain or pond, adding the drama and flair that only roses can bring.
Roses also add beauty to outdoor living spaces. Climbing roses on trellises or pergolas is a beautiful way to add this flower to your space. For even more sensational delights, choose an aromatic variety for your outdoor living spaces and enjoy the lovely scents of the roses. One of our favorite uses of roses in outdoor living spaces is actually after they’ve been cut—add them to a watering can for a cottage garden vibe or a glass vase for more formal settings.
How to Combine Roses With Other Landscaping Features
Using roses around your existing landscape features is a wonderful way to soften the structures and add color and texture to your landscape. We’ve already discussed edging a path with the roses, but consider using roses to cascade over low boulders or rocks lining the path. The juxtaposition of the soft blooms with the rough rock is stunning. Layer your blooms along the path with several varieties of climbing roses, or even combine them with other ground cover. Add drama to the entrance of your garden by growing vining roses over an arched trellis. Or, add them in pots near the gate to your landscape; make sure to choose varieties that will thrive in smaller pots. Increase your backyard privacy by planting climbing roses near a screen, and use the vibrant blooms as a “fence.”
Low-growing ground cover types of roses are beautiful additions to water features in your yard. These shorter-growing varieties will allow the water to remain the main feature but frame it and reflect the colors of the roses in the water. Additionally, using roses that complement water plants can be a lovely way to add dimension to the space. This layered look can provide a unique and enchanting look.
Rose Landscaping FAQs: Your Top Questions Answered
We know there’s a lot to think about when choosing the right roses for your garden. Don’t worry; we’ve compiled a list of some of our most asked questions regarding roses in your landscape. Read on to find the answers to your questions!
What are the best low-maintenance roses for landscaping?
Knock-out Roses, Drift Roses, Flower Carpet Roses, and Sea Foam Roses.
How do I choose the right roses for my landscaping design?
Consider maintenance, the color scheme of the yard, the landscape style, and sun availability. Contact an experienced landscape team if you aren’t sure what to choose!
Can roses be used as ground cover in landscaping?
Yes! Flower Carpet Roses, Drift Roses, Fairy Roses, and more can be used as ground cover.
How much sunlight do roses need?
Most roses need full sun; the more sun it gets, the more blooms you get! However, some varieties tolerate shade.
What is the best way to water roses in landscaping?
Water deeply and consistently, especially during hot months.
How do I protect my roses from pests and diseases?
Companion planting with pest-preventing plants like catnip, geraniums, and lavender. Keep soil well-draining to prevent rot in the root system.
When is the best time to plant roses?
For most regions, early spring is the best time to plant roses. But you can plant in the fall about 6 weeks before the first frost.
Big Rock Landscaping: Will You Accept This Rose?
We’re just a landscaping company, standing in front of a homeowner, asking them to love roses as much as we do. Will you accept this rose?
It’s hard not to love roses with their varying shapes, size, colors, and fragrance. Picking the right rose for your garden design will make all your neighbors stop to actually smell the roses. Don’t settle on grocery store bouquets to get your fill of these stunning flowers. Big Rock Premium Landscaping can help you choose the best roses for your Wasatch front home landscape. Give us a call today!
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