Other than making sure I don't have two roses that are close to the same color together, I just arrange mine randomly. I'm not usually a fan of the brighter colors, like orange or mauve, so far I think mine blend nicely. It seems like the antiques are just made to go together, I don't think you can make a mistake with them!

Any arranging of colors i have tried to coordinate always ended in failure. the roses of the same cultivar never bloomed at the same time and even grew differently. I just buy what is available that i like, if i find i am lacking a certain color, i will choose my favorites from that color to balance things out. I seem to have done a lot of balancing between colors and classes. last fall it was rambler fall, this spring it was ht spring, this fall was floribunda and large flowered climber fall. As long as they don't end up looking like row crops, i don't much worry.

For me there are infinite color combinations that are pleasing or wonderful, and probably infinite color combinations that set my teeth on edge: examples of the latter are cool pink next to primary red; purple-foliaged plants with variegated (green and white) plants; blue-silver foliage against a dull red house. You may be able to tell that all these are examples from real life.

I tend to work more with contrasts than by modulating shades of the same color: I like the blue-green-gray-lavender range of aromatic plants combined with the pinks, soft yellows, and apricots of Tea roses, for example. But then I like a variety of those same gray-green-silver-blue-lavender shades, not all the same plant of the same hue. Colors can be strong or soft, though I've read that strong colors are best paired with strong, soft with soft. However, in a line of roses I don't like a succession of strongly colored varieties: I have 'Mutabilis', 'Clementina Carbonieri' and 'Sanguinea' in a line and every time they come into bloom I'm sorry I didn't insert a pale yellow rose in the row. I like some combinations that no one else does as far as I know: deep red-shading-to-purple Hybrid Tea flanked by a fluorescent pink-orange variety, or shocking pink and poppy (orange) red.

I don't know that there are any rules to be derived from these examples. I think the thing to do is look and look and just see what pleases your eye, note what makes you really happy, in your garden and others' and wherever you go where there are plants. There are books on color as well if you're really curious.

Melissa

I hate the higgledy-piggledy look of modern rose gardens, with nothing but brightly colored roses planted side by side. In a home garden, with companion plants, the effect can be much more muted. I agree that very few old roses actually clash, although I have been known to move roses around that had colors that were too much the same.

When I installed my home garden five years ago, I did have a color scheme, and feel that it mostly worked. I also tried to mix textures and shapes. I keep tweaking things, of course!

It's hard to mix apricots and more clear pinks and reds, so I put Gruss an Aachen, Perle d'Or and Comtesse du Cayla in a separate bed, surrounded with purple and blue companion plants. In another bed, I have soft yellows, whites and deep reds, including dark-red-leaved cannas whose bright orange flowers are cut off before they start to bloom and clash! I put my only two orange roses, Joseph's Coat and Charisma, on the other side of the fence next to my driveway, along with other hot-colored plants - including some of the cannas, which get to keep their flowers!

I like alyssum, Santa Barbara daisy, sedum, true geraniums, and many other ground covers, which help tie everything together.

It's fun to see how people combine their colors and plants, but to my mind, anything is ok if it's what you like. A friend of mine says that "yellow and pink stink," but I love my Crepuscule and Zephirine Drouhin archway just the same (after all, Mutabilis mixes those colors, why can't I???).
Anita

Their are certain colors I stay away from as well like reds, mauves, and orange. I agree that so many antiques blend nicely together. However I have been looking at Austins and debating over trying them or not (as I just don't like fussing over my roses). The colors however on many of the Austins are more what I call cool colors rather than pastels. So as I am looking at introducing them into my garden I am thinking more about how they would look against the pastels I already have as well. I know they would look very nice but I'm just more aware of the combinations then say with my antiques. I am also afraid of looking back at mature roses (more so climbers) and wishing I had put say a yellow rose in there instead of a pink. I just know I am not going to move it once it's there.

A good example of those cool colors rose gardens to me is roses4ever and I have her gardens in my clippings. I believe she has mostly Austins in her garden (someone correct me if I'm wrong) and they are much more vibrant looking then many say teas, chinas, and noisettes for example.

I love to pour over books and look at all the plant combinations. It does help and gives me lots of great ideas. I probably will always try to color coordinate then to just randomly stick roses of any color anywhere I have the space because that's just how I am and how I like doing it. I just like to see how other people garden and that's what's great about the garden forums because you can share thoughts and pictures. :O)-Meghan

I always order the roses I want the most, regardless of color. Then I put them in locations where 1) they will fit best and 2) they get the right sun/shade mix. For example, I just recently moved Souvenir du Docteur Jamain, because it was getting too much afternoon sun. This was making the blooms blow too quickly. It is now in a spot that gets shade from around 2:00pm on, but it is next to Gruss an Teplitz, another deep red colored rose. I try to fill in with complementary contrasting perennials. If I had a larger garden, I might plan it out more carefully, but for me the rose comes first. So, if I have to have similarly colored roses next to one another in order to fit them in, that is just what I do. Somehow it always seems to work out pretty well.

I agree with Anita, it's hard to mix apricot with most other rose colors, except yellow and white. Adding blue and purple perennials and annuals gives interest and contrast. And I also thought that "yellow and pink stink" but my Goldflame honeysuckle combines the two so I have Awakening and Autumn Sunset along with it on a pergola and found I actually like the combination! As long as the colors are soft I think it works. I wouldn't do a whole bed of yellow and pink though but this is a single happy pairing.

I also agree that too many brightly colored roses next to each other is too much, it gives me a headache looking at them. One bright red or yellow in a bed is enough for me and acts as a focal point. On the other hand too many soft pinks and whites together gets boring. One or two mauves or reds amongst them and you've got an interesting and pleasing garden.

It's funny you should both mention apriocot mixing with other colors. This is a color that I have avoided (so far)because I just wasn't sure just where and how to place it in my garden. I wasn't sure how apricot would look with pink. I never heard of "yellow and pink stink", that's funny cause I always thought they were pretty together but I too prefer it in soft shades. I think a yellow here and there in a garden of pinks and whites is soo pretty.

I forget what book it was but they had a picture of several pastel pink roses and a purple rose in the middle. Though it had some purple companion plants it wasn't enough and I thought it took away from the other roses along side it.

linrose, I also agree that too many soft colors can get boring or more washed out looking in full sun. With my other plant combos I try to add cool color shades to try and prevent that from happening. That's why I also think that some of the Austin roses would really brighten up the garden without adding bright orange and reds.

Personally, I love how apricot roses look next to red ones. They are also nice next to white.

Here is a link that might be useful: Burnt Plant's blog

You obviously do not have enough roses if you still have room to plan. Eventually you will get to the point where space is the only issue.

Too funny, Catsrose! I totally agree! I planted a new hillside this spring and started out planning the colors on paper, but eventually all 150 roses just went in and it all came together great. By the time the companion plants (iris, daylilies, salvia, coneflowers, etc.) start blooming, it really didn't matter in the long run.

I love color, so my gardens have a lot of bright colors. It all works out.

It doesn't matter what someone else's "rules" for mixing color are or their idea of what is beautiful. It only matters what you like, what makes you smile, and how you feel when you are in your garden. My garden breaks all of the rules. Pink next to yellow, red next to whatever, and I find it beautiful, cheerful, and a happy place to be. Oh, I also mix modern roses in with the OGR's :-).

A riot of color

{{gwi:220830}}

Carol

Well, my garden is so new that it is too soon to tell how the colors are going to work... But, I have sort of a flattened horseshoe shaped rose garden. Red is fairly consistent at one end and all the way around until the other end which is apricot/pink/yellow blends- Westerland, Lafter (a little too pink for me) and Playboy (I love that orange but it sure fades quick). The reds have pastel colors w/ them for contrast- Reve d'Or for example, and red, and white peonies, then I have nice blue-purple spider wort for contrast and to cover bare legs. In the open space in the middle of the horseshoe, I have a red star hibiscus and some daturas. Oh, I also have some clematis here and there but they are totally babies. (And yes I am missing yellow roses and am looking for some that are very resistant to plant in the future- to me, yellow really brightens up a garden.)
I do want to share that I planted some purple sweet potato plants in front of the roses and I LOVE the great ground coverage they give and the wonderful contrast w/ the green rose foliage. I definitely want to repeat it next yr. Brandy

Your right I don't "enough" roses. I can't afford to buy anywhere near the amount of roses I see people on here buy. Not to mention I only moved into this house a few years ago. So for now it does matter to me how I place them and with what. If I ever get to where I have more roses than I know what to do with and/or no room to garden anymore I guess it wouldn't matter where I stick them.

For now I plan carefully for the now and the future of how I want my garden to look. I also am a cottage gardener and plant a host of other plants as well. As well as a 7 month old lab and two kids so I can only plant around the perimeter of my yard as they use the rest! :O)

Carol, your gardens are beautiful! I have a friend who is like that a "riot" of color is what she likes. Like taking paintbrushes and dipping them in all different colors and just splatter them about. I think it's very pretty but it's just not my style I guess. Like you said though one day if I run out of room it just may be! :o)

I'm really enjoying reading these posts, thanks!- Meghan

Carol, your garden is marvelous, just gorgeous. It may be a riot of color but in the final analysis I see mostly muted colors that blend together beautifully. Your garden is the kind I aspire to.

For myself, it just so happens that the colors I love seem to go well together. I have lavenders, purples, light and dark pinks (with a prefernce to the lilac side of the spectrum), yellows and golds, with some whites and apricot or apricot-pink tones like Mutabilis, Carding Hill and Abraham Darby. My only caveat is to separate the different colors, except for what I call my pink and white border which is a long line along a ridge which has white butterfly bushes, and roses that are either pink or white, with more pinks. I use companion plants and call the whole thing my Mediterranean cottage garden. It's a work in progress and will take at least another three years to attain total cohesiveness since I'm planting quite a few new roses this fall (trying to help out Vintage Gardens). The only color I can't deal with in roses is true red, although a purplish-red is okay. But mostly in roses I stick to the older varieties and the softer colors for that romantic, informal look I'm after. Since I'm surrounded by large areas of natural terrain my particular concern is to achieve a harmonious transition to the wilderness.

Ingrid

Wow Carol, your garden is beautiful. I love the riot of color. I tried to go with a color scheme but ended up with a riot of color myself and love it. To each their own. You do have to do what makes you happy and go with it. Theres always a shovel around if you absolutely don't like one plant by another. I like to mix in other planting too to fill in bare spots. I love all kinds of flowers and love everyones gardens. Lets keep making the world a more beautiful place with every little plant we plop in the ground. Judy

I think of my gardens as being predominately "themed" but not rigidly so. I have one large bed that meanders somewhat bean-shaped into the center of my backyard. I call it my red bed since it features Dublin Bay, several Eutins, and several red HTs. It is somewhat neutralized by lots of white plantings in there--everything from a white rugosa to white minis and other white plants (lilies, perennials, clematis) and some silver plants like artemesia silver mound. There are some red-white blends like Double Delight and Cherry Parfait and red-yellow blends like Love & Peace and Gypsy Carnival. Then I decided that bed needed a bit more variety, so I added golden-buff Valencia and several golden daylilies, but the red still dominates. Then I decided it needed a few more subtle transitions in the red to white theme, so I added an Eden climber and several other light pink rose shrubs. That was good, but now the red isn't standing out like before, so I will add a Chrysler Imperial HT in a key spot to keep the red in focus.

My point is that while a color or pattern may predominate, I need some variety in there also.

Another bed is my purple and gold bed: yellowish roses (3 Molineux in a cluster) and Golden Showers climber, several yellow re-blooming daylilies, a couple clumps of golden-yellow bulb lilies and some yellow perennials mixed with all the dark purple I can find--iris, larkspur, salvia. Visitors always comment on this striking bed, but they are sometimes surprised to see a couple clumps of Oriental Poppies flaunting their bright pink blooms, and in summer, a much cooler overall color pattern with lots of white garden phlox and lots of white mums in the fall mixed in generously with whatever purple and gold is still blooming.

My newest bed--a somewhat narrow strip between the driveway and the property line--features tall-growing, vertical roses like Mrs. John Laing and Elina, but I call it my blue bed since the areas around the feet (and knees) of the roses are filled with miniature blue delphiniums and any similar electric blue I can find. Just today I planted some blue pansies in there. My new blue garden got a lot of attention on the city-wide garden tour this year. (Finding all those electric blues is a challenge, however.)

Don't know how the backyard appears, viewed as a whole, to an outsider since I make little attempt to blend in the various color themes of the separate areas, but I enjoy the change of mood I experience as I move from one bed to another one. And if I'm happy with my garden, I figure that is what really matters most--since I do all the work!

Kate

I started with OGR's only and like other posters find that they mix well. The cool pinks and cool reds of albas, gallicas or the other old European roses don't clash. I separate all with alchemillas and any good blue, white or grey perennial. Delphiniums are my No 1 favourite.

I have paired the apricots with purples in one bed apart from the cool pinks. Veilchenblau and Rhapsody in Blue with Abraham Darby, La belle sultane and Centifolia a fleur double violette with Buff Beauty, Claus Groth and Floral Fairy Tale. The outsiders in this mix are two whites, Jacqueline du Prand Secret Garden Musk Climber.

A third bed is the hot westfacing sunset border, completely out of sight of other roses. I have mixed shrubs, floribundas and hybrid teas all in red, yellow, orange, and brown but there are more perennials than roses there because it is mainly a spring and autumn bed.

A while back, I thought a bed of deep red roses would be wonderful in front of a white bench.
I was very careful (and naive and not into OGRs and rose history) and I worked really hard on that bed. And when they bloomed it was a freaking disaster. Deep red encompassed deep pure red, deep gray red, deep orange red, deep blue red and (chortle) even murrey,that red-purple color which shall probably be forgotten. The foliage stood out and the reds retreated visually into the greens.
Conclusion: not all deep reds are equal and modern sellers will call roses red because red roses sell.

And not all yellows are created equal. The yellows from the 1800's are mellow. And they blend rather than demand attention.

And my garden is going more to cluster flowered bushes called noisettes. They just look good next to pretty much everyrose I grow.
I think R. glauca might go into some of the orange beds (orangy polys that do fight with a lot of other colors).

But I learned to see roses growing here, in my sunlight and cloud cover and heat before I declare them to be my next must haves. (well, maybe any Orleans Rose kin and any cluster flowered noisettes and red chinas and interesting species continue to earn their byes.)

Here is a link that might be useful: Murrey coloured rose

ann that is so funny. i was thinking to myself that i couldn't imagine any roses not blending together well and then you brought up the reds. Yep, i would have to say that might be the one exception. It is difficult for me to even pick the right reds from pictures. Red is the far most subjective color i think there is. It is the most beautiful color, but only if you get the shade of red that suits you. I think red just doesn't want any competition at all with other reds and is the queen of all colors.

"By the time the companion plants (iris, daylilies, salvia, coneflowers, etc.) start blooming, it really didn't matter in the long run."

My plans, too, were killed by the companion plants. :-) I still have the pink and red rose area, and the yellow and orange rose area. The companions muck it all up.

What I do not suggest in *any* case is a deep black-red rose next to a magenta coneflower with a yellow gaillardia planted next to it.

Every time I see that combination I think YUCK, what the HECK was I thinking!!!????? It's visual assault, plain and simple.

I have a few color themed beds..one for purples that has some white toward the back and a touch of soft yellow, Jude the Obscure. I have two other purples paired with yellow in which the yellow is too bright..it's just too much for me. I like a softer yellow with purple.

I have a hot bed with bright reds, oranges, some white, a bicolor vermillion ( Imperatrice Farah) , and bronze leaved cannas and chartreuse spirea. It has a more tropical look. I have an area with lots of yellow and apricot. Another area with salmons and white. Several other areas with mostly cool pinks and some dark burgundy. I like a lot of blue and white perennials with any color scheme. I love apricot with pink! I think Martha Stewart does too..I've seen enough or her bouquets pairing the two.

The bed by my front door is becoming a red bed. Right now the reds are L.D.Braithwaite, a clear bright red, Red Cascade, and further to the side, Granny Grimmetts and Memphis King in a pot. Fourth of July is at the back, a nice contrast. Old Blush gives her pink notes. But I'm thinking about putting Cl. Oklahoma in there somewhere because it might need afternoon shade. I think reds are pretty together so far.
Linda

Maurizio, I am astounded! What beauty! i think that goes into my clippings with Carol's garden. THey are both very beautiful.

Maurizio, do you care for all of this yourself? I am speechless.

Sammy

Maurizio, I will say it again, you have a lovely, beautifully maintained garden. Your combinations of plants and roses are striking and beautiful!

Carol

Maurizio, so far i've been a plunk them down wherever but your garden is definitely making me think about coordinating a little more carefully from now on. Yolana

They sure are stunning,wow! How I wish I could take a stroll through your gardens and with pen and papper in hand! -Meghan

I have mostly big beds which I generally refer to as gardens. I have a pink garden because if you buy a lot of roses, many of the best will be pink. The other gardens are mixed. I try not to put a red rose and an orange rose next to each other or clashing reds, etc. Color preferences are personal and the truth is until the rose is in your garden and blooming you can only make an educated guess.

I try to group colors and then use a color break or a blending between the groups. I use white or yellow roses as color breaks, but sometimes blends work much better.

You should experiment. Things you think wouldn't work at all, work wonderfully. The blend between my red roses and my orange roses is Outta the Blue (2) to Distant Drums (2) to Hot Cocoa (2) and people love it. It was mostly accidental because DH got confused. I had planned something much more conventional. I growled at him for weeks and then they started to bloom and I was like, well just d..... that works.

I also think it helps if you have multiples in a color so their is a swath of color...big bushes give you the same effect.

Really I'm just happy when they bloom, smell good and don't clash too much :-)

Carol, love your clematis, which one is it?
Maurizio-I'm speechless.
Luxrosa

Maurizio - it's a shame I can't read spanish/italian - your garden featured in those links look incredible!