Favorite UPRIGHT roses in your garden?

last year

Hey folks. I'm looking for more upright roses for my small home garden. I have Stilleto, Firefighter, Mr Lincoln, and About Face and love them all. They perform really, really well for me. Are there any others you would recommend? Or do you have a resource you can share that I'm not aware of?

I know that HTs are often upright (but not always), and that Austins sometimes are (sort of....like Queen of Sweden, maybe Boscobel). Color isn't as important to me as fragrance, disease, and remontancy. I've been digging for resources but it's not easy. And while you can sort of mess with search filters on rose seller websites, those are not always reliable.

Thoughts?

Featured Answer

dianela7analabama

last year

My garden is definitely more of a “wild” rose garden and not just pastels but I do not keep BB separate at all. I think his colors blend in well with others, possibly because it isn’t just plain red.

Benjamin woth pomponella, madame annissete and Dr. Robert K

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Comments (70)

PDXRobertZ8
Original Author
last year
@Diane Brakefield is your Dainty Bess in shade?
Diane Brakefield
last year
Robert, Dainty Bess gets a lot of sun from one direction, as well as reflection from the house. As you can kind of see, there's a big boxwood on one side of her, the house behind her, and a big, but shorter Love Song next to her. So she does some stretching, but blooms continuously, though the most extreme heat does some harm to the blooms. This is a tough rose. And she's quite cold resistant, too. I'd say, like all roses, she needs a good does of sun, but partial shade at times during the day don't seem to hurt her. I think she'd be shorter if she didn't do that stretching. As I mentioned, I got her many years ago from Pickering Roses in Canada, and I think she's grafted on multiflora, but not 100% sure. Diane
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I wanted to learn about old roses, so I planted a bunch, from many different types -- whatever I could fit in my tiny yard. So I have a few each of Bourbons, Chinas, Damasks, Gallicas, Hybrid Chinas, Hybrid Perpetuals, Damask Perpetuals, Mossy Perpetuals, and two species ancestors -- R. moschata and R. fedtschenkoana. I also have a few each of different types of modern roses, such as Floribundas, Hybrid Teas, Hybrid Musks, Polyanthas, and whatever you want to call David Austin's roses. This may sound like I have hundreds, but I don't. In some cases, it's just two or three or four of each class. Then, since I ran out of room, I asked if I could plant some date-appropriate roses at an old church cemetery in my town. Great! So starting with the once-blooming oldies, I got to plant Albas, Centifolias, Mosses, Hybrid Chinas, Hybrid Bourbons, Gallicas, Damasks, and some old-but-not-OGR tree-climbers. So, smithdale1z8pnw, what's an OGR? Well, roses were divided into three basic categories -- Species, Old Garden Roses, and Modern Roses. The dividing line between OGRs and MRs is often repeated as being 1867 -- but that's only part-true. It's not when the rose came out, but when its class came out. So while the Tea rose 'Rosette Delizy' came out in 1922, it's still an OGR because the Tea class was around before 1867. Polyanthas as a class were recognized after 1867, so they're technically not OGRs but rather MRs. So even though the Polyantha rose 'Perle d'Or' (introduced 1883) is older than the aforementioned RD, PdO is considered a Modern Rose because Polanthas were introduced as a class after 1867. Why the year 1867? That's the year 'La France' was introduced, and was later granted a new class -- Hybrid Tea. While a few older hybrids between Teas and Hybrid Perpetuals were around from before, this was the first one considered different enough that it didn't easily fit into either Tea or Hybrid Perpetual -- so they came up with a new class. And that was deemed the dividing line between the "old" and the "modern". But there are Modern Rose classes which are embraced by fans of the OGRs. Why? Because even though they came out after Hybrid Teas, they retain an "old charm". Hybrid Musks (Modern Rose class) were bred to emulate and expand upon Noisettes (Old Garden Rose class). Polyanthas (Modern Rose class) were sort of like hardier Chinas (Old Garden Rose class). And then David Austin came along, and the "old flower form" became popular again -- even if the plants behave more like Modern Roses. Now, here's the rub -- where does "antique rose" fit in? I think of the word "antique" as referring to something at least 100 years old -- and I'm not alone in using the 100-year mark for the definition. Since 1867 was 150 years ago, that means a lot of Modern Roses are also antique roses. And since a few breeders continued to dabble with the oldies, we have some Old Garden Roses that are too young to be antiques. So, in my book, 'La France' is an antique rose (i.e. over 100 years old), but also a Modern Rose (i.e. a Hybrid Tea), and not an Old Garden Rose. Meanwhile, 'Rosette Delizy' is old, but not quite yet an antique rose -- give it another five years for that title. Being a Tea, it is still an Old Garden Rose and not a Modern Rose. And, to those of you who are curious to dip your toes into the OGR pool, I'd suggest learning a little about the general habits of each class before falling in love with a picture of a beautiful bloom and buying the plant. For example, if you don't get much Winter chill -- or if Summers come in hot and fast -- Gallicas and Albas will likely be disappointing, but you'd do well with Noisettes and Chinas and Teas. The classes among OGRs are a bit more ancestry-based than are how Modern Rose classes are put together, so that makes it a bit easier to figure out if something would do well in your climate. Oh, and don't be afraid of once-blooming roses -- think of them as azaleas or lilacs, mixing into the garden as "flowering shrubs", and you'll understand how to use them. While their annual flushes may last only a few weeks, they'll produce at least as many blooms in that period as similarly-sized repeat-blooming roses would all season. Also, generally OGRs will perform better as bigger plants than what you may be used to if you've grown mostly Hybrid Teas and Floribundas. They can be trained and pruned, but not generally as harshly as is recommended for "show roses". There are so many beautiful roses out there, it'd be a shame to miss out on so many because you want to grow "only Modern Roses." Or, for that matter, "only OGRs." :-) ~Christopher
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erasmus_gw
last year
Some that are healthier and more upright in my garden:

Aloha..I think it's pretty tough.

Granada - a strong grower own root or grafted, healthier than some, reblooms well and won a fragrance award...I think the Gamble fragrance award.

Crocus Rose - this one is tall and shrubby . Some find it bs resistant.

Betty White - a strong grower own-root , sturdy and branchy , beautiful healthy leaves but not too wide so far:

Spiced Coffee - makes a moderate sized but sturdy, healthy, upright plant with good repeat. It's good own root and can take less than optimum spots.

I have a grafted Sharifa Asma that is very strong and upright and a great repeater. I think it's healthier than many. Wonderful fragrance. I have an own root one in a dry spot that is much smaller.

Love that Fontaine aux Perles and the arrangements, Librarian.
librarian_gardner_8b_pnw
last year
last modified: last year
Thanks, Erasmus. Your garden photos are always so lovely. There's so many great suggestions here! Too bad I'm out of space for a while. Diane'sDainty Bess always delights me, too.
erasmus_gw
last year
Thanks! I like the Dainty Bess too...didn't know it was that strong a grower. As far as I know all the plants Pickering offered were grafted on multiflora. That's my favorite rootstock. I wish Palatine would offer it, and Reine des Violettes.
rosecanadian
last year
Erasmus - I love, love your Crocus Rose!! :) :) What a beauty!! Based on your picture...I'm glad I'm getting La Fontaine aux Perles. :)
PDXRobertZ8
Original Author
last year
Gorgeous @erasmus_gw! I can't find Granada anywhere tho. I love the coloring!
erasmus_gw
last year
Thanks, rosecanadian.. is La Fontaine similar or different? I thought it was pinkish.

Robert, Roses Unlimited carries a lot of older hybrid teas...they might have it.
Kimberly Wendt (Florida Z. 10b)
last year
last modified: last year
@PDXRobertZ8 - CALL DEBBIE at Cool Roses in FL. I was just there today and she had a couple Grenadas - on Fortuniana rootstock though (don't know if that will work for you). Her website: coolroses.com. You can contact her via the website. If you can, call her.

Debbie also had some Tiffany roses (again on fortuniana root) - I can't remember who was looking for Tiffany....
rosecanadian
last year
Erasmus - that was an "oops" on my part. I thought that your wonderfully in bloom Sharifa Asma was La Fountain aux Perles. D'oh!
Kimberly Wendt (Florida Z. 10b)
last year
Morning all, speaking of Sharifa Asma... I've been trying to find her and not having any luck. Anyone know where I can buy her?
PDXRobertZ8
Original Author
last year
Thanks @Kimberly Wendt (Florida Z. 10b)! My concern about Fortuniana rootstock is that it will be so massive! My garden is tiny. Maybe I’m overthinking.

I did a count yesterday, and to my (fake) surprise, I now have 67 different roses. If you saw my tiny front yard, you’d be rolling on the floor laughing. 😂
erasmus_gw
last year
Another couple of upright ones I like are Red Intuition and La Rose de Molinard. By upright I mean more vertical , not so wide.

I only have one cruddy picture of La Rose de Molinard so won't post it. Both of these have better than average bs resistance and good growth but both of mine are grafted on multiflora.
rosecanadian
last year
Erasmus - beautiful picture of Red Intuition!
Kimberly Wendt (Florida Z. 10b)
last year
@erasmus_gw - Nice roses! That red is RED RED. Here's a link to the other, La Rose de Molinard : https://www.helpmefind.com/gardening/l.php?l=2.57997
Kimberly Wendt (Florida Z. 10b)
last year
@PDXRobertZ8 - okay, NOW I wanna see pictures of your front yard. lol. Mine is torn UP. Last night, demolished the old fountain court that was there when we bought the house. Saved all the stone work. Today, dug up and repotted the Bay tree (resting in pots), dug up the the stepping stone path, dug up and reseated sprinkler lines, tore out all the grass, confederate jasmine (about a 1/2 of it) and the weeds. Bare dirt raked. New paths marked out, new herb wheel (which will have a rose obelisk in the middle of it... 'cause why not?) also marked out. I'm beat. Tomorrow: footers for the Herb wheel wall, build the dry fit wall... fill with sand/dirt and amend like crazy... then Plant!!!!
BenT (NorCal 9B Sunset 14)
last year
Robert,

My Home Depot is stocked full of Granadas (in 3 gal peat pots). Maybe they’ll be coming to your local HD too. I love Granada as well, beautiful color, excellent scent, very productive.
PDXRobertZ8
Original Author
last year
last modified: last year
@BenT (NorCal 9B Sunset 14) I did look there last week but I will check again tomorrow!

@Kimberly Wendt (Florida Z. 10b) here are a couple of photos of the garden. It’s small, and my roses are packed together. I have some on the sides of the house as well.

Front garden:

The hell strip:
Kimberly Wendt (Florida Z. 10b)
last year
But sir! @PDXRobertZ8, I doth protest! Your front garden is charming! And that pot ghetto! The hell strip is abtly named. My village wouldn't allow me to 'plant' the swale (aka hell strip) with anything put approved trees in a certain ratio. And actually, the first 25' of my front yard, in from the sidewalk, they will not allow me to put any 'structures' like trellis or arches or anything. That 25' set back takes up about 1/2 my front yard. Sooooo... enjoy your beautiful, whimsical (at least to me), and healthy front yard!

Here is my dug up yard. You see the circle marked out in blocks (with roses and saved plants in temporary pots while I work on the sprinklers and getting the last monster Areca Palm root ball out of the ground.

Here is another view, toward the street. The lower right is the fringe of the circle shown in the first picture. You see the 4' path marked out, bounded by marker blocks (with ghetto/more saved plants) on the left. That border will incorporate the 6' tall bird of paradise (seen in pic) and the palm. Behind the palm is a Duranta that is beautiful but grows to 12' x 12' unchecked. I hat-racked it down to 2.5' stubs. It's already sprouting again. lol. You can see I'm cutting blue barrels in half, spraying them a warm orangy caramel... for some of the roses. Those pots there are mid process. The Naga Belle in the blue pot at the bottom right is throwing out blooms... she approves I guess.

So there's my pot ghetto.... lol
Kimberly Wendt (Florida Z. 10b)
last year
Working my way back through this thread, and the roses listed here are amazing! I almost picked up a PCDM at a nursery but thought it was growing very very long, stiff, straight canes. Wasn't sure if it really was PCDM, as there are like 3 roses named similarly. But PCDM isn't listed as huge tall? Yet some you noted it was super tall, straight up. If that's so, I may go back for it to go in my English Rose garden? Not sure... .
rosecanadian
last year
Kimberly - that's a lot of restrictions for your yard...25 feet? That's totally not fair!
PDXRobertZ8
Original Author
last year
@BenT (NorCal 9B Sunset 14) just wanted to pass blame onto you for my recent purchase of Neil Diamond rose. Hahaha
PDXRobertZ8
Original Author
last year
@Kimberly Wendt (Florida Z. 10b) those are some strict rules! But for context, my whole front yard is maybe 25’ deep! Haha. We can’t grow Duranta here (but I could in Los Angeles).

I’m curious, is your swale a true swale (collects run off and rainwater)? I cannot tell from pics. The city is putting swales in here in new developments, but older neighborhoods like mine (my home was built in 1921) do not have them. Swales here are planted with mostly native plants.
Kimberly Wendt (Florida Z. 10b)
last year
Yes, Robert, I believe they are true swales. They dip below the street and sidewalk levels slightly. When we get hurricanes or TS’s that dump a lot of water in a short amount of time… even our sandy soil won’t drain quick enough, so it pools in the swales. Most of our property is white sugar sand beneath a 6” or so mixes sand/dirt layer. Back in the ‘60’s when this house and neighborhood was built, I bet they trucked in loads of topsoil. It’s thinned out a bunch. Every year I add a bit more, compost as much as I can and use that too. It’s improving. Parts of the yard, the back, I don’t amend. Come hurricane season we are always getting summer afternoon monsoons… so I’m grateful for the sand.
BenT (NorCal 9B Sunset 14)
last year
Robert,

That’s alot of roses to fit into 25’! Maybe you can ask one of your neighbors if you can expand into one of their yards…that’s my plan, encourage a neighbor to start a rose bed.
Kimberly Wendt (Florida Z. 10b)
last year
@BenT (NorCal 9B Sunset 14), I JUST chatted up a neighbor and offered to help her start HER rose garden - with some of my excess plants. She left with a pot under her arm..... loll. Great idea.
Kimberly Wendt (Florida Z. 10b)
last year
Ah and @rosecanadian, seems like a lot of restrictions... but I do live in a suburban village... so we have 'grass police' too. It's no where as bad as an HOA however. My front yard is some 50' deep so that's okay. I can put bushes and trees and whatever-where ever (just not the swale). It's structures that cannot be in the set backs. What I found odd or 'odder' was that my town told me I could not put the 2 post in-ground, trellis or the arbor in the front 25' set back. They had zero problems with me putting them 3' in from my property line on the side, however! Neighbor thinks it will be great too. I kept my mouth shut and said, "Thank you for your time". lol.
rosecanadian
last year
Kimberly - grass police...grass is a desert for bees (unless there's dandelions and/or clover). Power to the roses and perennials!! I know you'll push the limitations as much as you can. :) :)
Diane Brakefield
last year

Power to the penstemon and veronica.
PDXRobertZ8
Original Author
last year
Hey @BenT (NorCal 9B Sunset 14) well you'd be surprised how many roses one can fit when one removes all the other existing plants. Haha. I have several climbers going up walls and along the fence, and so I can cram quite a few in that way. The super upright HTs take virtually no space at all, but yes, it is crowded. :)
Kimberly Wendt (Florida Z. 10b)
last year
( @PDXRobertZ8 ), I am taking a 'leaf' out of your book and also using a LOT of climbers/obelisks to try to have more roses in my tiny space. I've only got a 1/4 ....of a 1/4 acre.
rosecanadian
last year
Diane - the bees certainly love your plants! :)
BenT (NorCal 9B Sunset 14)
last year
last modified: last year
Robert,

I’m all too familiar with removing all other plants to make room for more roses! I’ve done that at two succesive houses now. I think your narrow rose / tree rose strategy is a good one. My problem is I like the individual plants to grow huge and productive, but I always want to try varieties I’ve not had before.
julieotoole
last year
David Austin's Benjamin Britten has gotten a good 9 feet tall for me and with generous water flowers constantly. It's very upright and I am in the Portland area too, on Chehalem Mt.
Kimberly Wendt (Florida Z. 10b)
last year
last modified: last year
Wow, Julie @julieotoole - 9' tall? Gasp. I love the look of Benjamin Britten. I hear that the color is somewhat not well liked, but I like it. Do you have any issues with black spot with it? I've heard he is susceptible?
PDXRobertZ8
Original Author
last year
Oh yes @julieotoole we have BB at my work and it is HUGE! I've considered adding it to my hell strip because it's thorns are so vicious--it would prevent folks from swiping them. But I am not super keen still on how it fades to a washed out/faded white on the outside petals. I do love the fragrance tho.
dianela7analabama
last year
last modified: last year
@Kimberly Wendt (Florida Z. 10b)

Benjamin is a very bright color and likely not in the color range that many enjoy when setting up a pastel garden. I personally think the color is gorgeous and the blooms have a great scent. The plant here grows tall and could be a small climber, but can also be a tall bush. The color of the blooms is too complex to capture with my iPhone. It has a hot pink/ red color with a wash of peach glowing from the inside, then it has a silver reverse. It gets blackspot here without spray during the summer but recovers well (as good an any of the newer varieties, they all get some blackspot here) Florida z10 is a different beast without winters and such. You will have to try it and see how it does for you. Your temperature doesn’t really get any higher than here during the summer so I expect it shouldn’t bleach out much more than mine.

Beautiful underrated Austin.

Here he is blooming on august 22th in the South, let’s just say not many of my over 300 roses do that.

Sorry quality is bad, it wont download from cloud
rosecanadian
last year
Dianela - that's absolutely incredible!!! What a bloomer!!! I need to find Benjamin Britten!! WOWZA
dianela7analabama
last year
Carol I am glad you like Benjamin. I think it is a very nice Austin that doesn’t photograph well. I find that happens with some of the very bright colors. I hope you find it and give it a try.
rosecanadian
last year
Mine would NEVER look like yours...you really know what you're doing with roses!! Yes, I'd love to find one. :):)
dianela7analabama
last year
I wish you could move over here. I don’t do anything special to my roses and have no special gardening skills. Our warm weather and lots of rain do all the work. You garden in a very challenging zone.
Kimberly Wendt (Florida Z. 10b)
last year
@dianela7analabama - Nice pictures of Benj. Britten. K&M in Mississippi has BBs. I had one on order, then swapped out to another rose. Being so big, and such a vibrant red, it might be best as a stand alone. @PDXRobertZ8 Robert, thanks for the heads up on the thorns. The one spot I have that might work is next to a sidewalk - soooo that's not a good choice. Sigh. Beautiful pictures.
PDXRobertZ8
Original Author
last year
On the contrary, I think a spot next to the sidewalk is PERFECT for BB's thorns. :)

In my neighborhood, people are THUGS. They rip out entire plants, tear of branches if they like the flower, etc. It's awful.
librarian_gardner_8b_pnw
last year
last modified: last year
I agree with you, Dianela. I have BB with Boscobel, Lady Emma Hamilton, Jubilee Celebration and Munstead Wood. Teasing Georgia and Lady of Shalott are nearby.

Here is BB tall in the c enter. You can see we really lean into that wild look and dont mow the clover infiltrated lawn often.
oursteelers 8B PNW
last year
Loving all the pics!!
dianela7analabama
last year
Gorgeous Librarian! I love the look =)
rosecanadian
last year
Thanks, Dianela. :) :) Oh, wow!!! Your roses are wonderful!! They're bloomers on steroids!!

Robert - really? Unreal. They sound worse than deer.

Librarian - a true pollinator garden...I would let the clover grow if not for my husband who likes grass. Your roses are ginormous and wonderfully beautiful!!
PDXRobertZ8
Original Author
last year
Yes @rosecanadian--people have actually grabbed potted plants in the garden and taken them in broad daylight. It's infuriating. Hence my desire to plant our hell strip with the thorniest things possible.
erasmus_gw
last year
Another one I like that is upright but is not narrow is Well Being. It's about as wide as it is tall...about 4.5'. It's healthy, hardy in zone 7a, sturdy, branchy, repeats well, does well own root, and is very sweetly fragrant.
PDXRobertZ8 thanked erasmus_gw