Desert Rose

George Burns Rose

Patented Floribunda

There's no shortage of beautiful flowers in the spring, even in the desert, but this time of year is especially nice for roses. 

Most people that don't already grow the flowering shrubs are surprised to learn that roses do really well in our climate. They are drought tolerant when established and are a rewarding way to add bold color to your landscape.

Ketchup & Mustard Rose

Floribunda

With the hundreds of varieties available to plant, it can be overwhelming to pick the right ones.

Here's a basic breakdown of five of the most common categories of roses that you'll find while shopping. Knowing how a rose is going to mature will help you put the right plant in the right place. 

Opening Night Rose

Hybrid Tea

Hybrid Tea are the world's most popular roses. They grow to 4-6 feet in height with a 2-4 foot spread and produce large well formed blooms atop long straight upright stems. They are excellent for cutting and arrangements.

Chicago Peace Rose

Hybrid Tea

Grandiflora, Latin for "large-flowered", are the largest of the shrubs getting up to 8-10 feet in height.

The blooms cluster in threes or fives and are also featured on long stems.

Dick Clark Rose

Grandiflora

Floribunda, Latin for "many-flowering", is a cross between polyanthas and hybrid tea to produce a large number of high quality blooms. This bush stays in the 3-4 foot range in height with a 2-4 foot span. The flowers are typically smaller than a hybrid tea, but bloom in larger clusters. The Iceberg roses are also in this group and are very prolific bloomers.

Coral Dawn Beauty 

Climbing Rose

Climbing roses grow very long (15-30 feet with a 10-15 foot spread) with more flexible canes than the shrub or bush varieties.

These are not to be confused with vines that can cling to walls or trellises by themselves, climbing roses need to be trained on to support structures.

The blooms are varying forms of small and large flowers and some can be repeat bloomers.

Don Juan

Climbing Rose

Miniature Roses are dwarf mutations of other shrub varieties. They stay relatively small growing only 6 inches to 2 feet in height with a span of about 2-4 feet. This makes them excellent for growing in containers or also in a bright spot indoors as houseplants.

Miniature Roses

All roses grown in our desert climate require some hard pruning in the dormant season (winter) to thrive. There is an art to pruning so make sure you check the seminar calendar in January to see when our next rose pruning segment will be. 

Pruning is well worth the time and you'll see the flowers of your labor in the spring, possibly all summer, and again in the fall.

Knowing the growing habit of a rose makes it easier to plan for its place in your garden whether you're looking for a more formal rose garden or just looking to add some color to your already drought tolerant landscape.

Check out our Star Notes on Rose Selection, Care, and Planting!