Selecting Characteristics
Step1
Read the label or catalog description of each rose carefully to know its characteristics.
Step2
Consider color. Roses come in a wide variety of colors, from snowy white to a deep purple that's almost black. Others have stripes, a combination of colors, or colors that change as the flowers mature.
Step3
Consider height. Roses grow anywhere from a few inches to 20 feet.
Step4
Note growth habits. Some roses are climbers or ramblers, great for fences and trellises. Others sprawl along the ground, making them good ground cover choices. Still others come trained into lollipop-like standards. Shrubs and miniature roses are also available.
Step5
Think about disease resistance. Roses vary widely in their ability to resist disease. Rugosas, David Austin, and other "landscape" roses are generally very disease-resistant. Hybrid teas are generally regarded as the most disease-prone.
Step6
Consider bloom time. Many roses bloom just once in June. But some will bloom almost nonstop until frost. Others bloom in "flushes" throughout the summer.
Step7
Evaluate cold-hardiness. This is a rose's ability to survive cold winters, especially important if you live in USDA Zones 5 or colder. Some roses can survive with minimal protection in cold weather while others (notably, hybrid teas) need considerable protection and still might die out anyway.
Step8
Note fragrance. Some roses are intensely fragrant while others have no scent at all.
Step9
Consider suitability for cutting. Some roses are excellent for cutting while others have petals that shatter easily or fade quickly after cutting. Hybrid teas are unsurpassed for cutting. Rugosas and David Austin roses are not particularly good for arrangements.
Understanding Rose Classifications
Step1
Learn more about the different types of roses, each with its own advantages and disadvantages, and you'll be more likely to select the best rose for your garden and lifestyle.
Step2
Know that "species roses" are naturally occurring roses found in the wild. Most have only five petals and a characteristic "wild" look. Generally, these are very disease-resistant.
Step3
Understand that "climbing roses" are roses trained to grow upward on a support, such as a trellis, arbor or building. There are several classes within this grouping, including climbing hybrid teas, large-flowered climbers, ramblers and wichuraiana.
Step4
Know that "shrub roses" is a catchall category that's been exploding in recent years with new additions. Shrub roses include rugosa, landscape roses, David Austin or "English" roses, Medilland roses, Buck roses, Morden roses, and many more. As a group, they tend to be long-blooming and very disease-resistant. They also have compact, attractive foliage that keeps them good-looking even when not in bloom.
Step5
Understand that "garden roses," sometimes called antique or heirloom roses, have been in cultivation since 1867. Old garden roses include the following classes: alba, bourbon, centifolia, china, damask, gallica, hybrid perpetual, moss, polyanthas, Noisette and Portland. Old garden roses tend to be disease-resistant and fragrant. Some bloom for months while many bloom just once in early summer.
Step6
Know that "floribunda" are modern roses that are the result of crossing hybrid teas and polyanthas, and have the best traits of both parents. They have hybrid teas' elegant flowers with the attractive foliage of the polyantha shrub. Floribunda are often long-blooming, fragrant and good for cutting.
Step7
Understand that "grandifloras" are a relatively small group, created with 'Queen Elizabeth' in the 1940s and established as the first of a class of large-flowered, abundantly blooming roses.
Step8
Know that "hybrid teas," the most popular of roses, are unsurpassed for beautiful flowers with classic flower form. However, hybrid teas have been falling out of favor as gardeners look to shrub roses for more attractive foliage, hardiness and better disease-resistance.
Step9
Understand that "miniature roses" look like their larger cousins, but are much smaller, right down to tiny flowers; they seldom grow more than 2 feet high. Some also do well indoors.
Step10
Understand that "standard roses" are the lollipop-like rose "trees" that have been trained with a ball of blooms and foliage on top of a tall stem that can range from just a foot or two high to 6 feet or more.
