Roses

About

This is a compact range of roses chosen for Australian conditions rather than a catalogue of hundreds. Iceberg, the most planted rose in the country, covers hedging and mass planting. Zepeti stays under a metre for pots and borders, and the thornless yellow banksia rose will clothe a fence or pergola. All are frost hardy and happiest with at least six hours of sun. Decide first whether you need a bush, a compact bedder or a climber, then choose on colour. Bush, bedder or climber: choosing the right rose Match the plant to the job before you shop on colour. Iceberg ( Rosa 'Iceberg') is the workhorse: about 1.5m tall, lightly fragrant, and covered in white blooms almost continuously from spring to late autumn, which is why it turns up as a flowering hedge in front gardens across the country. Zepeti is the compact option at 80cm by 60cm, a disease resistant bedder with deep red flowers that suits pots, balconies and tight borders. For height, the yellow banksia rose ( Rosa banksiae 'Lutea') climbs to 6m, grows fast, and is completely thornless, though it needs a genuinely sturdy structure and will spread past 4m if you let it. The assorted roses are mixed unnamed varieties around 1.2m, a budget way to fill a bed when exact colour matters less. Where roses do their best work Six hours of direct sun is the entry requirement, eight is better, and good airflow around the foliage matters almost as much. Roses handle a remarkable spread of Australian climates: all four lines here are rated from the subtropics through warm temperate and cool temperate gardens to Mediterranean climates, and Iceberg extends into arid regions as well. In humid coastal gardens fungal pressure is real, so favour morning sun that dries the leaves early and keep plants pruned open. In dry southern and inland gardens, they are among the most reliable flowering shrubs you can plant, coping with heat and drought once established. Planting and spacing Plant into deep, free draining soil enriched with co