Fragrant roses – beautiful varieties, English fragrant roses and care tips

When choosing fragrant roses, beginners should seek advice from an experienced gardener; Varieties are often offered that are declared as fragrant roses, but only give off a barely perceptible scent. When choosing the variety, the possible use also plays a role. Some of the most popular ground-covering roses include the following varieties:

• Sutter’s Gold: intense yellow color, oriental scent (floral and fresh at the same time), for rock gardens
• Friesia: yellow with red nuances, sweet and strongly aromatic fragrance, for rock gardens

If you want to cultivate a medium-tall rose, you usually use the Rosa Rugosa (potato rose) variety, which grows upright and broadly bushy and is available in different variants:

• Robusta: simple blood red, delicately scented
• White Roadrunner: semi-double creamy-white rose with a particularly strong fragrance
• Conrad Ferdinand Meyer: double silver-pink flowers, cup shape, intensive scent of old roses

If you want to use the roses as cut flowers, use one of the following fragrant varieties:

• Westerland: bright coppery flowers, sweet-aromatic scent, long flowering period
• Ladylike: light pink flowers and strikingly large, dark green leaves, strong fragrance with noble nuances
• Augusta Luise: peach-colored, nostalgic shape, large flowers, strongly aromatic scent
• Barkarole: classic red rose on strong, long stems, beguilingly sensual scent

English fragrant roses

English roses often stand out for their nostalgic charm. The roses look particularly decorative in beds and borders. Some of the most popular yellow varieties include:

• Golden Celebration: cupped copper-yellow flowers, hardy, scent of strawberries, tea rose
• Teasing Georgia: light, golden-yellow petals, white outer leaves, very robust, delicately lemony-tart scent

The classic pink, red and purple varieties, on the other hand, include the following varieties:

• Heritage: soft pink flowers fading to white towards the edge, lemony scent
• The Prince: rosette-shaped, dark purple, scent reminiscent of old roses
• Wenlock: Crimson flowers, intense fragrance reminiscent of lemons
• William Shakespeare: cupped, first crimson, then purple, persistent, warm fragrance

English roses are often used as climbing plants. Then the following varieties come into question:

• The Pilgrim: yellow flowers fading to white towards the outside; Scent of myrrh and tea rose
• Tess of the d’Urbervilles Climbing: crimson, initially cupped, scent of old roses
• A Shropshire Lad: pink to peach, slightly cupped, glossy foliage, intense fruity fragrance

One of the special features of the English fragrant roses is certainly the “Crocus Rose”, which exudes a very intense tea rose scent and presents a striking, upright, strongly overhanging habit. The apricot-colored leaves, which become paler towards the edge and finally turn into white nuances, are extremely decorative.

location and soil

In order to unfold their aromatic fragrance, fragrant roses need a sufficiently sunny spot in the garden. The flowers can only develop in their full splendor if optimal lighting is guaranteed. However, wild roses in particular can often be cultivated in semi-shade. In addition, the side of the house also plays a role in offering scented roses an optimal location. The west and east sides in particular are ideal for cultivating the plant; in dry southern locations, on the other hand, there is a risk of heat build-up. Basically, a well-ventilated place is important, but it must not be drafty. Climbing roses in particular, which grow on the house wall, need regular air movement so that the leaves, which are moistened by dew and rain, can dry quickly.

In addition to the optimal location, the substrate used also plays an important role in the cultivation of fragrant roses; the substrate in which the roses are planted should have the following properties:

• fumes
• profound
• permeable
• moderate
• rich in nutrients
• neutral pH

Sandy soils can be improved by adding humus, while clayey substrates are enriched with compost and sand.

Watering, fertilizing, cutting

Rose plants are deep-rooted; Well-established plants therefore only need to be watered if the drought persists. The early morning hours have proven to be the best time. Watering is then pervasive, being careful not to wet the leaves and flowers. This reduces the risk of fungal infestation. Freshly planted roses need to be watered more frequently until they are well established. Depending on the weather, moisture can be supplied once or several times a week.

For optimal care, scented roses should be supplied with fertilizer. However, the targeted supply of nutrients only begins a year after planting, provided the soil is well prepared. Otherwise, the fertilization measures begin in spring; it becomes an organic complete fertilizer which, in addition to nitrogen, also contains phosphorus and lime. – These two components are essential for the formation of flowers. From July onwards, however, no more nitrogen may be added, otherwise the shoots will not mature. In late summer (beginning of September) fertilization is mainly carried out with potash to increase the strength of the wood. If the roses are kept in containers, it is recommended to provide nutrients with the help of liquid fertilizers, which can be dispensed up to 5 times during the summer months.

Scented roses should also be pruned in order to remain vital and floriferous for several years. For this purpose, faded flowers with umbels and the next leaf are cut off during the summer. The rose will then sprout more quickly. The classic spring cut includes the removal of old and senile shoots. Overall, wild and shrub roses are usually only thinned out, while the other species should be severely cut back. When cutting, the following rules should be observed:

• Use of sharp scissors suitable for this purpose
• Cut back 5mm above an outward growing bud
• always cut slightly diagonally to the opposite side
• When cutting away side shoots, do not leave any branches
• leave no butts

Optimal wintering

Depending on the species, fragrant roses need different types of winter protection in order to survive the cold season. The grafting point is always the most sensitive. In late autumn, the fragrant roses are therefore piled up about 20 cm high with loose soil, mature compost or bark mulch. Additional protection is achieved with spruce twigs, which are stuck around the plant. The construction can be heaped up again in the second half of March at the earliest.

Potted roses are best overwintered in a dark, cool place protected from the wind. The garage, for example, is an excellent place to stay during the cold season. However, hibernation can also take place outdoors if you dig the pot deep in the garden and pile up spruce brushwood around the planting site.

Plant fragrant roses correctly

The best time to plant roses is between October and November. Alternatively, spring planting is also possible, which is usually carried out from mid-March until well into May. Spring planting has proven its worth, especially in rough locations. The plant material is only prepared for bare-root goods; such plants are first placed in a water bath for up to 24 hours and then immersed in a viscous clay broth. Before planting, the soil at the chosen location is carefully loosened and prepared if necessary. Grafted roses are placed in the ground so that the grafting point is about 5cm below the ground. The distances that must be observed between the individual plantings differ depending on the type of fragrant rose:

• Beetrosen: 30-50cm
• Miniature roses : 25-30cm
• Ground cover roses: 40-100cm

The distance chosen also depends on the plant height of the variety. The freshly planted fragrant roses are carefully watered.

diseases and pests

Since fragrant roses are susceptible to numerous pests and diseases, it has proven useful to regularly strengthen the plants. Rock dust should therefore be sprayed or dusted during sprouting to make the fragrant roses more resistant. When the first leaves finally appear, spraying them with horsetail broth is an effective preventive measure.

To prevent powdery mildew, which occurs mainly in hot and dry weather, you should avoid drying out the leaves and water them if the drought persists. Infested shoot tips are cut off quickly to prevent further infestation.

The classic pests include aphids, which collect in large populations on the underside of the leaves and take care of the fragrant roses. Targeted spraying with a garden hose is particularly helpful here; However, you must then ensure adequate ventilation, since the leaves that have been wetted with water are particularly susceptible to fungal attack. Spraying with soap solution, nettle manure or tansy tea also help.

The rose-specific pests include the rose sawfly, which shows typical window damage during the summer months as a characteristic damage. Only the outer skins of the leaves remain, like parchment. In order to decimate the infestation, the larvae must be collected. If necessary, spray suitable insecticides.

Conclusion
Fragrant roses enrich every garden with their decorative leaves and the aromatic scent that they exude. If you have chosen the varieties cleverly and take care of the plants under optimal site conditions, hobby gardeners can enjoy the queen of flowers for many years.