Landscape roses

If you want beautiful, lasting ground cover that will also dissuade weeds, have you considered roses? Anne Swithinbank argues the case for landscape roses

- Anne Swithinbank

THERE was a time when I would not allow a rose into my garden unless I was sure that on a warm, sunny day delicious perfume would rise from its petals. My nose refused to be disappointed by light or moderate fragrances but demanded a sweet, fruity richness.

Yet somehow two roses sneaked their way into my borders and changed my mind. Flower Carpet Pink and Rosa ‘Ballerina’ are now relied upon to bring a bank of colour from midsummer into autumn, followed by a display of hips. Their blooms may not be an olfactory treat but their glossy, disease-resistant foliage and masses of flowers more than compensate. Best of all, these are low-maintenance roses and need little more than initial weeding while settling in. Having reached maturity, they knit our plantings together while smothering weeds and flowering year after year.

Ground-cover roses

These useful roses belong to a group of variable origins referred to as landscape, ground-cover, procumbent or even drift roses – words that well describe their use and habit. Plants tend to be wider than they are high and their flowers smaller than average for a rose, with plenty that are single or semi-double to please pollinating insects. Less demanding than other rose types, they are drought tolerant and thrive on poorer soils and in light shade though they flower more profusely in a sunny, south facing position. These roses are great for containers, too, where their draping shape and healthy foliage look better than upright shrub roses and hybrid teas. They put on a good solo performance, or team them with silver artemisias and contrasting verbenas.

Named after game birds