Own root roses are a joy to garden with regardless of where you live. Roses are the quintessential garden plant; from the fat heavy petaled David Austin English roses to the delicate open petal wild rose varieties. While roses can appear delicate, many are deceitfully tough and resilient.  Fortunately for those of us in colder gardening climates, my own farm is located in a USDA hardiness zone 5a, there is a wide palette of tough, hardy and floriferous roses that thrive down to USDA hardiness zone 3.

A few of my newest favorite roses are: Blanc Double de Coubert rose, Cinco de Mayo rose, Champlain rose and George Burns rose. While each of these rose are wildly different in color, fragrance and size all these rose share the same hardy characteristics that make them a joy to have in the garden: hardy to zone 3, first out of the gate to leaf and bloom in the spring, repeat blooming all season long, very disease resistant and produce showy blooms.


Blanc Double de Coubert rose is always one of the first to bloom in our garden! The very large, semi-double, pure-white, extremely fragrant blossoms appear in profusion in early summer and then continue blooming until frost. We plant this large 5' tall rose in the back of our perennial beds. This would be the perfect rose to include in an all white garden.





Cinco de Mayo rose is a favorite rose at our farm for its robust, fluffy blooms that are the most unique shade of smoky bronze mixed with rusty-red and pale lavender. Cinco de Mayo only grows to 3' tall, so it fits into almost any area of the garden. The moderate tea fragrance and strong stems for cutting only add to the overall appeal of this rose.





Champlain Explorer rose is beautiful, very floriferous shrub rose released from Agriculture Canada's Explorer Series. Deep velvet red blooms just explode all over this rose. This extremely hardy rose has the appearance of a delicate hybrid tea rose, yet it keeps performing all season long from late spring well into fall frosts





George Burns is a definite rose to add to your garden. We first spotted this rose when touring a commercial rose growers nursery grounds and were literally stopped dead in our tracks. This hardy, bullet-proof floribunda rose has deep green foliage, strong citrus fragrance and flirty, full ruffled multi-colored blooms. In our cooler temperatures, the yellow color becomes more pronounced as fall approaches.


NOTE: For best results, always grow your roses using only organic ethods. Growing roses organically helps to reduce pest problems, produces a strong, healthier plant and is good for the environment. To learn more about how easy it is to grow your roses organically, click here to read an informational article on our sister website...