Hi there, I am looking for 2 to 3 types of roses to fill a partly shaded flowerbed. I prefer the roses to be free blooming, low maintenance, and preferably not too tall. I am currently thinking of iceberg, bonica and knockout. Are they good picks? Any other suggestions? thanks!
Not too bad. There's no trees directly above the bed but some on the side. I would say it gets 2 to 3 hours of sun in the summer? Part of it faces north though.
Probably better with plants that can grow and bloom in both sun and shade, like fuchsias. Another one to think about is shrubby potentilla. These last look dreadful in winter so do not load up on them, but some could be included for long bloom and different flower shape and color range (one including yellow, orange) than that of fuchsias. Some broadleaf evergreens should be included to provide year-round structure, framing the deciduous shrubs (most shorter-growing fuchsias are effectively herbaceous perennials here, the stems often being damaged during winter and cut back in spring) by planting them on each end of a bed viewed from one side works well (when there is a hedge, fence or wall behind to provide structure along the other side from the point of view).
2 to 3 hours of sunshine a day is simply not enough to grow healthy and productive roses. It's not going to be worth your efforts. On the other hand, you might want to look up a bit and see if the taller growing varieties of roses - a big shrub rose or a climber - may be able to poke it's canes high enough to get the required dose of sunlight.
Oh come on. Give it a try. If we're talking about two of three hours of direct sun, when the sun is overhead, plus dappled sun the rest of the day, there might well be enough to work with. Here are some types that, over the years, I've seen suggested (cautiously) for gardeners in your (and my) situation: Rosa glauca -- decorative gray-purple leaves, modest pink single flowers Hybrid musks -- the parentage in these varies a lot, so I guess the shade tolerance does also 'Mary Rose' -- a David Austin shrub rose 'Gruss an Aachen' -- an old, smallish floribunda Climbers: 'New Dawn,' 'Zepherine Drouhin,' 'Golden Showers' 'Radrazz' -- a modern variety, one of the everblooming landscape sorts 'Playboy' -- a 1989 introduction, don't know what type Please report back with any success you may have. Many of us share this particular garden challenge.
