There’s no difference in the quality of the rose. It’s simply a matter of which suits you and your garden best. Both are the same roses, just supplied at different stages of their growing cycle.

Bare Root Roses | Available Seasonally

Bare root roses are dormant plants, carefully lifted from our fields and delivered without soil. Light and easy to handle, they’re a particularly good choice if you’re planting several roses or creating a new rose bed.

Once planted, they will settle into the garden and begin growing as the weather warms.

Potted Roses | Available All Year

Our potted roses are established in a 6-litre pot with a specially formulated planting mix. They can be planted throughout the year, making them a lovely choice if you’d like to add a rose to the garden straight away or give one as a gift.

During the summer, potted roses may arrive with foliage, buds or flowers, depending on their natural stage of growth.

Please note that ramblers, once-flowering Old Roses and species roses flower on mature wood, so they may not flower in their first year after planting.

There’s no need to worry if you can’t plant your bare root roses straight away.

If you’ll be planting within two weeks

Keep your roses tightly sealed in their original paper sack and potato starch bag and store them somewhere cool and frost-free, such as a shed or garage.

You may notice some new growth, particularly on roses delivered from March onwards. This is perfectly natural and a good sign.

If you need to wait longer than two weeks

We recommend temporarily ‘heeling in’ your roses.

Remove them from their packaging but leave them tied together in their bundle. Dig a hole large enough to comfortably accommodate the roots, place the roses in it and replace the soil so that all the roots are covered.

Water if the weather is dry. Your roses can then remain here until you’re ready to plant them in their permanent position.

Ideally, plant your potted roses as soon as you can. If that isn’t possible, they will be quite happy in their pots for around two months, provided they are kept well watered.

How often they need watering will depend on the season and weather:

• January to March: around once a week
• April to August: daily, except after heavy rain
• September to October: around twice a week, with more frequent watering during unusually warm or dry weather
• November to December: around once a week

The compost should be kept moist but not waterlogged. During warm weather, it’s worth checking your rose regularly, as pots can dry out surprisingly quickly.

Roses can grow beautifully in pots, provided they have plenty of room for their roots and are kept well watered and fed.

For complete step-by-step instructions, explore our planting guides:

Potted Roses

• Planting Potted Shrub Roses in a Pot: Step-by-Step
• How to Plant a Potted Climbing Rose in a Pot: Step-by-Step

Bare Root Roses

• Planting Bare Root Shrub Roses in a Pot: Step-by-Step
• Planting Bare Root Climbing Roses in a Pot: Step-by-Step

Choosing a Pot

For a shrub rose, choose a pot at least 18in (45cm) wide and 18in (45cm) deep.

For a climbing rose growing to less than 12ft, we recommend a pot at least 24in (61cm) wide and deep.

If you have room, choosing a larger pot is always worthwhile. It gives the roots more space to develop and holds moisture for longer, helping your rose grow into a healthy, vigorous plant.

Choosing Compost

For the best results, use a good-quality compost suitable for roses and other long-term container plants. A loam-based compost, such as John Innes No. 3, will provide the weight and structure a rose needs as it matures.

Planting Your Rose

1. Make sure your chosen pot has good drainage holes.
2. Add compost to the base of the pot.
3. Position your rose in the centre, with the bud union around 2in (5cm) below the final soil level. The bud union is the point where the stems meet the rootstock.
4. Fill around the rose with compost, gently firming as you go, while keeping the bud union at the correct depth.
5. Leave a little space below the rim of the pot to make watering easier.
6. Water thoroughly after planting, using around 5 litres of water.
   

Roses can be planted throughout the year, so there’s no single ‘best’ time.

The important thing is to avoid extremes of weather. Don’t plant when the ground is frozen or waterlogged, or during periods of drought.

Bare root roses are planted during their dormant season, while potted roses can be planted at any time of year when conditions are suitable.

As a general guide, we recommend planting shrub roses around 2ft (60cm) apart.

The ideal spacing will vary depending on the size and habit of the roses you have chosen and the effect you would like to create.

For more detailed advice and planting diagrams, explore Giving Roses Room to Grow: A Guide to Planting Distances.

Getting the balance right is important, particularly while a rose is becoming established.

Roses enjoy a good, deep watering rather than a little water applied often. How frequently you need to water will depend on the age of your rose, whether it is growing in the ground or a pot, and the weather.

Our Watering Roses guide will help you understand when to water, how much to give and the signs to look out for.

Pruning keeps your rose healthy and encourages strong growth and plenty of flowers. The best time and method will depend on the type of rose you are growing.

For step-by-step instructions, discover our guides here.

Please see our rose care article on 'How to Feed Roses' to find out more about feeding your roses.

A healthy garden is home to all sorts of insects, many of which are helpful friends to your roses.

Where possible, we recommend encouraging a natural balance rather than reaching immediately for a spray. Ladybirds, lacewings, hoverflies and birds can all help keep common rose pests under control.

You can encourage these welcome visitors by growing a variety of companion plants and providing habitats such as bird boxes and insect hotels.
If you do notice an infestation, start with the gentlest form of control. Sprays can affect beneficial insects as well as pests, so we recommend using them carefully and only when necessary.

Discover more on our blog

This is most likely powdery mildew, a fungal disease that appears as a pale, powdery coating on the leaves and sometimes the stems and buds.

The good news is that powdery mildew is unlikely to kill your rose, although a severe case can affect its appearance and vigour.

Why does it happen?

Powdery mildew is encouraged by particular weather conditions and is often most noticeable on soft, young growth.
Dryness at the roots can also make roses more susceptible, so one of the first things to check is whether your rose is receiving enough water.

What should I do?

Start by checking the soil and water deeply if it feels dry. Good air circulation around the rose will also help, so avoid overcrowding and remove any dead or damaged stems.

Clear away fallen leaves and debris from around the base of the plant.
A liquid seaweed feed can also be used to support healthy growth.

For more advice, explore our Watering Roses guide.

This is most likely blackspot, a common fungal disease of roses.

Remove the worst affected leaves and collect any fallen leaves from around the base of the plant. This helps reduce the amount of infected material remaining around your rose.

Black spot thrives in wet conditions, so when watering, aim the water at the base of the rose rather than over the foliage.
Keeping your rose well watered, appropriately fed and growing with good air circulation will help it remain healthy and vigorous.

If black spot continues to be a problem, a suitable fungicide can be used. Always follow the product instructions carefully.

Yellow leaves can have several causes, but watering and nutrition are good places to start.

Check the soil around your rose. If it is dry, give the rose a thorough watering. If your rose has not been fed recently, it may also benefit from a suitable rose feed.
Bear in mind that a few yellowing leaves can be perfectly natural, particularly as older foliage is shed.

For more detailed advice, explore our Watering Roses and How to Feed a Rose guides.

If your rose is otherwise growing well, there may be a perfectly natural explanation.
Some roses flower on older, more mature stems and may not bloom in their first year after planting. This includes many once-flowering Old Roses, such as Gallicas, Damasks, Albas, Centifolias and Mosses, as well as many ramblers and species roses.

These roses should also be pruned more lightly, as cutting back too much of the older growth can remove the stems that would otherwise carry flowers.

If you have a repeat-flowering variety that has not bloomed, our rose experts will be happy to help you work out what might be happening. Simply use Chat with us or visit our Contact Us page.

Not necessarily. Some roses naturally carry their flowers with a gentle nod, which can be part of their particular character.

Young roses also need time to develop their mature shape and strength. Large-flowered varieties in particular can produce blooms that are initially rather heavy for their young stems. Over the first two or three years, the stems will usually become stronger and better able to support them.

Correct pruning can encourage stronger growth, while appropriate feeding will help your rose develop well. Avoid overfeeding, as this can encourage soft, vigorous growth that may offer less support to heavy blooms.

Explore our Pruning Rose and How to Feed a Rose guides for more advice.

Rose fragrance can be wonderfully changeable.

Try smelling your rose when the flowers are fully open and at different times of day. Temperature, sunlight, weather and the age of the flower can all influence how strongly its fragrance is released.
Fragrance is often more noticeable in warm weather and much softer when conditions are cool.

Our perception of scent also varies from person to person. Certain fragrance characters, including myrrh and Tea, can be much easier for some people to detect than others.

So, if your rose seems quiet one morning, try returning to it later in the day. You may be surprised by what you discover.

There are several possible reasons, and the age and vigour of the rose are good places to start.

Young roses can sometimes lack the strength needed to develop and open their flowers fully. Make sure your rose is receiving enough water and the right amount of feed to support healthy growth.

Weather can also influence how flowers develop and open, particularly during prolonged periods of cool or wet conditions.

For more guidance, explore our How to Feed a Rose and Watering Roses articles.

The colour of a rose is never entirely fixed. It can shift beautifully with the seasons, weather and age of the flower.
Strong sunlight and high temperatures can cause colours to soften or fade more quickly. Cooler conditions often produce richer, deeper tones, which is why the first flush of flowers can sometimes appear particularly intense.

The colour may also change as each individual bloom matures, with many flowers gradually becoming paler as they age.

Light levels can have an influence too. Roses generally perform best with at least four hours of direct sunlight each day, and lower light levels can affect both flowering and colour.

The photographs on our website are therefore a guide to the character of each rose. Like any living flower, there will always be some natural variation.

A rose can lose leaves for several reasons, so take a closer look at the plant before deciding what it needs.

Check the soil

Lack of water is a common cause, particularly during the first two years after planting. Check the soil around the roots and water deeply if it feels dry.

Our Watering Roses guide has more detailed advice.

Consider feeding

Roses growing in light or sandy soils may need a little more attention, as both water and nutrients drain away more quickly.

Adding well-rotted manure or a good-quality soil improver can help improve the structure and fertility of the soil.

Look at the leaves

Examine any freshly fallen leaves for signs of black spot, rust or powdery mildew. These can all cause a rose to shed foliage.

If the leaves appear otherwise healthy, watering is a good place to start.

Climbing and rambling roses can both bring height, colour and character to the garden, but they grow in rather different ways.

Climbing roses generally produce larger flowers on stronger, more restrained growth, and most will repeat flower through the season. They are particularly well suited to walls, fences, trellises, arches and obelisks.

Rambling roses tend to be more vigorous, producing an abundance of smaller flowers. Most flower once, usually in early summer, and their long, flexible stems make them wonderful for growing through trees, over pergolas and across larger structures.

There are, of course, exceptions. Malvern Hills’ and ‘The Lady of the Lake’ are repeat-flowering ramblers, while ‘Shropshire Lass’ is a once-flowering climber.

Yes, you can grow roses in some shade, although they will still need a reasonable amount of light to flourish.

As a general guide, roses perform best with at least four hours of direct sunlight each day. Some varieties are more tolerant of partial shade and can be lovely choices for north-facing walls or parts of the garden that receive less sun.

Explore our Roses for Shady Areas to find varieties particularly well suited to these positions.

Fragrance is one of the great pleasures of growing roses, and there are many beautifully scented varieties to choose from.

David Austin® roses offer a remarkable range of fragrance characters, from classic Old Rose and rich Tea to fruity, musky and myrrh notes. Strength can vary with the weather, time of day and age of the flower, so fragrance is often a wonderfully changing part of the rose.

Explore our Most Fragrant Roses to discover some of our most beautifully scented varieties.

Yes. While very few roses are completely without thorns, some varieties have noticeably fewer than others.

These can be particularly useful beside paths, around seating areas or in parts of the garden where you’re likely to brush past the stems.

Explore our Roses with Very Few Thorns to find suitable varieties.