Different types of roses and what they each mean
In this article we run through the different types of roses and their key characteristics, covering hybrid teas, floribundas, climbing & rambling roses, patio, standard and English (David Austin) roses. The inforgraphic immediately below shows high level the type of flowers each rose produces, along with its growth habit and uses in the garden. Further below we step through the different types of roses in a bit more detail.

Hybrid Tea
- The base will have a skeleton of branches, the middle section will be mainly foliage and the top will host the spectacular flowers on long, very straight stems. Produces large flowers from high-centred buds, one per stem, making them great for using as cut flowers. Hardy and repeat flowering. Hybrid tea roses will tolerate a little shade, providing they get a min 6 hours sunlight per day. Typically grow from 1m to 2.5m (3ft to 7ft) tall and 1m to 1.3m (3-5ft) wide.

Hybrid Tea Rose - Mister Lincoln

Floribunda Roses
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Latin for "many flowering", these bear many flowers in large clusters. They aren't normally as scented as Hybrid Tea roses but are generally hardier and more robust, with a higher disease resistance and therefore easier to grow. Usually grow to a max 1 metre by 1 metre (3 feet by 3 feet) in a dome-shape that becomes clothed with flowers on short stems from summer to late autumn. Great for using as a low hedge or grown in a container. Needs full sun.

Floribunda Rose - Rose Absolutely Fabulous

Climbing Roses
- Naturally best suited to adding vertical ascent to your outdoor spaces and particular useful for smaller gardens or balconies where space is at a premium. Climbing roses need a framework to climb on, such as an arbour, arch, fence or pergola. Without a support they will grow as a relaxed shrub but can get very messy. Canes should be grown upwards at an angle no steeper than 45 degree to promote dense growth and lots of blooms.

Climbing Rose - Rose New Dawn
Patio Roses
- Patio roses do not normally exceed 45-55cm with smaller roses of less than 45cm normally classed as miniature roses. Patio roses are really just dwarf floribundas with the same style of flowers and foliage just in a smaller package, sometimes grafted onto a standard to add height to the patio display. Despite the name, they don’t need to be confined to containers on the patio. With their compact, bushy growth habit and fulsome double or semi-double flowers, they also work well at the front of mixed borders or below larger roses in the rose garden. Their elegant shape, manageable size and diverse colour palette makes them a great addition to bring life and vitality to smaller gardens or gaps in larger borders. They're still small enough to be grown in window boxes and balconies or combined with bedding plants as part of close-knit planting displays.

Patio Rose - Mothers Day Miniature Rose
Standard Roses
- Standard roses are generally grafted at a height of 90-120cm or 60cm for smaller patio standards. They are a variation of the normal bush rose with an initial non-branching trunk with stems and flowers forming at the top to create a lollipop-type appearance. They're ideal for adding height to the garden and can create a formal appearance if planted in a row. The shape formed by the head depends on the variety chosen - floribundas form a ball shape; hybrid teas a goblet-shape from the graft; and ground cover varieties become weeping.

Standard Rose - Standard Rose 'Hot Chocolate'
Ground Cover Roses
- Naturally have a low and spreading growth habit, reaching about a metre (3 feet) across yet rarely more than 30cm (1 feet) tall. They generally flower freely and continuously, covering the ground with a sea of colour throughout the summer. Pest and disease free, very hardy and therefore easy to grow.

Shrub Roses
- This category broadly encompasses any other types of rose not already mentioned, including modern shrub roses, older species roses and David Austin varieties. Growth habit can vary completely from one variety to another. It's best to look out for ones labelled as repeat flowering if you opt for an older variety. Most modern shrub and David Austin roses have colourful hips at the end of the growing season and grow in a relaxed form.

Traditional English - Rose Gertrude Jekyll
Other Rose Articles
Other articles that may be of interest include: