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David Austin Roses Are the English Roses of Today.

David Austin Rose. Jubilee Celebration.Stunning In Rose Pink. Jubilee Celebration. 2003.

David Austin Roses. From David Austin:

"Roses have one of the most complex, widely ranging perfumes of all flowers. The weather conditions on the day before the rose opens, the age of the flower, the season and even the time of day all influence the fragrance of an individual bloom".

David Austin Roses are those roses which have been specially selected and hybidized to give us some of the loveliest roses ever.  And they are officially known as English Roses. David C.H. Austin OBE (born 1926) is a rose breeder and writer who lives in Shropshire, England.

His emphasis is on breeding roses with the character and fragrance of Old Garden Roses (Gallicas, Damasks, Alba roses, etc.) but with the repeat-flowering ability and wide colour range of modern roses such as Hybrid Teas and Floribundas. David Austin Roses are synonymous with English Roses. So if someone asks you about English Roses, they are talking about David Austin Roses. Photo Credit.

Abraham Darby Eng 1985 IMG 3258

Abraham Darby. 1985. One of his most sought after roses. Very hardy. This amazing rose reacts to different climates by changing colour from Apricots to Pinks.

David Austin is a man with a mission which is: to enable the rest of the world to experience roses which are found in a typical English Garden. 

His first rose, 'Constance Spry', below, was introduced in 1963. In 1967 and 1968 he introduced 'Chianti' and 'Shropshire Lass' respectively. Although these first roses bloomed only once in spring or early summer, they led, in 1969, to a series of repeat flowering varieties, including 'Wife of Bath' and 'Canterbury' (both in honour of the English author Geoffrey Chaucer). Austin's roses soon became the most successful group of new roses in the Twentieth Century.

I hope you enjoy the beautiful David Austin Roses on this page as much as I do. Please check back here often for more. There are so many that I can only choose my favourites. Relax and 'Smell the Roses'.  David Austin has also released the William and Catherine Rose to celebrate their marriage. See it here. Update: Another long Kate Wait. When will David Austin release the Princess Charlotte Rose?

Are David Austin Roses Hardy? 

Yes, he has a lot of roses which are hardy. Just visit this page of his website to see for yourself. Roses For Hot Zones. There is plenty of other information here too.


Rosa english garden

English Garden.

This is one of the loveliest rose I have ever seen and it has taken me a long time to find it online. I knew it was called English Garden, but all the searches I did came up with mainly the English Garden 'Cabbage Rose', Centifolias, etc. It wasn't until I decided to devote a whole page  to the David Austin Roses, that I actually found it. I just didn't realize that it was a David Austin Rose. 

This rose has given me tremendous respect for David Austin. If you find it, buy it, is all I can say. You won't be disappointed! It starts out creamy apricot, and goes through to pale gold, ending up with creamy white. (If you look at the Crocus Rose below, that's exactly what the English Garden rose looks like when it first comes out).

I have grown English Garden with no problems whatsoever in SE Queensland (sub-tropical). It is incredibly beautiful, highly fragrant and 'tough'. And, of course, it has either 125 or 130 petals. When I counted them after one flower had fallen I got 127. I just couldn't believe it. Even luckier for me, I bought it with a tag which said 'Wedding Day Rose'. Well, it wasn't the right tag, thank heavens. I think you could grow it anywhere.

And no wonder it is such a hardy rose. It has 'Lilian Austin' and 'Iceberg' in its parentage. Very special indeed.

Rosa-'Crocus-Rose'

Crocus.

Crocus. This delightful David Austin rose won the RHS Award for 2012. It is repeat-flowering from Summer through to Autumn and grows to almost 4 feet. It has a mild tea rose perfume and is very hardy.

Rosa Happy Child

Happy Child.

Happy Child. So  sweet. The famous 'Iceberg' Rose also features in the parentage of this glorious, cheerful rose. Delightful. With Iceberg in the family, this rose is guaranteed to be hardy.

David Austin Rose Constance Spry..Constance Spry In The Loveliest Pink.

Constance Spry. This is a charming pink rose which has an old fashioned cabbage rose look, but was only bred in 1960 - 1963. It was the very first David Austin Rose. It will grow from 6 to 12 feet and can also be cut back if you want it for a shrub rose. It is very tough and has the unique perfume of Myrrh. It only flowers once in early Summer but the gorgeous deep rose pink blooms are well worth the wait. Delightful over an archway or a trellis, or even in a pot. Photo Credit.

Pat Austin.

What a beautiful glowing rose. Photo Credit Johabu.

Rosa 'Jane Austen' 1990

Jane Austen. 1993.

This is a very special rose.  Introduced by Austin in 1993, it won the USA Desert Rose Society Annual Fall Show Gold Medal for a Miniature in 2010. So it is drought and heat tolerant. That's not bad for an English Rose.

AlexandraRose 1

Alexandre.

Alexandre. Something a little bit different and beautiful. A single rose. The 'Shropshire Lass' and 'Heritage' roses feature in its parentage. Perfect.

Pale pink David Austin Rose 'Wife of Bath'.

Wife of Bath.

Wife of Bath. This beautiful rose is very fragrant and will grow to 4 feet with lovely shell-pink blooms. The name comes from Chaucer's 'Canterbury Tales'. It is a very bushy shrub rose, needing no fill-in plants around it. It blooms repeatedly from late spring to early summer. A delightful addition to any garden. It needs full sun and must have good drainage.

Gorgeous pink double David Austin Rose 'Lilian Austin'.

Lilian Austin.

Lilian Austin. Perfection. The colour is a striking salmon pink through to orange. It is a  double rose with a beautiful light fruity fragrance which will grow from 4 to 6 feet and can be trained as a standard rose. It blooms repeatedly from Spring through to Summer and even Autumn in some areas and has good disease resistance.

Rosa 'Dapple Dawn' David Austin 1983 RPO2

The Simply Delightful Semi-Double Dapple Dawn. 1983.

Rosa Charles Austin

Charles Austin.

Charles Austin. This is a tough, bushy rose. It will grow up to 4 feet or more and can be trained as a small climber.  It will also tolerate part-shade. It should be cut back well in spring (to half its size - don't be scared!). It repeat blooms remarkably, in fact it is seldom without a flower. But that depends on where you live. It is a vigorous grower with large apricot to yellow blooms 4" across and a strong fruity fragrance. 

Rosa Buttercup David Austin. 1988. Gorgeous yellow double rose.

Buttercup.

 Buttercup is a medium shrub rose to 4 feet with a strong tea fragrance. It is very hardy and repeat-flowering in summer and autumn. It requires good drainage. 

A Wedding Bouquet of David Austin Roses.An Elegant Wedding Bouquet of David Austin Roses.

Rosa sp.69

Charmian.

 Delightful. What a lovely rose!

GoldenCelebration3

Golden Celebration. 1992.

Rosa-'Grace'

Grace.

Elegant Simplicity.

Australian National Rose Trials Bronze Medal 2004.

Rosa 'Scepter'd Isle' (Rosaceae) flower

Scepter'd Isle. 

Scepter'd Isle. Very unusual and striking, the way each flower is pointing straight up.  This has got to be a first. I have never seen a rose do this!

Rosa 'Tea Clipper' J3

Tea Clipper.

Tea Clipper is one of his best known roses.

Rosa symphony

Symphony.

Rosa 'Windrush' J1

Windrush.

Rosa-'William-Shakespeare-2000'

William Shakespeare.

Australian National Rose Trials Bronze Medal 2003.

New Zealand Rose Trials - Hamilton - Most Fragrant Rose 2011.

Rosa Graham Thomas

Graham Thomas.

Another rose which glows. Graham Thomas was a noted Rosarian.  This rose is in the Rose Hall of Fame.


Find Lots More David Austin Roses On My Pinterest Board.


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“The rose is a flower of love. The world has acclaimed it for centuries. Pink roses are for love hopeful and expectant. White roses are for love dead or forsaken, but the red roses, ah the red roses are for love triumphant.” Unknown.