In honor of Valentine’s Day, we celebrate the iconic rose – the unparalleled beauty that adds romance, drama, and elegance to the garden with its luscious petals, lovely color, and captivating fragrance.
Roses have long marked occasions of love, admiration, and even secrecy, from the archaic period, when 4th century Greeks and Romans wore rose garlands in wedding ceremonies, to the Victorian era, when cultivation increased and roses were exchanged as a floral love language. Today, we exchange over 200 million roses on Valentine’s Day alone.
Valentine’s Day inspires this curated list of garden roses, and each relates to our theme, often in name. But they made the list because they’re brimming with other attributes, including plant vigor, disease resistance, exceptional blooms, fragrance, and extended bloom time. We love easy care and no needed spraying, too.
You may be looking for the perfect complement to your garden or a gift for your Valentine. We’re enamored with these dreamy, top-performing roses from sweet blush pink to sunshine yellow to moody violet.
Sweetheart Rose
Beloved for its clusters of small, silvery pink blooms, ‘Cecile Brunner’ is an easy-to-grow rose.
| botanical name Rosa ‘Cecile Brunner’ | |
 | sun requirements Full sun to part shade |
 | height 4 feet |
 | hardiness zones 5-9 |
The much-loved Sweetheart Rose tops our list of beautiful roses to honor St. Valentine. A historic climbing rose, growers prize ‘Cecile Brunner’ for its clusters of small, soft, silvery pink flowers and light honey fragrance. Its lovely rose blooms resemble miniature hybrid teas and emerge in abundance in the spring, with flushes through frost.
The adaptable Sweetheart tolerates poor soils and partial shade. The rose has a mannerly rounded, bushy, spreading habit, making it an ideal specimen or a mid-layer arrangement in the garden bed. It’s nearly thornless; even new leaves are showy – small and red, becoming dark green. Plant it in masses for a sea of lovely blooms.
‘Cecile Brunner’ is an Earth-KindⓇ rose rigorously tested for improved landscape performance and requiring little irrigation and no spray for pests and diseases. This conscientious, long-lived rose is also one of the easiest varieties to grow, making it a sweet gift for your garden!
‘Bliss ParfumaⓇ’
Compact, disease-resistant ‘Bliss’ roses boast romantic cupped blooms in creamy pink shades.
 | botanical name Rosa ‘KORmarzau’ |
|---|---|
| | sun requirements Full sun |
| | height 3 feet |
| | hardiness zones 5-9 |
‘Bliss’ is one of those irresistibly delicious roses with romantic cupped blooms loaded with petals and a light, fruity fragrance. Clusters of flowers bloom in spring through frost in shades of creamy pink with apricot centers.
Cold-hardy and disease-resistant, ‘Bliss’ grows as a compact shrub. Its tidy form makes it an excellent choice for containers and garden borders.
‘Bliss’ makes a beautiful cut flower, and you may fall in love with the picture-perfect ruffled petals of this floribunda rose.
‘Queen of Hearts’
With glossy disease-resistant foliage, ‘Queen of Hearts’ blooms in shades of blended pinks and oranges.
| | botanical name Rosa ‘KORliolow’ |
|---|---|
| | sun requirements Full sun to partial shade |
| | height 2-3 feet |
| | hardiness zones 5-9 |
This regal hybrid tea rose is small in stature but eye-catching in flower. Large, very double-petaled blooms glow in shades of blended pinks and oranges.
‘Queen of Hearts’ features glossy green foliage that’s disease-resistant to black spot and downy mildew. The unique salmon-color blooms make a stunning visual impact in the garden, especially in plant groupings, so don’t be shy about planting a few.
‘Queen of Hearts’ blooms abundantly in spring with free-flowering until frost. Stand back and enjoy the stunning flowers and delicate fragrance of this rose queen!
‘Love’
The striking, scarlet-red blooms of ‘Love’ have silvery white undersides and wicked thorns.
| | botanical name Rosa ‘JACtwin’ |
|---|---|
| | sun requirements Full sun |
| | height 3 feet |
| | hardiness zones 6-9 |
‘Love’ is a grandiflora rose with striking scarlet red blooms and silvery white on the reverse side of the petals. This bold color contrast offers a unique twist on a classic rose. Pointed buds reveal the white undersides and unfurl to high-centered double flowers with curled petal edges.
‘Love’ brings huge blooms (up to four inches) all summer, singly or in sprays. The compact shrub is usually topped with flowers nonstop in the bloom season, so you don’t have to feel bad about cutting some to enjoy inside. ‘Love’ roses make a stunning and long-lasting cut flower. Beware of its wicked thorns because sometimes ‘Love’ hurts.
‘Love’ is an All-America Rose Selection award-winner. It offers good disease resistance and a compact habit. New foliage emerges reddish in spring, turning to dark, glossy green. Rose fragrance ranges from mild to strong spice. A bonus to all those thorns: pest resistance! They make it challenging to nibble the beautiful blooms.
‘Belinda’s Blush’
The delicate ‘Belinda’s Blush’ rose is a sport of ‘Belinda’s Dream’ that features creamy pink blooms.
| | botanical name Rosa ‘BBARE’ |
|---|---|
| | sun requirements Full sun |
| | height 4-6 feet |
| | hardiness zones 5-10 |
‘Belinda’s Blush’ brings delicate, creamy pink blooms with the faintest hint of ivory and yellow undertones. This shrub rose is lovely, gracing the garden in flowering flushes in spring through fall and with a delightful raspberry fragrance.
‘Belinda’s Blush’ is a sport of the garden favorite ‘Belinda’s Dream.’ ‘Dream’ is a deeper pink, also loaded with petals, and with an easy-care nature. ‘Blush’ possesses the same disease-resistant qualities, is nearly thornless, and has low maintenance needs.
‘Belinda’s Blush’ is an easy-to-grow, vigorous, high-performing rose. Its sweet flowers won’t disappoint in the garden as a specimen, in borders, or hedges.
‘French Lace’
Compact ‘French Lace’ roses feature exquisite buff-colored blooms in ivory and apricot.
| | botanical name Rosa ‘JAClace’ |
|---|---|
| | sun requirements Full sun |
| | height 4 feet |
| | hardiness zones 6-11 |
“Exquisite” is the word that comes to mind when describing the ‘French Lace’ rose. Compact plants feature papery buff-colored blooms in the palest of ivory and apricot.
‘French Lace’ is highly floriforous, with large, double blooms appearing in clusters. No wonder this floribunda received the All-America Rose Selection award – its gorgeous bloom is matched in plant health and vigor.
‘French Lace’ performs well against rust and powdery mildew, even in heat and humidity. Keep this a sweet contender for warmer climates, and toast to these champagne flowers as you enjoy their bloom all season long.
‘Dark Desire ParfumaⓇ’
A richly colored, intensely fragrant rose, ‘Dark Desire’ thrives in various conditions.
| | botanical name Rosa ‘KORdiagraf’ |
|---|---|
| | sun requirements Full sun |
| | height 4-5 feet |
| | hardiness zones 5-9 |
A dramatic deep violet rose contrasts the lovely pale pinks and velvety reds. ‘Dark Desire’ features almost-black buds that unfurl to intense shades of violet-red with black edges lining the petals.
The ParfumaⓇ series by Kordes combines romantic-style blooms with exceptional fragrance and plant vigor. ‘Dark Desire’ is disease-resistant with all the charm of an old-world rose. This award-winning hybrid tea features a classic high-centered flower. A healthy plant that thrives in a variety of conditions, ‘Dark Desire’ performs well even in warm climates.
Add a little drama to your rose garden with the moody ‘Dark Desire.’ Its old-fashioned rose bloom, luxe color, and rich honey-and-spice fragrance are sure to harken romance.
‘Rouge Royale’
With rich raspberry petals, ‘Rouge Royale’ is a disease-resistant rose blooming from spring to frost.
| | botanical name Rosa ‘MEIkarouz’ |
|---|---|
| | sun requirements Full sun |
| | height 4-5 feet |
| | hardiness zones 6-10 |
‘Rouge Royale’ has got to be one of the most indulgent roses with its abundance of densely packed petals (up to 80 per flower!) in bright raspberry. Red roses are the epitome of romance, and it doesn’t get much more romantic than this French rose. Its deep burgundy buds open to vibrant, perfectly quartered ruffled petals with a heady fragrance of berries and citrus.
The charming ‘Rouge Royale’ pairs old-fashioned blooms with healthy plant stock. It’s disease-resistant, easy to care for, and tolerates high heat.
‘Rouge Royale’ blooms in flushes from spring through frost. Use it as a specimen in beds, borders, or a large container. Red-rose lovers will appreciate the bold burst of color in the garden.
‘Duchesse de Brabant’
A beloved antique rose, ‘Duchesse de Brabant’ boasts fragrant pink blooms.
| | botanical name Rosa ‘Duchesse de Brabant’ |
|---|---|
| | sun requirements Full sun |
| | height 4-6 feet |
| | hardiness zones 7-9 |
A truly gorgeous rose, ‘Duchesse de Brabant’ holds decadent cupped cabbage blooms in a true rose pink. This is a rose to love, with its double blooms and classic, old garden rose fragrance. An antique rose introduced in 1857, ‘Duchesse’ was reportedly a favorite of Theodore Roosevelt, often worn on his lapel.
‘Duchesse de Brabant’ blooms in flushes throughout spring, summer, and fall (and in warmer climates, even longer). The nodding blooms grace an upright, slightly spreading shrub form.
An Earth-KindⓇ rose, ‘Duchesse de Brabant’, is hardy in varying climate conditions. It benefits from good air circulation, so ensure adequate space and avoid overcrowding with additional plantings.
‘CitiscapeⓇ Bordeaux’
This compact, wine-colored ‘Bordeaux’ rose thrives in urban areas and small gardens.
| | botanical name Rosa ‘KORlamba’ |
|---|---|
| | sun requirements Full sun to part shade |
| | height 2.5-3 feet |
| | hardiness zones 4-9 |
The wine-colored ‘Bordeaux’ rose boasts generous double blooms and a compact, upright habit. Its light raspberry fragrance carries a hint of citrus. Part of the Kordes CitiscapeⓇ series, ‘Bordeaux’ is bred for its reliable repeat blooming, ease of care, and suitability for urban areas and small gardens – giving a big burst of color to areas tight on space.
‘Bordeaux’ offers excellent disease resistance to blackspot and mildew. Gardeners in warm climates will appreciate its adaptability, as ‘Bordeaux” tolerates the heat and drought of summer.
Feature ‘Bordeaux’ in containers, near an entrance or along walkways, and in borders where the garden visitor can enjoy the vibrant bloom and light scent.
‘Carefree Beauty’
An easy-care, disease-resistant rose, ‘Carefree Beauty’ has abundant pink blooms.
| | botanical name Rosa ‘BUCbi’ |
|---|---|
| | sun requirements Full sun to part shade |
| | height 3-5 feet |
| | hardiness zones 4-9 |
‘Carefree Beauty’ is just that – an easy care plant full of beautiful rose blooms. Flowers are large, semi-double bubbles of rich pink that appear in small clusters on arching canes.
A Buck rose, ‘Carefree Beauty’ is among more than 85 roses developed by horticulturist Griffith Buck during his tenure at Iowa State University. Dr. Buck believed roses should be as easy to grow as dandelions, and his shrub rose introductions are bred to be low maintenance, disease-resistant, and cold hardy.
With profuse blooms from spring until frost, ‘Carefree Beauty’ makes an outstanding specimen, small grouping, and foundation planting. Its loose, open flowers with yellow stamens attract pollinators and produce orange hips in the fall that persist through winter, adding interest to the cold-season garden and forage for wildlife.
‘Carefree Beauty,’ another favorite Earth-KindⓇ rose (and a winner of Earth-KindⓇ Rose of the Year), brings excellent plant vigor and disease resistance. It tolerates long, cold winters and hot, dry summers.
‘Don Juan’
This red climber rose, ‘Don Juan,’ stands out for its velvety red blooms.
| | botanical name Rosa ‘Don Juan’ |
|---|---|
| | sun requirements Full sun |
| | height 8-10 feet |
| | hardiness zones 5-10 |
‘Don Juan’ lives up to its folkloric namesake with handsome velvety red blooms atop glossy, dark green, leathery foliage. Ruffly double blooms – up to four inches – have a fruity, old-world fragrance.
An heirloom rose, ‘Don Juan’ boasts waves of repeat blooms. It’s an award-winner due to two unique traits – being a red climber and having a strong fragrance as a red climber. ‘Don Juan’ is also disease-resistant and heat and humidity-tolerant.
‘Don Juan’ roses bloom on the end of long stems, making them bold and beautiful both on the plant and as cut flowers. Showcase ‘Don Juan’ on an arch, entry pillar, or fence for a standout among climbers. Plant it where you’ll enjoy its fragrance all summer long.
‘Secret’
With unique pale pink hues and creamy yellow undertones, ‘Secret’ boasts hybrid tea blooms.
| | botanical name Rosa ‘Hilaroma’ |
|---|---|
| | sun requirements Full sun |
| | height 4-6 feet |
| | hardiness zones 5-9 |
‘Secret’ blushes with huge flowers in pale pink with creamy yellow undertones. Its unique hues and petal variations set it apart, along with its lovely hybrid tea blooms and intensely sweet fragrance.
A vigorous, bushy habit adds to this award winner, a recipient of the All-America Selection award, among others. Exhibition-quality flowers top glossy green foliage that emerges deep red.
Disease resistance and heat and shade tolerance make ‘Secret’ a prize in the garden. Its fragrance will delight as it drifts through the garden, or enjoy it inside with cut flowers.
‘At Last’
A disease-resistant rose, ‘At Last’ blooms continuously in apricot, orange, and pink.
| | botanical name Rosa ‘HORCOGJIL’ |
|---|---|
| | sun requirements Full sun |
| | height 2.5-3 feet |
| | hardiness zones 5-9 |
‘At Last,’ a fragrant, disease-resistant rose that blooms nonstop from spring until frost. Flowers are romantic, richly-petaled double blooms in striking apricot, orange, and pink tones. Long blooming, they bring a sunset glow to the garden, brightening the landscape in a unique hue.
‘At Last’ is bred for the performance of a tough landscape rose with a shapely round habit and profuse blooms. It isn’t fussy and is resistant to powdery mildew and blackspot, so it doesn’t require sprays or treatments. Like most roses, it benefits from early spring pruning to keep it full and healthy.
The foliage gives a deep, glossy green backdrop to the luscious blooms. Use ‘At Last’ as a specimen for its color, in a container for up-close interest, or in a plant grouping for greater impact.
‘Scentimental’
A multicolored, fragrant rose named ‘Scentimental’ offers stunning blooms in various hues and patterns.
| | botanical name Rosa ‘WEKpaplet’ |
|---|---|
| | sun requirements Full sun |
| | height 3-4 feet |
| | hardiness zones 5-10 |
A swirl of burgundy, white, red, and cream, ‘Scentimental’ brings a melee of color to each flower. Ruffly petals are strikingly striped or blended in varying colors and patterns. Old-fashioned, fully-double rose blooms meet contemporary coloration for a standout in the garden.
‘Scentimental’ lives up to its name with its spicy, intense fragrance. Another All-America Selections winner, ‘Scentimental’, is a repeat bloomer that brings color and scent all season long (try drying the petals for potpourri to enjoy them all year).
‘Scentimental’ is disease-resistant and cold-hardy. New growth emerges red and transitions to dark green with a quilted leaf texture. Bonus: it produces showy hips! Enjoy the winter interest and leave hips as a winter food source for birds and wildlife.
‘Spice’
The adaptable ‘Spice’ rose is an old-world heirloom that brings mystery.
| | botanical name Rosa ‘Spice’ |
|---|---|
| | sun requirements Full sun |
| | height 5 feet |
| | hardiness zones 7-9 |
‘Spice’ is a China rose with romantic blush pink double flowers that become white in summer heat. True to its name, blooms have a peppery fragrance. ‘Spice’ brings an air of mystery, as its historic garden origin is unknown but thought to be one of the ancestors of numerous roses.
Drought tolerant and evergreen in the South, ‘Spice’ is an adaptable, healthy, easy-to-grow Earth-KindⓇ rose, so the gardener can relax, inhale, and enjoy the successive flushes of blooms from spring through fall.
Add ‘Spice’ to the garden in mass plantings or small groups behind perennials and annuals. An heirloom, old-world rose, its somewhat twiggy habit is well-suited for informal settings. The lovely ‘Spice’ also makes an excellent cut flower to savor and share.
‘Lichfield Angel’
This is a fragrant English shrub rose with large, peach-toned blooms.
| | botanical name Rosa ‘AUSrelate’ |
|---|---|
| | sun requirements Full sun to part shade |
| | height 4-5 feet |
| | hardiness zones 4-11 |
A David Austin English shrub rose, ‘Lichfield Angel, ’ graces the garden with lush peaches and cream blooms. Flowers are large at five inches across, with 100 petals per rose. 100 petals! Pink-apricot buds open to ivory peach rosettes. Waxy outer petals enclose the papery bundle of smaller interior petals.
The nodding cream roses carry a light clove fragrance and bloom nonstop from spring through frost on nearly thornless canes. ‘Lichfield Angel’ is prized for her form, shapely at four feet tall and wide, and suits multiple uses in the garden. Gorgeous in borders, hedges, containers, or as a focal point, the generous blooms and dark, glossy foliage are delights in the garden and a vase.
David Austin’s introductions reflect charming old-world rose blooms combined with fine fragrance and form. ‘Lichfield Angel,’ a garden favorite, received the Royal Horticultural Society’s prestigious Award of Garden Merit. Choose ‘Lichfield Angel’ for its irresistible blooms, light scent, and plant health.
‘Love Song’
Loaded with long-lasting lavender blooms, ‘Love Song’ is a beautiful floribunda.
| | botanical name Rosa ‘WEKstameda’ |
|---|---|
| | sun requirements Full sun to part shade |
| | height 3-5 feet |
| | hardiness zones 5-9 |
‘Love Song’ brings luscious, clear lavender blooms as a unique highlight in the garden. This floribunda is loaded with purple waves of blooms all summer, where fully double flowers cover the plant’s rich, green foliage.
A delight among purple roses, ‘Love Song’s’ blooms are long-lasting and hold their color. They make exquisite garden specimens and cut flowers.
Cool temperatures bring out the largest blooms, though there’s a lot to enjoy even in the heat of summer. This international award winner has a mild citrus fragrance to boot.
‘The Poet’s Wife’
This is a fragrant, sunshine-yellow rose with a romantic, full-bodied bloom.
| | botanical name Rosa ‘AUSwhirl’ |
|---|---|
| | sun requirements Full sun to part shade |
| | height 4 feet |
| | hardiness zones 5-11 |
The fragrance may be as delicious as the full-bodied blooms on this English shrub rose. ‘The Poet’s Wife’ is an Austin introduction, encompassing his signature romantic rose flower, high fragrance, and attractive shrub form.
Blooms are a rich, sunshine yellow, fading to paler shades over time. The rich fragrance is built to match – with a hint of lemon – and becomes sweeter and stronger as the bloom matures.
This yellow rose is happiness in the garden. Arching canes hold the gorgeous flowers among shiny, rich leaves in a rounded, full shrub form. Look to ‘The Poet’s Wife’ to brighten the garden amongst other plants or in a border.
‘Eden’
Abundant creamy pink blooms and a spicy musk fragrance make ‘Eden’ a modern, low-maintenance climber.
| | botanical name Rosa ‘MEIviolin’ |
|---|---|
| | sun requirements Full sun |
| | height 10-12 feet |
| | hardiness zones 5-9 |
‘Eden’ brings abundant, large, creamy pink frilly blooms to the climbing rose. While the lovely double blooms are stunning, the plant’s vigor, health, and spicy musk fragrance also charm the beholder. Though the repeat blooms from spring until frost certainly steal the show!
Old-world rose beauty meets modern rose care, continual blooming, and fragrance in ‘Eden.’ Introduced by the House of Meilland of France as part of the RomanticaⓇ series, ‘Eden’ is bred to be low maintenance with exceptional flowering in double blooms.
With excellent disease resistance and beauty in form and flower, it’s hard to resist ‘Eden.’ An elegant climber for archways, arbors, trellises, fences, and pillars, place this rose where you can enjoy the large flowers and rich fragrance.
‘Crazy Love’
A stunning rose named ‘Crazy Love’ flaunts vibrant, vintage-colored blooms.
| | botanical name Rosa ‘KORbamflu’ |
|---|---|
| | sun requirements Full sun |
| | height 5 feet |
| | hardiness zones 5-9 |
‘Crazy Love’ combines a gorgeous sorbet swirl of color that transitions to pretty pink as blooms mature. The copper, orange, and peach blends of ‘Crazy Love’ hit only the good notes. Large, fully double blooms are also packed with fragrance.
Exceptional plant health and vigor add to the goodness of this rounded, bushy rose. ‘Crazy Love’ is part of the Kordes SunbeltⓇ series and was selected for exceptional performance in warmer climates. Roses in the series maintain large, fade-resistant blooms on healthy growth with repeat flowering.
‘Crazy Love’ features an antique rose feel in an exciting combination of vibrant and vintage colors. Its dark green foliage is the perfect contrast to the vivid flowers. Highlight ‘Crazy Love’ as a specimen in the garden bed.
Final Thoughts
In the garden, Valentine’s Day marks the time to prune roses in some climates. Depending on your weather, it may also be the time to plant roses. Spring is coming, and that means the return of the beautiful rose blooms.
We hope you’ve fallen in love with some romantic garden favorites. Many of these make excellent cut flowers, so spread the joy in a sweet bouquet or simply take a moment to admire the beauty in the garden in the coming seasons.
In honor of the romantic rose, we’ll appreciate the Romantic English poet John Keats (who has his own rose namesake, Rosa ‘John Keats’):
To a Friend who sent me some Roses…But when, O Wells! thy roses came to me,
My sense with their deliciousness was spelled:
Soft voices had they, that with tender plea
Whispered of peace, and truth, and friendliness unquelled.
