List of Earth-Kind Roses
- Bubblegum-pink, 4-inch blooms helped earn the "Carefree Beauty" rose cultivar 2006 recognition as the Earth-Kind Rose of the Year. Developed at Iowa State University, fragrant Carefree Beauty tolerates that Midwestern state's frigid winters as well as it does Texas's fierce summer heat. At 5 feet high and wide, it blooms from late spring until frost. Hybrid "Knockout," 6 feet tall with an equal spread, survives winters to U.S. Department of Agriculture plant hardiness zone 5b, and minus 15 degrees F. This 2000 Conrad-Pyle introduction produces spring-to-fall flushes of single, white-centered cherry-red flowers. It shrugs off black spot fungus. Knockout loves full sun or morning sun and dappled, afternoon shade.
- The "Sea Foam" cultivar climbs 8 feet high, with a 4-foot spread. Its double, creamy-white unscented blossoms against deep-green, glossy foliage illuminate gardens from summer to fall. Sea Foam's overall performance qualifies it for inclusion in the White House Rose Garden. The "New Dawn" climbing rose cultivar earned H. A. Dreer the first plant patent in 1930. New Dawn ascends 15 to 20 feet, and spreads up to 10. It shines in spring with abundant, pale pink, fragrant double roses. This vigorously growing plant needs strong support. Both climbers tolerate winter temperatures to zone 4's 30 below zero minimum. They thrive in full sun.
- A J.A. Bentall cultivar commercialized in 1932, "The Fairy" belongs to the polyantha class of roses. Polyanthas pair dwarf, bushy habits with repeat flushes of dwarf roses. At 3 feet high and 4 feet wide, The Fairy has heavy clusters of dwarf, pale pink blooms. The unscented, spring-to-autumn flowers fade to white as summer temperatures increase. The compact shrub is suitable for zones 4 through 9. "Souvenir de St. Anne's," the 2009 Earth-Kind Rose of the Year, has exceptionally fragrant, light pink semidouble blooms. The 1950 "Thomas Hilling" cultivar stands just 3 feet high and wide. It tolerates winter temperatures to minus 10 degrees. Both roses need full sun.
- "Cecile Brunner," sometimes called The Sweetheart Rose, dates to 1881. The French polyantha cultivar, cold-tolerant to zone 5, produces masses of small, silver-tinged pink spring blossoms. Lighter flushes follow in summer and autumn. The sweetly fragrant, double flowers are smaller versions of tea rose blooms. "Mutabilis" has offered outstanding performance since its pre-1894 introduction. The zone 6-hardy, 2005 Earth-Kind Rose of the Year produces unusual single flowers. They progress from yellow upon opening to pink and crimson red as they mature. All three shades appear simultaneously from spring to fall. Mutabilis grows in full sun and reaches 6 feet high and wide.