In the Garden: The new generation of purple and lavendar roses — a vast improvement over the old

Terri Hiatt

In the Garden

When I teach my rose seminars, I refer to the lavender rose “Sterling Silver” as an example of a rose that is still selling in major nurseries and shouldn’t be because of all of its genetic weaknesses. But people love the color, they love the strong fragrance and they have no idea that “Sterling Silver” is rated at 4.8, which means it belongs in the toilet.

Purple is my favorite color, with lavender not far behind. The color purple suggests wealth, status and royalty. It has been proven that having purple roses in a vase close to you will make you more creative.

But until recently, purple and lavender roses have often been unable to tolerate cold winters. They could easily succumb to black spot and mildew and, in general, are just weak, not producing the numbers of blooms that their red and pink brothers and sisters do.

It’s the color — and the fragrance — that rose growers accepted much less to have the beauty and aroma of a lavender or purple rose.

But times have changed. And in this case, for the better.

Hybridizers like Tom Carruth of Weeks Roses have created a new generation of purple and lavender roses that are tough, incredibly fragrant, heavily productive with blooms and readily able to compete with every other rose.

Pretty exciting news for those of us who adore the color.

Listed here are some of my favorite lavender and purple roses, including some new ones for 2009 that I believe are going to be fantastic.

Bare-root roses will be available for sale the first week of February for half the cost of a potted rose. That’s a perfect time to purchase and plant so you will have roses by the first of June.

“Ebb Tide” — A Carruth creation, it’s a 3-foot floribunda that is a smoky, deep plum purple with strong, spicy clove fragrance. It’s is a bit sluggish the first year, but by year two, it really starts to take off.

“Enchanted Evening” — Introduced for 2009 by Jackson and Perkins, this 3- to 4-foot lavender floribunda is being touted as one of the best lavenders ever. With glossy green disease-resistant foliage and a strong citrus aroma, the large clusters of lavender blooms make this rose perfect for beds; rose or perennial, containers or as a hedge.

“Midnight Blue” — This 2- to 3-foot shrub does beautifully in a container. That way, you can also enjoy the velvety dark purple clusters of strong, spicy clove blooms even better and more often, especially if you put the container on a deck where you spend time.

“Neptune” — Another Carruth masterpiece, it’s a beautiful lavender hybrid tea. It produces tons of flowers the first year on a 4-foot bush. It has a strong rose fragrance with excellent disease resistance, and it’s related to “Blueberry Hill” and “Stephen’s Big Purple,” both of which are excellent roses. Give it plenty of sun, water and Terosa, and watch it perform!

“Night Owl” — Purple climbing roses are far and few between, but this one is definitely worth growing! It establishes quickly and can get up to 14 feet tall. The wine purple clusters with clove and spice fragrances are complemented by the clean, disease-resistant gray-green foliage. Simply lovely. Yes, it is Carruth’s.

“Outta the Blue” — I won’t even bother to tell you who created this shrub rose, but that strong clove-and-rose fragrance and excellent disease resistance and profusion of clusters of magenta to lavender-blue blooms will probably give it away. A hedge of “Outta the Blue” would be lovely, as this rose stays compact and well-behaved at 3 to 4 feet.

“Paradise” — This 4-foot hybrid tea is one of the few older lavenders that have prevailed. It was a great rose when it was introduced in 1979, and it has remained a favorite, performing well in our maritime climate. The fragrance is moderately fruity, and the bloom is lavender brushed with a ruby edge.

“Purple Heart” — Guess who hybridized this one? You got it! Carruth introduced this purple-red floribunda in 1999. Another offspring of “Stephen’s Big Purple” with a delicious, strong clove-and-spice fragrance. It has a gorgeous shrub-like appearance with clusters and clusters of bloom.

“Rhapsody in Blue” — This shrub was hybridized by Mr. Cowlishaw and introduced in 2006. The parents used are different than what Carruth uses, and the color of this rose is different. It definitely has more of a blue tone. This bush is tall (5 feet or so) and has an informal growth habit with a moderately sweet, spicy fragrance. It rose prefers the cool temperatures of the Pacific Northwest.

“Sweetness” — Introduced by Jackson and Perkins and named Rose of the Year for 2009, this 5-foot grandiflora has lovely large blooms of lavender. The fragrance is a very strong sweet lemon and is known to fill up your whole garden with its aroma. I definitely will be checking this one out!

“Wild Blue Yonder” — This grandiflora was the first lavender/purple rose to win the coveted AARS award in more than 20 years (in 2006). And, yes, Carruth took the honors. It can get up to 5 feet tall and, like “Ebb Tide,” it seems to need a year to get established, and then it goes to town. The strong citrus blossom and rose fragrance only adds to its appeal. The petals of the bloom are ruffled and gorgeous.

In the Garden columnist Terri Hiatt can be reached by e-mail at terrihiat@hotmail.com.