Yellow roses to grow
Browse our recommendations for the best yellow rose varieties to grow, and where to buy them.
Yellow roses add a bright, cheery note to border schemes. The spectrum is broad, from delicate, creamy yellows to lemon tones, right through to more acidic, sulphurous shades.
Yellow roses are often seen as a symbol of friendship and its associated feelings of warmth, happiness, affection and caring. However, in Victorian times, yellow roses were used to represent feelings of jealousy.
Whatever the shade, yellow flowers make a striking foil for darker colours such as blue and purple. They also work wonderfully in paler, pastel-coloured designs.
Rosa banksiae 'Lutea'
In late spring, thornless rambling rose Rosa banksiae 'Lutea' bears hanging sprays of small, double yellow flowers with a light fragrance. Hardy and vigorous, it's a good choice for covering a rose arch or pergola, and even training through a tree.
Height x spread: 12m x 4m.
Rosa 'County of Staffordshire'
Rosa 'County of Staffordshire' is a ground-cover rose, bearing clusters of coppery-yellow double flowers from June to October. With smaller-than average blooms and a trailing habit, it's suitable for using as groundcover or growing in a pot, where it will spill and trail over the side.
H x S: 50 x 60cm.
Rosa 'Graham Thomas'
'Graham Thomas' is a popular climbing rose with deep yellow, semi-double blooms with an amber central eye and a rich tea-fragrance. It shows strong resistance to disease. Perfect for covering a rose arch or pergola, The Royal Horticultural Society has given it the prestigious Award of Garden Merit (AGM).
H x S: 1.5m x 1.2m.
Rosa 'The Lark Ascending'
Rosa 'The Lark Ascending' is a disease-resistant large and bushy shrub rose, bearing clusters of semi-double, cup-shaped golden-yellow blooms with a light myrrh or tea-rose fragrance. It's well-suited to growing in a mixed or rose border.
H x S: 1.5m x 1.2m.
Rosa 'Elina'
This strong, bushy shrub rose bears large, pale yellow blooms with a golden central eye and a slight fragrance. Grow it in a mixed or rose border, or in a large container.
H x S: 1.2m x 90cm.
Rosa 'Gold Spice'
This bushy, deciduous floribunda rose bears clusters of double, golden-yellow flowers with a darker central eye, from late spring into autumn. Perfect for the front of a border or a large container.
H x S: 1m x 1m.
Rosa 'Mountbatten'
Rosa 'Mountbatten' is a reliable shrub rose, bearing large lemon-yellow flowers with a fruity perfume, in contrast with dark green, leathery foliage. It's perfect for container-growing, but is also suitable for growing in the border.
H x S: 1.2m x 75cm.
Rosa 'Sunny Sky'
Voted Rose of the Year 2016, 'Sunny Sky' bears fragrant, honey-coloured blooms that mature to soft yellow from June to September. Grow it at the front of a sunny border or in a container.
H x S: 1m x 60cm.
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