Carolina rose

Sun

Full sun to light partial shade; flowering is best in full sun.

Water

Moderate while establishing; tolerates some drought once established, but flowers best with occasional deep watering during prolonged dry spells.

Soil

Well-drained sandy, loamy or clay soil; tolerates lean ground and a range of soil pH, but not prolonged waterlogging.

Height

1-3 ft (0.3-0.9 m), occasionally taller

Spread

3-6 ft (0.9-1.8 m), eventually wider through suckering

Flowers

Late spring to early summer; fragrant, five-petalled pink flowers with yellow stamens, usually in one main flush.

Foliage

Pinnate leaves with usually 5-7 toothed green leaflets; often yellow, orange or reddish in autumn.

Growth

Moderate; established plants gradually form spreading colonies.

Care needed

Low

• Pollinators
• Drought tolerant
• Cold hardy
• Heat tolerant
• Wildlife
• Low allergen
• Fragrant

Northern hemisphere months. In Australia, shift them by six.

Difficulty

Easy

Toughness

Very tough

Pick your zone, country, light and whether you have pets.

1. Planting day

   1.6 ft (0.5 m)

2. After 1 year

   1.7 ft (0.52 m)

3. After 2 years

   1.8 ft (0.54 m)

4. After 3 years

   1.8 ft (0.56 m)

5. After 5 years

   2 ft (0.6 m)

   full size

About 5 years to full size.

From a typical nursery size, at an average rate for this kind of plant. A rule of thumb, not a forecast.

Cats and dogs

Mildly toxic: may upset a stomach

Native to

the US and Canada

In the garden

Spreads vigorously: plan to contain it.

Growth rate

Moderate

• Water deeply during the first growing season whenever the root zone begins to dry.
• Apply 2-3 in (5-8 cm) of organic mulch, keeping it clear of the stems.
• In ordinary garden soil, use a light spring dressing of compost rather than heavy feeding.
• Remove unwanted suckers at their point of origin to keep the colony within bounds.
• Leave spent flowers if you want autumn hips; wear sturdy gloves when handling the prickly stems.

Pruning. In late winter or early spring, remove dead, damaged and crossing stems, cutting a few of the oldest canes to ground level if the clump is crowded. If shaping is needed, do it just after flowering rather than hard-pruning all stems before bloom.

Late winter

Remove dead wood and thin crowded, older canes before new growth begins.

Spring

Plant container-grown shrubs, water thoroughly and mulch the root area.

Late spring

Check new shoots for aphids and inspect leaves for sawfly feeding.

Early summer

After flowering, lightly shorten awkward stems if needed; leave most spent flowers to develop hips.

Summer

Water during prolonged drought and remove suckers spreading into paths or neighbouring plants.

Autumn

Leave hips for birds and lift rooted suckers for propagation once the plant is dormant.

• Plant in a sunny meadow edge with little bluestem and black-eyed Susan for a loose, seasonal planting.
• Use as a low, informal hedge where a suckering colony can fill out naturally.
• Place along a sunny woodland margin with asters and goldenrods for flowers, hips and autumn colour.
• Mass on a well-drained bank to cover the ground and help hold soil once established.

Garden styles it suits: Native meadow, Wildlife garden, Pollinator garden, Native hedgerow, Cottage garden and Rewilded.

Plant it with: Little bluestem, Butterfly weed, Black-eyed Susan, Wild bergamot, Aromatic aster and Ohio spiderwort.

Wildlife: Open flowers provide accessible pollen for native bees and other insects. Birds and small mammals eat the hips, and dense colonies provide shelter; the foliage also supports several moth caterpillars.

• Black spot or powdery mildew: allow good airflow, water the soil rather than the leaves, and clear heavily infected fallen foliage.
• Rose sawfly larvae: inspect leaf undersides when leaves become skeletonised, then hand-pick larvae or dislodge them with water.
• Aphids on soft shoots: wash off small colonies with a firm spray of water and encourage predatory insects.
• Unwanted suckering: remove shoots with their attached spreading roots, or give the plant a dedicated area where it can form a colony.

Not known to be toxic to people, cats, dogs or horses. Prickles can injure skin, mouths and eyes; the fine hairs surrounding the seeds inside the hips can irritate the mouth and digestive tract.

• Virginia rose (Rosa virginiana)

  Usually taller, with noticeably glossy leaflets and stronger, often curved prickles; Carolina rose generally has duller leaves and slender, straighter prickles.

• Multiflora rose (Rosa multiflora)

  Produces large clusters of small white flowers on long arching canes and has fringed stipules at the leaf bases.

The botanical epithet carolina refers to the Carolinas, part of this rose's native range.

Propagation. Lift rooted suckers in autumn or early spring and replant promptly. Softwood cuttings can be taken in early summer; seed needs a period of warmth followed by cold stratification and may germinate slowly.

Accepted botanical name

Rosa carolina

In the US and Canada

Native in Canada and the lower 48 states.

Native range

Alabama, Arkansas, Connecticut, Delaware, District of Columbia, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas and Kentucky.

Measured

Soil pH 4 to 7. Average height 55 cm.

Sources: GBIF (CC BY 4.0), USDA PLANTS and Trefle (CC BY 4.0). The care and design notes are LandscapeGPT's own.