Types of Roses: Choose the Best Roses for Your Garden

Breck's Roses

Breck's roses are cultivated in the fertile, sunny San Joaquin Valley of California — an ideal growing environment that produces big, strong, healthy plants ready to adapt to diverse gardens. The collection includes bareroot roses shipped either as Premium Own Roots or Premium WOW! Roots, budded bareroot roses grafted onto hardy rootstock for added vigour and faster establishment.

Choosing Types of Roses

Hybrid Tea Roses

Hybrid teas are the foundation of the modern rose garden—and the most popular class of roses in the world. First hybridized in the late 1800s, they are defined by their large, high-centred single blooms sitting elegantly atop long stems. The blooms are double or semi-double, with velvety, full-bodied petals in colours ranging from pure white and soft pink to clean lavender, bright yellow and deep crimson. Many varieties are bicoloured with uniquely patterned petals. Hybrid teas have an upright, strait-laced growth habit and rebloom reliably throughout the growing season. They are also the most popular class for exhibition.

Best for:

• Cutting gardens—long stems make them perfect for indoor arrangements and floral design
• Garden specimens and accent plants in perennial borders
• Formal garden designs and dedicated rose beds

Gardening tips:

- Plant in groups for visual impact: three or more of the same variety create a striking display.

- Hybrid teas need regular care. Plan for consistent watering, deadheading, fertilizing and disease management.

Floribunda Roses

Floribundas are some of the hardest-working plants in the garden. First developed in 1907 by crossbreeding hybrid tea roses with polyantha roses, they bring together the spectacular multiflower sprays of the polyantha, and the classic flower forms and full colour spectrum of the hybrid tea. The result is a bushy, compact plant that produces nonstop colour from late spring through frost. Characteristic flower clusters are often large enough to fill a gorgeous bouquet with a single cut. Floribundas are more compact and lower growing than hybrid teas, making them well suited to the front of borders and container growing. They are also known for above-average resistance to common rose diseases.

Best for:

• Hedges, borders and low privacy screens
• Cutting gardens—a single cluster provides a ready-made bouquet
• Containers on porches, patios and decks
• Bridging the gap between spring bulbs and summer perennials in mixed borders

Gardening tips:

- For maximum colour impact, group floribundas together in beds or along walkways and driveways—their massed clusters create a bold, unified display.

- Deadheading keeps them blooming; each spent cluster should be removed to encourage the next flush of flowers.

Grandiflora Roses

Grandiflora roses are a relatively new classification, representing the best qualities of both hybrid tea and floribunda roses. These hybrid roses have the classic, high-centred tea rose bloom shape of the hybrid tea, displayed in clusters like a floribunda, on the tall, vigorous plants that define this class. Most grandifloras are double blooming and rebloom all season. Their long stems make them exceptional cutting roses, while their tall stature makes them ideal for perennial borders, formal centrepieces, masking unsightly areas or adding vertical interest. They thrive nearly anywhere and are considered among the hardiest of the modern rose classes.

Best for:

• Back of perennial borders and garden beds
• Centrepiece specimen plants in formal gardens
• Cutting gardens—the combination of large blooms and long stems is ideal
• Privacy hedging and screening along property edges

Gardening tips:

- Their height and vigour make grandifloras excellent companions for shorter plants.

- Use them to anchor a border or frame a garden entrance.

Shrub Roses

Shrub roses are just what they sound like: rose bushes. They have a dense, spreading growing habit, glossy leaves and gorgeous, prolific blooms. Shrub roses are bred for toughness and are among the most cold-hardy and disease-resistant roses available. These qualities make them an excellent choice for gardeners in challenging climates or wanting lower-maintenance plants. Their thick foliage and spreading habit make them effective privacy hedges. Most shrub roses are self-cleaning; they naturally shed their petals as they fade, making way for new blooms without the need for deadheading. Shrub roses are also notable for their bright, decorative rosehips, which add winter interest to the garden and can be used in arrangements.

Best for:

• Privacy hedges and screening along fences or property edges
• Naturalized plantings and low-maintenance garden areas
• Highlighting smaller plants in mixed borders
• Lining walkways and driveways
• Winter garden interest—rosehips provide colour and wildlife habitat after blooms fade
• Growing in partial shade (4+ hours of sun daily)

Gardening tips:

- Shrub roses require the least maintenance of any modern rose type. Light pruning to shape and the removal of oldest canes is all that's needed.

- The self-cleaning habit means most varieties don't need deadheading, which saves significant time throughout the season.

Climbing Roses

Overview	Long, flexible canes reach up to 20'. Requires tying to a trellis, arbor or other support for upright vertical growth. Generous blooms appear on side-shoots from established canes
Reach	Canes typically grow 8–20' long with some reaching even farther
Bloom Style	Medium to large blooms on lateral shoots from established canes
Fragrance	Varies; many have moderate to strong fragrance
Bloom Time	Most are reliable repeat bloomers
Hardiness	Zones 5–9; canes need winter protection in colder zones

Climbing roses are dramatic space fillers. There is nothing quite as picturesque as roses twining their way up an arbor, trellis, wall or pergola. Despite the name, climbing roses are not true vines; they don't cling to surfaces on their own. Instead, they produce long, flexible canes that can be trained and tied to a support structure, creating a spectacular vertical display. Modern climbing varieties from Breck's are bred for excellent disease resistance, vigorous growth and ongoing flowering. Canes can reach up to 20' on established plants, producing abundant blooms on lateral growth from older structural canes.

Best for:

• Trellises, arbors, pergolas, and garden arches
• Fences and walls needing coverage and softening
• Creating romantic vertical focal points in the landscape
• Covering unsightly structures with colour and fragrance
• Partial shade growing in areas with 4-6+ hours of sun

Gardening tips:

- Do not prune climbing roses for the first two years. Let them establish long structural canes, and this patience will pay off later in dramatically better bloom production.

- Train new canes horizontally or at a diagonal angle rather than straight up. Horizontal canes produce far more flowering lateral shoots than vertical ones.

- Climbing roses need a sturdy support structure. Plan for eventual cane weight and wind resistance.

Where to buy climbing roses? Shop Breck’s!

Miniature Roses

Overview	Compact, prolific bloomers. Good for borders, containers and rock gardens. Grown on own roots.
Height	15–30" tall; very compact and rounded
Bloom Style	Fully double blooms in clusters; flowers about 1–1½ " across
Fragrance	Light to moderate; varies by variety
Bloom Time	Prolific rebloomer from late spring through frost
Hardiness	Zones 4–9; generally hardier than hybrid teas

Miniature roses are proof that big beauty comes in small packages. Compact and perky, they produce an abundance of perfectly formed little blooms—fully double, in shapely clusters—on tidy, rounded plants. They are grown on their own roots (not grafted), which makes them generally hardier and longer lived than many grafted varieties. Miniatures are prolific rebloomers and respond especially well to deadheading. Their disease-resistant, glossy deep green foliage and compact habit make them highly versatile—equally at home in borders, rock gardens, containers and hanging baskets.

Best for:

• Low borders and edging along paths and driveways
• Rock gardens and small-space gardens
• Containers on patios, porches and balconies
• Hanging baskets

Gardening tips:

- Deadhead consistently—miniatures are prolific rebloomers and reward regular removal of spent flowers with continuous new blooms.

- Miniatures in containers may need more frequent watering than in-ground plants, especially in summer heat.

Where to buy miniature roses? Shop Breck’s!

Patio Roses

Overview	Compact version of floribundas or hybrid teas. Ideal for containers, patios and small spaces.
Height	18–24" tall; compact, bushy and tidy
Bloom Style	Floribunda-style clusters on a smaller scale than full floribundas
Bloom Time	Repeat blooming from late spring through frost
Hardiness	Zones 5–9

Patio roses are a compact form of floribunda or hybrid tea roses specifically bred for smaller spaces and container growing. They have the same beautiful flower form and repeat-blooming habit as their full-sized counterparts, scaled down to a tidy, bushy plant perfect for pots, planters and small garden spaces. Their natural disease resistance, excellent vigour and low-maintenance habit make them ideal for gardeners with limited space—or for anyone who wants a colourful, manageable rose near a front door, on a deck or in a patio container.

Best for:

• Containers and planters on patios, porches and balconies
• Small gardens and courtyard gardens
• Formal accents flanking entries and doorways
• Low borders in tight spaces

Gardening tips:

- Patio roses in containers need regular watering. Check soil moisture frequently, especially in hot weather.

- Move containers to a sheltered area or unheated garage when winter temperatures dip to freezing.

Where to buy patio roses? Shop Breck’s!

Groundcover Roses

Overview	Low-spreading habit. Bred for low maintenance, disease resistance and landscaping use.
Height/Spread	12–18" tall, up to 5' wide
Bloom Style	Clusters of small to medium blooms
Bloom Time	Repeat blooming from late spring through frost
Hardiness	Zones 4–9; very cold hardy

Groundcover roses, sometimes called landscape roses, are bred to have the best of all worlds: beautiful garden colour and fragrance combined with exceptional low-maintenance hardiness. They grow low and wide, with a spreading, arching habit that creates a carpet of blooms. They are exceptionally disease resistant and require very little pruning. Many are self-cleaning. Their spreading habit makes them excellent for erosion control on slopes, mass plantings in difficult areas and covering large areas with colour without requiring significant upkeep.

Best for:

• Slopes and banks for erosion control
• Mass plantings in large spaces
• Low borders along foundations, driveways and curb strips
• Filling difficult areas where other plants struggle

Gardening tips:

- Plant in groups of three or more of the same variety for maximum visual impact.

- These are among the easiest roses to grow—they thrive in poor soil conditions where other roses struggle.

Where to buy groundcover roses? Shop Breck’s!

Tree Roses

Overview	A rose variety (usually hybrid tea or floribunda) grafted onto a tall, straight trunk. Creates a formal, structured focal point.
Height	Trunk height: 18–36"; head adds 12–24"
Bloom Style	Depends on the variety grafted onto the trunk (usually hybrid tea or floribunda)
Fragrance	Depends on the grafted variety
Bloom Time	Depends on the grafted variety; typically repeat blooming
Hardiness	Zones 5–9; need extra winter protection

Tree roses, or standards, feature a flowering rose bush grafted onto a sturdy, upright trunk to create a formal, sculptural specimen. The variety grafted on top—usually a hybrid tea or floribunda—determines the flower size, colour and fragrance. Tree roses create dramatic focal points in formal garden designs and are a classic choice for flanking entries, lining walkways or adding a structured vertical element to rose beds. Patio tree roses in containers are also available, combining portability with the formal appeal of the tree form.

Best for:

• Formal garden designs and structured rose beds
• Flanking entries, gates and pathways
• Container specimens for patios and courtyards
• Creating visual height in low-growing garden designs

Gardening tips:

- Tree roses need a sturdy stake for support—check the stake condition regularly and ensure it is not chafing the trunk.

- In cold climates, tree roses need extra winter protection; the exposed trunk is vulnerable to frost damage. Some gardeners wrap the trunk in burlap or horticultural fleece.

Where to buy tree roses? Shop Breck’s!

Breck’s Recommendations: Choose the Right Rose

To help beginners navigate the many types of roses, here are our top picks for common garden goals:

- Easiest low-maintenance roses: Groundcover or Shrub
- Best rose for classic cut flowers with long stems: Hybrid Tea or Grandiflora
- Best rose for maximum colour with low effort: Floribunda or Groundcover
- Best rose for a dramatic vertical feature: Climbing
- Best rose for privacy hedging or screening: Shrub or Climbing
- Best rose for a formal garden focal point: Tree or Floribunda
- Most fragrant rose for cut flowers or gardens: Hybrid Tea
- Best cold-hardy roses for zones 4-5: Shrub, Floribunda or Groundcover
- Best rose for winter interest: Shrub (varieties with rosehips)
- Best rose for partial shade (4+ hours): Shrub or Climbing
- Roses requiring minimal pruning: Shrub

Award-Winning Roses

The world of roses is constantly evolving. Every year, rose enthusiasts are delighted by the introduction of many new varieties in a wide array of colours and types, along with an expanding range of fragrant and disease-resistant options.

As you explore the Breck’s website, you'll notice icons highlighting award-winning rose varieties. Find details below about the organizations that present these honours.

American Garden Rose Selections (AGRS)

Rose varieties honored with the AGRS award have demonstrated outstanding performance across diverse American climates through rigorous, multiyear trials. This scientific evaluation identifies the most disease-resistant and reliable plants, ensuring exceptional results for gardeners regardless of their region.

American Rose Trials for Sustainability (A.R.T.S.)

Two A.R.T.S. awards are granted annually based on rigorous, regional performance. The Local Artist designation is awarded to varieties that outperform a control rose within a specific trial garden’s climate. Being deemed an A.R.T.S. Master Rose is reserved for exceptional varieties that surpass the control across four or more distinct climate regions nationwide.

All-America Rose Selections (AARS)

Before the 2016 debut of the AGRS, the AARS was the leading rose trial and awards program for more than 70 years. Varieties were evaluated over two years for hardiness, flower form, performance and fragrance.

Portland's Best Rose

For 115 years, the Portland Rose Society in Oregon has maintained a highly regarded awards program. This annual honour is presented to rose varieties that demonstrate superior performance in the Pacific Northwest. Each distinguished selection is celebrated with inclusion in the Gold Award Garden.

International Fragrant Rose Trials

The International Fragrant Rose Trials in Nagaoka, Japan, celebrate the artistry of rose breeding with a focus on intoxicating scent. Each entry undergoes two years of rigorous evaluation at Echigo Hillside Park. Grown under identical conditions in Japan’s snowy, cold climate, only the most resilient and aromatic varieties earn this prestigious honour.

There's a Rose for Every Garden

Because of the long lifespan of hardy roses, choosing a rose is a major commitment—that rose is likely to decorate your garden for year or even decades. Luckily, modern hybridization means there is a perfect rose for every garden, climate and purpose.