Photo by Ann Bartlett
For decades, rose hybridizers were unconcerned with disease resistance. They assumed that everyone growing roses followed a spray program. Then along came the Knock Out® Rose. This shrub rose was developed by amateur rose hybridizer William Radler and marketed by Star Roses® and Plants. The incredible popularity of this bulletproof rose opened hybridizers’ eyes to the commercial potential of low-maintenance roses.
Many gardeners want to grow roses but view them as too much work. Let’s be clear, “low maintenance” does not mean “no maintenance.” In the case of roses, it means that the gardener does not have to adhere to arcane pesticide application schedules or master aggressive renewal pruning techniques to have attractive, blooming shrubs throughout the growing season.
Star Roses and Plants went on to develop another low maintenance rose, the Drift® rose. These are compact, low-maintenance landscape plants. They are a cross between miniature and ground-cover roses. Unlike miniature roses, ground-cover roses are not a separate class, but they do share the characteristic of a low spreading, some would say sprawling, growth habit. For more information on Drift Roses; CLICK HERE.