9 highly fragrant red roses

The rose 'Papa Meilland', a scent of May rose

Voted “favourite rose of the whole world” in 1988, the large-flowered rose ‘Papa Meilland’ is one of the timeless classics. During the flowering period, from June to October, the bush is adorned with large roses 14 cm wide, turbinate and perfectly shaped . With their velvety dark red-purple colour, shaded with black reflections, they catch the eye. The roses bloom on light green foliage continuously from summer to autumn, provided that faded flowers are removed regularly. In addition to its beauty, the rosebush has another asset: a remarkable and intense May rose fragrance enhanced with citrus notes. This scent has earned it several prestigious awards. The ‘Papa Meilland’ rosebush forms a small upright bush 95 cm high and 70 cm wide. It tolerates all soils that are not too dry and all climates. The only downside is that the foliage can sometimes be susceptible to powdery mildew and downy mildew. Provide it with a sunny and airy location so it can thrive in peace. Plant it alone or in a bed alongside a white rose ‘Fée des neiges’.

Rose ‘Papa Meilland’

The rose 'Botero', a scent of Damask rose

In the garden, the large-flowered rose ‘Botero’ catches the eye with its 13 cm, double, bright red flowers reminiscent of a strawberry’s colour. Composed of 90 to 100 velvety petals, they maintain a tight centre and emit an intense fragrance of Damask rose with indulgent notes of blackcurrant and gooseberry. Developed by Meilland, this rose has been awarded multiple times for its scent. The flowering lasts from June to October and its flowers are perfect for creating fragrant bouquets.
As it grows, the colour of the foliage changes: initially purple, it turns to a rich green, with a semi-matt finish and prominent veins.
The ‘Botero’ rose forms a bush 1.10 metres high, which easily fits into a flowerbed. Robust, it adapts to all soils that are not too dry and to all climates in our regions.

‘Botero’ rose

The 'Ingrid Bergman' rose, a heady and floral fragrance.

With its deep red colour, perfectly turbinate roses, and heady floral fragrance, the large-flowered rose ‘Ingrid Bergman’ has many qualities to please. From June to November, this bush measuring 80 cm high and 60 cm wide produces flowers of 11 cm in intense red standing on erect, sturdy stems. Dark green, glossy foliage serves as a lush backdrop. With their modern shape and powerful floral fragrance, they are stunning in cut flower arrangements. It is a compact and vigorous variety developed by Poulsen, which has been awarded a medal by the Royal Horticultural Society in England.

Rose ‘Ingrid Bergman’

The rose 'Reine des Parfums', a sweet fragrance

The large-flowered rose ‘Reine des Parfums’ lives up to its name, as its powerful and sweet fragrance has been selected by the Société des Parfumeurs Français. It releases scents of Damask rose combined with notes of vine peach.
Created by the Orard rose nurseries, located near Lyon, it is a bushy rose that grows to 80 cm by 50 cm and blooms from June to October. Its roses, in addition to being highly fragrant, are notably dark red at birth, then turn dark pink.
Turbinate and very double, the flowers measure 10 cm in diameter and are framed by resilient dark green foliage. They are also stunning when presented as cut flowers in a vase.

Rose ‘Reine des Parfums’

The rose 'Roi de Siam', a scent of old rose.

The climbing rose ‘Roi de Siam’ is an old tea hybrid, rarely found in commerce. It deserves to be better known for its powerful old rose fragrance and its stunning flowers that range in colour from garance red to carmine red. Its flowers are rich in petals, slightly trailing, and appear against dark green, matte foliage in June and July, and again in September. The bush climbs up to 3.5 metres high on a facade, pergola, or fence. If you want to see it thrive, plant it in a semi-shaded position and sheltered from the wind.

For superb and highly fragrant climbing roses, we also recommend the roses ‘Le Grand Huit’ and ‘Etoile de Hollande’, already featured in the article 7 climbing roses with red flowers.

Rose ‘Roi de Siam’

The rose 'Astrid Gräfin von Hardenberg', a remarkable fragrance

With its original roses and powerful fragrance, the large-flowered rose ‘Astrid Gräfin von Hardenberg’ or ‘Nuit de Chine’ boasts beautiful attributes. The flowers measuring 10 cm with numerous tightly packed petals bloom into charming quarters and are available in two colours: burgundy red on the periphery and carmine red at the centre. They exude an intense fragrance of old rose with peppery notes, which earned them the gold medal for the most fragrant rose in Rome in 2002.
Developed by the rose breeder Tantau, this rose bush forms a bushy, upright shrub 1.30 metres high and 90 cm wide. Robust and hardy, it is very floriferous from June to October.

Rose ‘Astrid Gräfin von Hardenberg’

The rose 'Jingle Bells', featuring very fragrant round roses.

Offering globe-shaped roses in changing shades of red and a sumptuous fragrance, the large flowered rose ‘Jingle Bells’ deserves its place in a garden. It is a small bush, 75 cm high and 60 cm wide, that bears roses from June to September, with an intense fragrance, transitioning from magenta red to light red. Measuring 8 cm, they stand out for their resemblance to peonies. They are lovely in the garden, both in a flower bed and on a terrace in a flowering and fragrant pot. Pair it with nepeta, gypsophila, or silver baskets.

Rose ‘Jingle Bells’

The rose 'Tuscany Superb', the old-fashioned charm of antique roses

The old rose ‘Tuscany Superb’ is one of the oldest roses. It is a gallica rose, obtained before 1596, floriferous and highly fragrant. In May-June, it produces an abundance of small semi-double flowers measuring 5 cm in a deep purple colour with burgundy highlights, contrasting with a centre of yellow stamens and bluish-green foliage. The flowers, with their petals arranged in a rosette and their heady fragrance, possess the old-fashioned charm of antique roses.
Easy to grow, the ‘Tuscany Superb’ rose is also very cold-resistant, tolerating temperatures as low as -25 to -30 degrees. It forms a bush 70 cm high and 90 cm wide, bearing prickles and glandular hairs on its stems. It produces fleshy fruits, brown or orange, known as hips.

Rose ‘Tuscany Superb’

The Rescht Rose, fragrant red pom-poms

The Rose de Rescht is a bush measuring 1 metre high and 1.20 metres wide, which produces bouquets of small red roses resembling pom-poms and exuding a powerful fragrance. Ranging in colour from light red to fuchsia, they bloom against a backdrop of dark green foliage emitting the scent of Damask rose. The rose bush flowers in successive waves, in May-June, then in September-October. Easy to maintain, it grows almost on its own and should appeal to beginner gardeners.

Rose ‘Rose de Rescht’

To avoid any failure, we recommend planting appropriately; feel free to adopt our Plantfit web application!