PlantFiles: Hybrid Rugosa Rose
Rosa rugosa 'Blanc Double de Coubert'

A winner in my zone 8 garden. Very fragrant and easy to grow here.

I have grown this rose in my northwest Arkansas garden for 2 years, after having seen it referenced in a number of older gardening books. Easily grown. Lovely pure white 2 1/2 inch wide semidouble flowers, that remind me of a very thin-petaled camelia japonica flower. Fragrant yes, but to me, the fragrance is not like cloves at all--- but rather like an inexpensive baby bathpower. In fact, I do not find the fragrance attractive at all, though what is attractively fragrant, like what is beautiful, is in the nose (if not the eye) of the beholder. All things considered, I am so glad that this plant is in my little garden.

From HGTV.com's list of Carefree roses by Mary C. Weaver:

'Blanc Double de Coubert': Those in search of easy roses should pay close attention to the hybrid rugosa class, as its members combine ironclad health and vigor with delicate, fragrant flowers. 'Blanc Double de Coubert', introduced in 1892, is one of the best of the class, with medium-sized semidouble or loosely double silky white blooms. Rugosas are often among the earliest and latest bloomers of the season, and few fragrances are as delightful in early spring or late fall as this cultivar's strong clovelike scent. Foliage is dark-green and extremely disease-resistant; the shrub is vigorous and upright. Hybrid rugosas are at their best in cool and moderate climates, but 'Blanc Double de Coubert' tolerates hot climates better than most. Upright in growth; grows 5 to 6 feet tall.

Bred in France. Won the Classic Shrub Rose award five times from 1999-2001, and the Victorian award from the Milwaukee Rose Society in 2000.

Parentage:
Seed: R. rugosa
Pollen: Sombreuil

I get a lot of compliments on this rose from passersby (I have a 50 foot hedge of them). The scent is captivating to young and old alike. There is always somebody with their nose buried in the blooms during the summer.

This rose smells *wonderful* and they are a beautiful pristine white set against nice, dark green foliage. They bloom all summer in my garden (pacific northwest). They also have nice big red hips and require very little water (they recieved no water at all last summer - one of our driest, hottest summers and they never even sulked). And they have nice fall color to boot.

On the downside, the blooms are short lived (one day?), they are not a good cut flower (whithering almost immediately after cutting) and the beautiful white petals cling steadfastly to the hip and turn a very unattractive brown which seriously detracts from the entire bush. It's easier to take hip and all when trying to remove the petals (they really don't want to let go of that hip!). One last thing is that a lot of the hips don't mature but rather shrivel up and die on the bush.

This is not a good choice for a hedge unless you have a lot of time on your hands to keep it looking attractive (good luck!). As a specimen the effort would be well worth it. Keep in mind that this is a *large* bush - 6' tall and as wide - at least! That's a lot of pruning even for just one plant.

I had great success with this plant when I lived in zone 4, and am planning on adding it to my garden in Florida zone 9b. I would like to hear from anyone who has had experience with it this far south.
I think it is one of the prettiest Rugosas, with bright white, semi-double blooms and a delicious, very strong scent of cloves.
It is quite a good repeat bloomer with lovely bright red hips in the fall. They grew about 5' tall and 4' wide. No problems with disease at all in the many years I had them.
A pure delight.

A very hard working plant - it flowers recurrently throughout the season and in autumn follows on with large fruits and good autumn leaf colour. It is shade tolerant, suitable for hedging and the flowers are strongly perfumed.
What more could be asked of any plant?