PlantFiles: Modern Shrub Rose, Groundcover Rose
Rosa 'Alba Meidiland'

This rose grows prolifically in my NE Pennsylvania garden. I trim it back once or twice each season, just to keep it under control. Some canes are at least eight feet long. I do sometimes have problems with black spot, and I like its looks best when I cut off the spent blossoms. In late fall or early spring, I cut it close to the ground, and it bounds back beautifully.

It was well established in this garden when we moved here ten years ago, so it has aged well.

Beautiful, easy. First rose I ever bought. I've killed many others, but this one still likes me. I have it in full sun, against a fence. No protection first winter in zone 5 but still handled itself nicely. I've been kinder to it since then :)

This shrub grows quickly, 4 feet across in one year... So easy to grow. I barely pay attention to it except to prune back the insane amount of branches it sends out.

No disease problems even though I have another rose quite near it with some blackspot.

One of the toughest, most prolificly flowering roses I have. Mine grows in a hot, windy spot which doesn't seem to faze it a bit. I agree with the velcro-on-velcro description, and the old blooms do look unsightly if not sheared, but then it is back with more blooms before you know it. Mine was even buried under morningglories for part of the summer last year and looks as good as ever this year.

Grows rapidly. Is carefree. Loaded with blooms throughout the entire growing season. None of my 100+ roses compares with this one for vigor. Mine have sent out branches as much as 10' long (covered in blooms) in a single season. While it is classified as a groundcover, it is equally happy when trained as a climber. I have one that has "climbed" some 8+ ft up into a tree with blooms "raining" down on gracefully arching branches.

I have several of these and they are show stoppers in my garden of nearly 1000 plants. This is one of the plants that passersby ask about, and of which friends request a cutting, which works out well because it seems to take root at every point of contact with the ground.

There are, of course, a few "negatives". As it is a rather vicious bramble of thorns with a prolific growth pattern, it shoud be kept well clear of traffic patterns (which I learned the hard way). Brushing up against this one is like velcro on velcro. While the torrent of white blooms is lovely, the aged and dying blooms are not; periodic shearing is required to remove spent blooms and encourage the next show.

Bred in France. Won the Frankfurt Gold Medal in 1989, and the Bagatelle 2nd Prize in 1989.

Parentage:
Seed: R. sempervirens
Pollen: Marthe Carron