An overview of the different kinds of roses available, with some top-rated varieties in each class. HYBRID TEA roses dominate the rose scene today. The Hybrid Tea is prized for its classic blooms which begin as elegantly long, narrow buds and open into large flowers, one on each long stem. Bloom is continuous from late spring to frost, and many varieties are very fragrant. The plants are upright and bushy, growing roughly three feet tall, though depending upon pruning practices and climate some varieties can grow nearly twice as tall. Some highly rated Hybrid Tea roses: Peace is the best known and most popular rose world-wide. Introduced at the end of World War II, Peace is a strong, spreading bush with large high-centred, subtly perfumed blooms in creamy yellow with pink edging on the petals. First Prize bears long, spiralled buds that open into large, high-centred, fragrant pink flowers. Mr. Lincoln has been a favorite dark red rose for over 20 years. Fine long buds open to beautifully formed, full flowers with an enticing old-rose fragrance. Double Delight is a highly fragrant rose with camellia-like blooms in rich cream brushed with strawberry red. Tropicana blooms in a glorious coral orange and bears a spicy fragrance. Silver Jubilee's fully double, pointed flowers open to a soft salmon pink. The scent is light and fresh.

'Silver Jubilee' hybrid tea rose

FLORIBUNDA roses grow generally smaller and more compact than Hybrid Teas, with smaller flowers borne in many clusters on shorter stems. Floribundas are valuable for providing a mass of color when used as low hedges or in containers, or grouped in ornamental beds. Europeana, probably the most popular Floribunda, bears huge clusters of longlasting, fragrant, velvety red blooms. Sunsprite offers perfectly formed, highly fragrant, striking yellow flowers in small clusters. Little Darling bears long, arching canes with with big clusters of shapely pink, peach and cream flowers with a light, spicy scent. Angel Face has coppery green foliage to background a heavy set of ruffled, rosy lavender blooms with a good fragrance. GRANDIFLORA roses combine the best qualities of both parents, bearing beautifully formed flowers like Hybrid Tea blooms in Floribunda-like clusters on long stems. The bushes grow in upright form, up to two metres (six feet) tall. Queen Elizabeth, the undisputed reigning monarch of the Grandifloras, is an extremely vigorous and healthy, tall bush bearing profuse numbers of rich, clear silvery pink blooms in large candelabra-like clusters. Queen Elizabeth is a tough, easy rose and an ideal starting point for people who believe they are only able to grow weeds. Pink Parfait is another abundant bloomer, in creamy pink on a more subdued but equally healthy plant. Sonia is a prized cut flower Grandiflora with beautifully formed, satiny shrimp pink flowers. SHRUB ROSES include bush-type roses that don't fit clearly into other categories -- ground cover roses, the rugged and hardy Rugosa and Rugosa Hybrid roses, shrub roses from past centuries and modern roses such as the Canadian creations Martin Frobisher, Champlain, and Alexander MacKenzie. Shrub roses are noted for hardiness, a tolerance to less than optimum growing conditions, and low maintenance. Most bear bright red hips. Frau Dagmar Hartopp is a compact bush with dark foliage and clusters of very fragrant silvery pink blooms with golden stamens. This Rugosa Hybrid is useful as a low hedge. Pink Grootendorst bears small fringed carnation-like blooms in clear pink. Hansa has vivid purple-red flowers. Blanc Double de Coubert yields highly scented papery white blooms with cupped petals. Golden Wings has lightly scented light yellow flowers. Therese Bugnet is a very hardy Canadian rose with lilac pink flowers. Bonica is a low-maintenance landscaping rose with arching branches bearing delicate shell-pink flowers. Among the modern shrub roses are David Austin's English roses, which combine the old-fashioned cupped or rosette flower shape, powerful fragrance and charm of Old Garden Roses with the wide color range and repeat bloom of Hybrid Teas and Floribundas. ANTIQUE ROSES are those introduced before 1867 when the first Hybrid Tea rose appeared. Among the different types are Centifolia (hundred-leaved, or cabbage) roses, Gallica, Bourbon, Damask, Moss, and original species roses. The historic romance of the rose is reflected in such names as Apothecary Rose (Rosa gallica officinalis), York and Lancaster Rose (Rosa damascena versicolor) and Empress Josephine. CLIMBING ROSES don't climb of their own accord. They are rose plants that produce long, flexible canes which need to be secured to some sort of support such as a fence or trellis. There are two basic kinds of climbing rose. Ramblers bloom in early summer on long, slender canes. Less hardy but more commonly grown because of their longer season of bloom are the large-flowered climbers, which include climbing forms of other types of rose -- Climbing Peace and Climbing Queen Elizabeth for example. For really good flower production on the shoots emerging along the length of the canes, arrange the canes of large-flowered climbers as close to the horizontal as possible. Dortmund is a very hardy, disease-resistant climber with single strawberry red, white-centred flowers. Altissimo bears large single flowers in velvety scarlet with long golden stamens. America is a large-flowered climber with double clove-scented coral pink flowers of Hybrid Tea form. Don Juan's large dark red double flowers are long-lasting and heavily fragrant. Blaze bears its semi-double scarlet blooms in large clusters. TREE ROSES, or standards, are made by joining a bush rose onto an understock stem. There are miniature standards on 12-inch stems, patio standards twice that height and regular standard roses on trunks three feet or more in length. Many popular rose varieties are available in tree form. MINIATURES are tiny versions of larger rose plants in heights from six to 18 inches with proportionately small blooms. The miniatures are generally hardier than most hybrid teas, since these mini-roses are not budded onto an understock but grow on their own roots. Depending upon the natural growth habit of the variety, miniatures can be trained as tiny trees or climbers, or enjoyed in hanging baskets and window boxes. Useful as edging plants and in the rock garden, miniatures can also be grown indoors in pots given a cool, bright window, high levels of humidity and a simulated winter rest of about two months. Starina has fragrant scarlet flowers of classic Hybrid Tea form with a touch of yellow at the base of each petal. Beauty Secret bears fragrant, long-petalled flowers in candy-apple red. Mary Marshall's flowers are coral orange with a yellow base. Cinderella produces pink buds that open white. Rise'n Shine has very double flowers in clear buttercup yellow. Cupcake's long-lasting, perfectly formed blooms are a rich pastel pink. Among the climbing miniatures, Jeanne Lajoie (pink), Warm Welcome (orange), and Laura Ford (yellow) are top performers.

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