Perhaps it’s because of our rushed lifestyles or maybe it’s just that people want to spend what little time they have enjoying roses instead of pruning them, but lower maintenance shrub roses are definitely growing in popularity. 

Shrub roses can be blended in with other shrubs and perennials without any special needs, providing a non-stop splash of color wherever they are planted. Unlike regular bush roses, shrub roses are self cleaning and don’t require pruning between blooming cycles. The blooms naturally drop off and are covered within a few weeks with a whole new set of blossoms. 

This year, we have five new introductions that have been grown in test gardens for two years to prove their performance for home gardeners. If you don’t already have a few planted in your garden, we encourage you to try a couple and see how easy they can be to grow. 

	Cape Diamond – Is an incredibly disease resistant, vigorous growing plant that is equally comfortable as a spreading shrub or trained as a climber. The old-fashioned pure pink flowers have a strong, spicy fragrance and contrast nicely against the hardy rugosa-like grey-green foliage.
	Carefree Spirit – This vigorous, well-branched award winning shrub rose boasts huge clusters of deep cherry red blooms with a white eye and yellow stamens over a long very season and healthy dark green glossy foliage that is very disease resistant.
	Sunny Knock Out – The newest release from the Knock Out family has the disease resistance of the original with similar dark, attractive foliage and bright yellow flowers that bloom throughout the year.
	Teeny Bopper – This scarlet and white shrublet has hydrangea-like clusters of scrumptious color.  The pointed buds explode into long-lived flowers supported by deep green foliage. This is the perfect plant for those who want a small, carefree rose.
	White Out – This new rose takes flower power to new heights with bright white blooms and bright yellow stamens that provide a more compact alternative to the famous Iceberg rose. A great rose for the garden landscape.