Apothecary’s rose

Rosa gallica ‘Officinalis’

Old garden rose with semi-double rich pink flowers and powerful damask fragrance in a single concentrated flush at midsummer. One of the oldest cultivated roses in Europe.

Hardiness ratings

Apothecary’s rose hardiness across the four zone systems
SystemRatingTemperature rangeHow to read it
USDA hardiness zone Zone 3–8 −40 °C to −6.7 °C Plant tolerates down to this zone
RHS hardiness rating H7 down to −20 °C Plant needs at least this level of cold tolerance
Canadian plant hardiness zone Zone 3–8 −34 °C to −1 °C Plant tolerates down to this zone
Australian (ANBG) zone Zone 2–5 −10 °C to 10 °C Plant tolerates down to this zone

Growing notes

  • Flowers in a single concentrated flush in June — a textbook midsummer/solstice marker, then sets hips
  • Among the oldest cultivated roses — used commercially for medicinal rose petals from the 13th century
  • Petals retain fragrance after drying, the principal source of traditional rose perfumery in Europe
  • Suckers freely on its own roots — own-root specimens form thickets, grafted plants stay tighter

Categories

Related plants

Cross-check Apothecary’s rose against your zones

Reference

Apothecary’s rose on Wikipedia