5 Best Roses for Cutting Gardens – for Long-Lasting Blooms That Look Equally Beautiful in Bouquets and Garden Beds

Ah, the romance of roses! Is there any gift that carries a stronger sense of love than a dozen long-stemmed beauties? The flowering plants in the genus Rosa are famed for their stunning blossoms and are welcomed into gardens all over the globe. But not every plant in the rose garden is the same.

The Rosa genus includes over three hundred different species and the number of cultivars within each species approximates the number of stars in the night sky. If you are looking for beautiful roses to include in bouquets, you won’t want the same species that climb up the garden wall.

The best types of roses for cutting gardens have long stems that are perfect for bouquets and arrangements. Plus, they have gorgeous blooms and intoxicating fragrance as well. Here are five of the best roses for cutting gardens.

Rose Basics

The rose is often called the queen of the garden. This flower has won hearts for hundreds of years. Fossil evidence tells us that roses appeared on earth some 35 million years ago, but cultivation of roses for the garden began some 5,000 years ago.

These flowers were grown extensively during the Roman Empire. Later, roses became a symbol for the York and Lancaster factions fighting to control England in a series of conflicts known as the "Wars of the Roses."

Today roses are grouped into several different categories. Three types of roses in particular make great flowers for a perennial cutting garden:

• The first is hybrid tea roses. These are long-stemmed florist roses with large, elegant blooms.
• A second is floribunda roses. Their stems are too short for centerpiece vases, but they produce clusters of medium-sized blooms that can be used to fill in bouquets.
• The third is grandiflora roses that have the tall stems of hybrid teas, but the clustered blooms of floribunda roses.

No matter what type of rose you choose, you will need long gloves like these ones from Amazon to protect yourself from thorns when cutting blooms. You'll also need strong, reliable pruners like these pro-approved Felco pruning shears.

Best Roses for Cutting Gardens

My top rose selections for cutting gardens are all long-stemmed varieties. While I love floribunda roses, their short stems limit their use as cut flowers. Here are my favorite picks for a rose cutting garden.

1. ‘Queen Elizabeth’

If roses are the queens of the flower garden, the ‘Queen Elizabeth’ rose has been called the queen of the roses. This enormously popular grandiflora rose cultivar is famed for its tall growth that reaches up to 6 feet (2 m) high, soft pink flowers, and airy fragrance. It represents classic beauty with its large, cup-shaped blossoms that grow to between 4 and 5 inches (10-13 cm) across.

This long-stemmed rose is all the more beautiful and useful given the strength of its stems and glossy green leaves. It has what florists refer to a long vase life, so it is a clear favorite in the roses-for-cutting-garden quest.

It also has a long garden life and can last as long as 20 years in your landscape. Like most roses, Queen Elizabeth does best with full sun and well-drained soil. It thrives in USDA hardiness zones 5-9.

You can get a bareroot grafted Queen Elizabeth rose from Jackson & Perkins.

2. ‘Heavenly Scented’

Our second selection is a hybrid tea rose, so you know it comes with a long stem. The name, ‘Heavenly Scented’, suggests its divine fruit-and-spice fragrance. Top that with big, bright pink flowers and you have a gorgeous rose for the cutting garden.

Each rose grows on its own stem, which is lucky, given the heft of the blossoms. They measure 4.5 inches (12 cm) across and can have up to 138 petals apiece. The petals fold back towards the stem as they mature, creating a soft point.

A quintessential upright cutting rose, Heavenly Scented bushes grow to 6 feet (2 m) tall in the garden. This rose needs sun – lots of sun – to flower, so it’s lucky that this variety has top color retention. The bright salmon or conch pink shade of its blooms doesn’t fade and the glossy foliage resists downy mildew and rust. Grow in USDA hardiness zones 5-9.

Get a Heavenly Scented rose in a 3-gallon pot from Spring Hill Nurseries at Lowe's.

3. ‘Iceberg’

There is something special about white roses and the ‘Iceberg’ rose is a fabulous example of how beautiful pure white blooms on long stems can be. It is a floribunda rose, so it has the long, sturdy stems of the hybrid tea roses plus the abundant flower clusters of the grandiflora type. Shrubs can grow over 9 feet (3 m) tall in the garden.

Iceberg’s white blooms are double flowers, each with some 40 soft white petals in a classic shape. They contrast beautifully with the dark green foliage. The flowers have a light, pleasing fragrance and a classic rose shape. New blooms appear continuously, providing a long-lasting display throughout the growing season from late spring through the first frost.

You can get a bareroot Iceberg rose plant online from Lowe's.

4. ‘Mister Lincoln’

It’s nice to see a beautiful rose variety named after a president – and the ‘Mister Lincoln’ rose is a wonderful addition to your rose cutting garden. Many consider Mister Lincoln among the finest red roses in commerce. It is a classic hybrid tea rose that grows to 6 feet (2 m) tall with lush, velvety red flowers. Each flower is fully double and can grow up to 6 inches (15 cm) wide.

While some roses fade in the sun, that’s not the case with Mister Lincoln roses. The red shade intensifies, sometimes even causing subtle purple undertones. The rich color and resiliency of the flowers makes it a top choice for cutting gardens. The plant thrives in a sunny location in USDA zones 5-10 and offers a long bloom season with blossoms from spring through fall.

Get your Mister Lincoln rose bushes as bareroot plants from Jackson & Perkins.

5. ‘Moonstone’

It’s hard to describe the gorgeous shades of ‘Moonstone’ rose blossoms. The color is truly magical. Velvety-pearl petals are trimmed in rose with hints of apricot at the center. Though the blossoms are exceptionally large, they look fragile, like fine china. It’s easy to understand why these ethereal beauties are so popular for bridal bouquets.

Moonstone is a hybrid tea rose with long, elegant stems, making it ideal for cutting gardens. The perfectly shaped flowers can grow to 5 inches (12.7 cm) across. The fragrance is mild, but lovely.

This rose is a favorite among florists for its beauty and resiliency when cut. Moonstone can produce flowers throughout the growing season. Plant in full sun and offer regular watering. It is hardy in USDA hardiness zones 6-10.

You can find Moonstone roses for sale from Spring Hill Nurseries.