Which roses for a bank?

Groundcover roses, perfect plants for greening a slope.

In the family of roses, groundcover roses are the most suitable for covering a slope and adding colour. A groundcover rose is creeping and carpeting. Resilient, it tolerates all types of soil and thrives in sunny positions and well-drained areas. Among groundcover roses, the decoroses are very hardy varieties that can be grown with minimal maintenance. Highly floriferous, they are particularly useful for decorating challenging areas of the garden, such as slopes.

Groundcover rose Nozomi

The best groundcover rose varieties

Discover some of the best ground cover roses suitable for slopes, available in various colours.

The ground cover rose ‘Knock Out Radrazz’, a creation by Meilland

The ground cover rose ‘Knock Out Radrazz’ is an excellent rose that is covered in semi-double bright to light red flowers from May until the first frosts. Grouped in clusters, they open to reveal a heart of yellow stamens. Very floriferous, this rose also boasts dark green, glossy, semi-evergreen foliage that is free from diseases. Reliable, resilient, and easy to grow, this creation by Meilland has received the prestigious A.D.R. label. This rose forms a bush 70 cm high and 60 cm wide, covering slopes with its beautiful and long-lasting cheerful and slightly fragrant flowering.

ground cover rose Knock Out Radrazz

The decorous rose ‘Emera’, a cheerful fuchsia colour

A popular variety, the decorous rose ‘Emera’ is part of the excellent range of decorous roses that enjoys great success due to its abundant flowering, high resistance to diseases, and almost maintenance-free cultivation. From May to October, it is adorned with a spectacular display of semi-double roses in a cheerful fuchsia pink. Its foliage is dense, glossy green, and semi-evergreen. Awarded the A.D.R. label, it is reliable and easy to grow in all types of soil and exposure, from full sun to partial shade. With its covering habit, it makes an excellent ground cover plant. It grows into a bush 70 cm high and 50 cm wide.

decorous rose Emera

The decorous rose ‘Opalia’, the brightness of pure white

Another variety from the decorous rose range, the decorous rose ‘Opalia’ shares the same excellent qualities as its relatives: abundant flowering from May to October, high resistance to diseases, ease of maintenance, semi-evergreen foliage and the A.D.R. label, a guarantee of excellent quality. From spring until the first frosts, it is adorned with semi-double flowers of pure, luminous white, with a heart of golden yellow stamens, which contrast beautifully with its dark green glossy leaves. It forms a bush 70 cm high and 40 cm wide. Thanks to its dense growth, it perfectly covers the soil of slopes.

decorous rose Opalia

The ground cover rose ‘The Fairy’, a fresh and tender pink

Created in 1932, the ground cover rose ‘The Fairy’ has built a solid reputation as an excellent ground cover. It is appreciated for its generous flowering, which occurs from July to October, during which it is covered in clusters of double flowers in a fresh and bright pink that is very appealing. Its roses, shaped like pom-poms or rosettes, turn pale pink at the end of flowering. With its fine, semi-evergreen bronze-green foliage, it takes the form of a bush 80 cm high and 90 cm wide, with a spreading and trailing habit. Vigorous and resilient, it is low-maintenance and can be grown without worry, even on a slope.

ground cover rose The Fairy

The decorous rose ‘Calizia’, the softness of orange

Another decorous rose with fabulous cultivation and flowering qualities, the decorous rose ‘Calizia’ is a bush 70 cm high and 40 cm wide that blooms with a multitude of bouquets of semi-double salmon to pale orange roses from May to October. Its semi-evergreen foliage is glossy dark green, very resilient, and covering. It will fill your garden slopes with its dense vegetation and flowering without requiring maintenance.

decorous rose Calizia

The cluster-flowered rose ‘Golden Border’, a sunny yellow

The rose ‘Golden Border’ is a cluster-flowered rose, compact, and offers a long flowering period from June to November. It is adorned with globular roses of a bright yellow on fresh green, shiny, healthy, and resilient foliage. The flowers are medium-sized, double, in a bright yellow colour surrounded by pale yellow and are slightly fragrant. This small bush has a bushy habit, growing 60 cm high and 50 cm wide, with deciduous foliage. Resistant and less susceptible to diseases, it adapts to all soils that are not too dry and all climates. This Meilland variety will mask the bare patches of your slope and brighten it with its lovely tones.

rose ‘Golden Border’

When to plant a groundcover rose?

The planting period depends on the form of the rose you are going to plant. For a rose bought in a pot or container, it can be planted at any time of the year, while avoiding frost and drought periods, of course. For a rose with bare roots, the planting period extends from November to March.

How to plant a groundcover rose?

• Prepare the rose plant for planting. Two scenarios are possible.
• If it is a container or pot rose, immerse it in a bucket of water and wait until no more air bubbles escape before removing it from the pot.
• If it is a bare root rose, planting should be done immediately after purchase to prevent the roots from drying out. If you need to wait a few days before planting, you can heel in the bare root roses for 3 to 4 days. Check that the roots are healthy and cut away any that are dried out or damaged using a pruning shear disinfected with alcohol. After this root preparation, proceed to coat the roots by soaking them in a ready-to-use pralin or one you have made yourself (a mixture of soil, water, and compost or manure). Discover in this article how to coat roots and make your pralin.
• Dig a hole 40 cm deep, wide, and long with a shovel.
• Place some manure, compost or fertiliser at the bottom of the hole, and mix it with the soil. You can also add a bit of ground horn.
• Place the rose with the roots laid flat so that they do not turn upwards and ensure that the grafting point is not buried. To do this, place a stick and check that the grafting point is above soil level.
• Fill the hole with the removed garden soil and firm it down to eliminate air pockets.

• Create a watering basin around the base and water generously. You will then water regularly during the first year to maintain a light but constant moisture.
• To vegetate a bank, it is recommended to plant several plants. Respect the planting distance between each groundcover rose to encourage the best possible establishment in the soil.

For further reading

Discover:

• our complete guide on growing and caring for roses
• our advice sheet on how to plant a rose
• our complete range of groundcover roses