CAROLINE – Caroline's Heart park shrub rose
Nestle CAROLINE into your front garden or cottage border and you are greeted by softly cupped, pastel-pink blooms and a romantic, myrrh-tinged perfume that hangs in the air after rain, bringing a feeling of contentment on even the busiest weekday. This compact, upright shrub slips easily into small Irish gardens, thriving in our moist climate and coping well with rainfall and the kind of humid summers that many roses dislike, provided you give it reasonable air flow and simple seasonal care. Grown on its own roots, it is bred for a long, steady garden life, keeping its shape and charm even if winter or pruning knock it back. Plant once, water and mulch well, then watch it move from strong roots to more shoots to full flowering presence over three growing seasons, lending your space a quietly elegant, almost old-fashioned cottage mood that still feels fresh and modern for a city doorstep.
Usage options
| Target area |
Reasoning |
| Cottage-style mixed border |
The soft pink, cupped flowers and strong old-rose fragrance give classic cottage-garden charm, pairing beautifully with airy perennials such as verbena and lupins for a gently romantic summer look, ideal for the beginner. |
| Front garden focal shrub |
Its compact, upright habit and dense dark foliage create a neat, vertical accent beside a path or gate, offering long-season flower interest without dominating a small space, well suited to the homeowner. |
| Repeat-flowering feature in family beds |
CAROLINE flowers in generous flushes with a notably abundant second wave, keeping borders lively through a short Irish summer when colour really matters for everyday enjoyment by the family. |
| Own-root long-term planting |
The own-root form helps the shrub recover evenly from pruning or winter damage, maintaining its character over many years with stable regrowth and dependable structure for the thoughtful gardener. |
| Irish conditions, average-drainage beds |
Well-prepared soil with added organic matter and drainage suits CAROLINE, which is happy in typical Irish garden beds and copes reliably with persistent damp weather and frequent light showers valued by the urbanite. |
| Managed, higher-attention rose borders |
This award-winning rose rewards regular inspection and timely spraying where necessary; in return you gain beautifully healthy foliage and refined flower quality, rewarding the more engaged enthusiast. |
| Cut flowers from the garden |
The large, 7–10 cm double blooms with strong, lasting perfume make lovely informal cut stems for the house, especially when picked in tight bud, pleasing the fragrance-loving buyer. |
| Large decorative container (40–50 L+) |
Planted in a generously sized pot with good drainage, CAROLINE becomes a mobile feature for terraces or doorsteps, offering scented colour close to the house, convenient for the busy city-dweller. |
Styling ideas
- Soft-pink cottage trio – Combine CAROLINE with pale foxgloves and head-high lupins for a loose, romantic cottage border – perfect for the nostalgic garden-lover.
- Terraced-front welcome – Flank your front steps with CAROLINE in large clay pots and underplant with trailing thyme for scent at ankle-height – ideal for style-conscious city residents.
- Pastel pollinator ribbon – Weave CAROLINE through drifts of verbena and liatris for a soft, textured ribbon of pinks and lilacs – good for nature-minded families.
- Rose-and-herb walk – Line a short path with CAROLINE and edging herbs to enjoy fragrance at shoulder and knee height – suited to relaxed evening-strollers.
- Romantic cutting patch – Plant CAROLINE with repeat-flowering sweet peas in a sunny corner to supply vases of scented pastels all summer – ideal for home flower arrangers.
Technical cultivar profile
| Parameter |
Data |
| Name and registration |
Shrub rose, park type; registered as VEL16dsipo, marketed as Caroline's Heart CAROLINE. Part of the Park - shrub rose collection, premium bronze merit rating for garden performance. |
| Origin and breeding |
Bred by Ann Velle Boudolf at Lens Roses, Belgium, around 2016; introduced to the market in 2018 and distributed initially by Lens Roses for European garden use. |
| Awards and recognition |
Highly decorated landscape shrub: Barcelona 1st prize Landscape roses and horticultural school award 2018, Baden-Baden silver 2019, Warsaw bronze 2020, Lyon certificate 2021, Hradec Králové 1st prize. |
| Growth and structural characteristics |
Compact, upright shrub rose reaching 120–190 cm high and 60–100 cm wide, with dense, slightly glossy dark green foliage and moderate prickles; some spent flowers need manual removal. |
| Flower morphology |
Large, 7–10 cm double blooms with 26–30 petals in cupped clusters; corymbose inflorescences repeat well through the season, with the second flush also rich in flowers. |
| Colour data and phenology |
Even pastel pink, ARS LP, RHS 65C–65D; buds pale pink, opening pure pink then fading toward almost white petal bases, with faster fading in strong sun but generally very good colour retention. |
| Fragrance and aroma |
Strong, long-lasting fragrance combining classic old-rose and myrrh notes; particularly noticeable near paths and seating, making it very suitable where scented evening enjoyment is desired. |
| Hip characteristics |
Occasional orange-red ellipsoid hips, around 8–12 mm in diameter, adding modest late-season interest; not produced in large quantities and mainly ornamental rather than for harvest. |
| Resistance and winter hardiness |
Hardy to about −15 to −12 °C (RHS H6, Swedish zone 2, USDA 7b); needs monitoring for rust and other fungal issues, particularly in sheltered, humid sites with limited air circulation. |
| Horticultural recommendations |
Best in full sun with fertile, well-drained but moisture-retentive soil; regular watering in dry spells and a preventative spray programme will support healthy foliage and abundant repeat flowering. |
CAROLINE – Caroline's Heart offers richly scented repeat blooms, elegant form and long-term own-root resilience; a thoughtful choice if you enjoy tending a beautiful, characterful shrub rose.
