MAURICE UTRILLO – pink-yellow tea-hybrid rose - Delbard
Step into a soft, green light with cheerful swirls of colour: Maurice Utrillo paints your garden with rich red, cream and butter-yellow stripes on every bloom, turning an Irish cottage border or small Dublin front garden into a living canvas. This hybrid tea offers reliable repeat flowering from early summer to autumn, so you can enjoy an almost continuous show even when the rainfall feels endless and the weather is unsettled. The plant’s upright habit and dense, glossy foliage give year-round structure, while its own-root form supports a long-lived, steady performance with fewer worries over time. Expect a gently fruity fragrance that suits close-up seating areas and cut stems indoors, where its long, straight stems are especially cutting-worthy. Easy-to-handle 2‑litre pots make establishing it straightforward in average Irish garden soil, helped by simple drainage and mulching. You will notice a natural rhythm: first roots settling in, then stronger shoots, before full ornamental value unfolds by the third season.
Usage options
| Target area |
Reasoning |
| Front-of-house statement rose |
Maurice Utrillo’s upright form and strong, variegated blooms create a striking focal point beside a doorstep or path, giving neat structure that looks cared-for with only occasional deadheading – ideal for the busy homeowner. |
| Irish cottage-style flower border |
The continuous flushes of large, striped flowers give that abundant, storybook cottage look without demanding complex pruning, suiting mixed borders in typical Irish conditions with cool summers and frequent showers – perfect for relaxed hobby-gardeners. |
| Cutting patch or flower bed |
Long, straight stems and large cup-shaped blooms are excellent for vases, with colours that hold their drama indoors so even a small patch can supply your home with distinctive arrangements – attractive for creative flower-lovers. |
| Feature shrub in a small lawn or gravel area |
Planted as a single specimen at wider spacing, its dense foliage and showy flowers read as a small ornamental shrub, bringing structure and long-season colour into modest gardens with minimal fuss – reassuring for new garden-owners. |
| Raised bed on heavy or clay soils |
In gardens with slow-draining, heavier ground, a raised bed with added grit allows roots to establish steadily, supporting the natural progression from establishing plant to fully floriferous bush – helpful for cautious beginners. |
| Large container on patio or balcony |
Grown in a 40–50 litre container with good drainage, Maurice Utrillo gives repeat blooms and glossy foliage at eye level, with watering and light pruning as the main tasks, suiting time-poor urban apartment-dwellers. |
| Family seating or barbecue area |
The mild, fresh fruity fragrance and non-overwhelming scent work well near seating, while the plant’s medium maintenance and moderate prickliness are manageable around children when sited sensibly – suitable for practical families. |
| Mixed border in wet, windy gardens |
Once established with decent drainage and mulch, this rose keeps flowering reliably even through cool, damp spells when Atlantic winds and frequent showers dominate, easing worries about performance for weather-worn gardeners. |
Styling ideas
- COTTAGE RIBBON – Thread Maurice Utrillo through a loose border with Gypsophila repens and Phlox subulata to echo its painterly stripes – ideal for romantic cottage-garden admirers.
- DOORSTEP GALLERY – Flank a front door with two large pots of Maurice Utrillo underplanted with glaucous Carex flacca ‘Blue Zinger’ – perfect for style-conscious city terrace owners.
- ARTIST’S PATCH – Dedicate a small cutting bed to this rose alone so its striking blooms dominate your vases – appealing to creative, colour-loving arrangers.
- GRAVEL FOCUS – Set a single plant in a gravel circle with low groundcovers to highlight its upright shape and showy flowers – suited to low-maintenance design seekers.
- EVENING NOOK – Place near a bench with pale companions so blooms and light fragrance can be enjoyed after work – great for busy professionals unwinding outdoors.
Technical cultivar profile
| Trait |
Data |
| Name and registration |
Hybrid tea rose, registered as DELstavo, marketed as Maurice Utrillo, part of the Les Roses de Peintres collection, exhibition name Maurice Utrillo for show and cut-flower use. |
| Origin and breeding |
Bred by Georges Delbard in France, 2004; parentage not published. Introduced after 2004 by Pepinières & Roseraies Georges Delbard and positioned among artist-inspired striped cultivars. |
| Awards and recognition |
Recognised internationally with a Certificate of Merit at Lyon (2000) and a Gold Medal at Rose Hills (2005), indicating strong ornamental appeal and performance under trial conditions. |
| Growth and structural characteristics |
Upright, bushy habit reaching around 85–120 cm in height and 70–95 cm spread, with dense, dark green glossy foliage and moderate prickles; weak self-cleaning so benefits from deadheading. |
| Flower morphology |
Semi-double, cup-shaped blooms, generally 17–25 petals, large 7–10 cm flowers carried in clusters; remontant, with a strong second flush that maintains interest from early summer into autumn. |
| Colour data and phenology |
Bright red to carmine base striped with butter-yellow and creamy white, ARS rb, RHS 46A outer and 5C inner; colours may soften and striping pale slightly in strong sun over the season. |
| Fragrance and aroma |
Mild but discernible scent with a fresh, fruity character best appreciated at close range or on cut stems indoors; fragrance is gentle enough for seating areas without becoming overpowering. |
| Hip characteristics |
Rose-hip set is generally poor due to flower form, but when present shows small, ellipsoid orange-red hips around 10–15 mm, which add limited late-season interest without heavy seeding. |
| Resistance and winter hardiness |
Hardy to approximately −21 to −18 °C (H7, USDA 6b); disease resistance is medium, with average tolerance to black spot, powdery mildew and rust, improving with good air circulation. |
| Horticultural recommendations |
Best in full sun with fertile, well-drained soil; plant at 50–90 cm depending on use. Water during prolonged dry spells and deadhead to extend flowering; medium overall maintenance level. |
Maurice Utrillo offers painterly striped blooms, a long flowering season and reliable garden structure, while its own-root form supports a steady, long-lived plant; consider it if you’d like an easy yet distinctive focal rose.
