Robin Hood Rose - Knowledgebase Question

Warren, MA
Avatar for ccesmond
Question by ccesmond
September 28, 1999
We have a rather unattractive wrought iron fence along the front of our yard, and we want to plant a hedge along the fence to hide it. I would like a flowering hedge, and found something called Robin Hood Rose in the hedge section of a plant & seed catalogue. How fussy is this plant? Will it do well in zone 5 with sun for most of the day in the summer?


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Answer from NGA
September 28, 1999
Photo by Onewish1
Robin Hood forms a large spreading shrub that bears sprays of small cherry red blooms.  

The blooms are very small (1/2" - 3/4") but occur in dense clusters.  Robin Hood is a large hybrid musk shrub that bears large sprays of small cherry red blooms.  

Robin Hood was introduced by Joseph Pemberton (England) in 1927. It forms a large spreading shrub that reaches heights of 4' and widths of 5'. The foliage is dark green and small and the blooms are bright cherry red and darken as they age.  

Robin Hood is very vigorous, hardy, and disease resistant. It tolerates poorer soils, partial shade, and weather extremes. It grows best in zones 6-9 but should do reasonably well in your zone 5 garden.

My first specimen of Robin Hood was planted under an oak tree next to an 8' deer-proof fence. In that location it received only about 4 hours of direct morning sunlight. During the next dozen years it received no supplemental water or feeding, but it climbed up to the top of the fence and bloomed reliably in the spring.

Some years later, I planted a number of Robin Hood bushes along a 4' fence in full sun. Within a year the plants had covered the fence and were blooming magnificently.  

REFERENCES  Antique Rose Emporium, 1997. The Antique Rose Emporium 1997 Reference Guide. Antique Rose Emporium: Independence, Texas, p. 78.

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