Own-root Roses: Low-Maintenance, Long-Lived Shrubs – PharmaRosa®

We propagate our roses vegetatively, by cuttings. This sustainable method ensures that every plant reliably preserves the original characteristics of the variety: appearance, growth habit and regeneration potential. The essence of propagation by cuttings is that the new plant is formed from identical tissue origin: root system and shoots come from the same plant “unit”, so the rose functions as a fully unified system.

One important consequence of this unified structure is that own‑root roses can, through their internal regulation, maintain a root–shoot balance. As a result, the plant will usually develop the variety‑specific, natural shrub shape by itself, so it does not require regular maintenance pruning. To achieve the desired shrub form, aesthetic shaping is usually sufficient.

After planting, once your rose has arrived and you have planted it, there is generally no need for pruning in the first two years: it is worth allowing the plant to establish itself, strengthen and “settle” into its place. Later it will still need very little intervention; typically it is enough to remove any dead wood, and if you have a preferred shape, you can easily maintain it with light aesthetic shaping. Severe pruning is usually not necessary.

The own‑root structure offers another long‑term key benefit: continuous renewal. Our roses regularly produce new shoots from their own roots, so the shrub can be kept naturally fresh, remain balanced in the long run, and will also maintain the variety’s characteristic shrub shape. In favourable conditions the plant can remain vigorous for many years, even decades – under ideal circumstances it may live for over 50 years.

If frost or other damage affects the shoot system, with adequate nutrient and water supply the rose can rebuild itself again from the root. In contrast, the renewal of grafted roses is mostly limited to the area around the grafting point. As there is no plant material of different origin in our roses, the whole plant remains of a uniform structure, which in practice often results in better regeneration, more balanced growth and in many cases greater resistance to diseases.