Zephirine Drouhin: Thornless Climbing Rose

When this thornless climbing rose, Zephirine Drouhin, was introduced during the late 1860's it was another in a long line of fragrant Bourbon roses the French rose enthusiasts had been breeding for more than fifty years.

Zephirine Drouhin displays all of the positive characteristics of the Bourbon family of roses, vigorous growth, disease resistance and an abundance of beautiful blooms whose fragrance is heady and profound.

A Thornless Climbing Rose

In a retail catalog for plants Zephirine Drouhin is usually described as mostly or virtually thornless, but over twenty years of growing this versatile climbing rose in my yard has proven it to be actually and completely thornless.

When caring for climbing roses pruning can be a painful experience but the thornless Zephirine Drouhin is a pleasant rose plant to prune, which is a good thing because this vigorous grower needs to be pruned at least twice a year depending on the shape to which you are training your rose.

Shape Your Climbing Rose

Let the young Zephirine Drouhin rose plants grow with just a minimal removal of the somewhat flexible canes for a couple of years. Once the plants are established they can be pruned and trained as you see fit.

The natural growth habit of this "climbing rose" is to have its long, flexible canes fountain out from the plants center and then drape in long graceful curves. When trained to a wall or trellis they can be curved around windows and ornaments and these long Zephirine Drouhin canes will entwine with trees, shrubs and other plants and vines without being invasive.

Take into consideration the location where you are planting the climbing rose when determining its shape. The Zephirine Drouhin will tolerate more shade than almost any of the roses but when growing it on the north side of the house allow for a more open form to the body of the rose.

The blossoms of Zephirine Drouhin appear on new growth. A heavy pruning early and a lighter bit of maintenance pruning to trim up the shape of the plants if needed (removing deadwood and deadheading old rose hips to encourage the fall bloom) will fill this climbing rose and your home with beautiful, fragrant roses.

Abundant Pink Rose Blossoms

The climbing rose Zephirine Douhin is something of a holiday rose here in southern Ohio (just a few blocks from the Ohio River). The intensely fragrant blooms on the roses start opening just before Mother's Day and there continues to be a heavy blush of these rose blossoms on the plants, that seem to glow with an inner light of their own, well past Memorial Day.

As spring becomes summer this climbing rose will throw out buds during the entire growing season with another abundant bloom in the fall, giving enough cut flowers to fill your house with the fragrance of roses while leaving enough on the rose plant to allow the intoxicating perfume to linger in the yard.

Although there are fewer of the charming, ruffled, semi-double blossoms on the plants when grown in a shady area, they have a luminous purity of hue and delicate translucence to the petals that is in contrast to the richer bodied roses grown with southern exposure.

The fragrance of Zephirine Drouhin lasts as the cut flowers dry, and whether the shapely blossom dries whole or the petals come loose the delightful Damask fragrance of this antique climbing rose will be yours throughout the year.

Plant Care for Your Climbing Rose

Zephirine Drouhin is the friendliest, most rewarding of roses for a beginning or an experienced rose enthusiast to grow. Not only is it thornless and shade tolerant, it will do well in poor soil as long as it has good drainage and it will even thrive in a large container.

While this climbing rose is versatile, tolerant and disease resistant, these qualities diminish somewhat when these roses are planted in the shade. All of the variation depends on the amount of available sun and the circulation of air.

Give Zephirine Drouhin the same care you would other roses, mulch and water regularly in the morning, in humid climates keep water off the leaves (all roses are prone to fungal attacks) and give it good circulation.

Watch for aphids and Japanese beetles, deadhead the old flowers and this dependable climbing rose will repay you with an abundance of blossoms.

Zephirine Drouhin - Delighting the Senses

Cascades of glowing pink blossoms filling the breeze with the most memorable fragrance, the beautiful and treasured flowers of this antique climbing rose continue to give pleasure into the winter months with their dried petals, bringing a hint and promise of Spring.

Reference:
www.ces.ncsu.edu
www.mobot.org
www.fireflyforest.net
www.carrollgardens.com
www.growquest.com
www.rose-gardening-made-easy.com