Rose ‘Red Drift’

Rose 'Red Drift' (Rosa 'Red Drift') is a groundcover rose that holds at about 40cm tall and spreads to 80cm across, giving you real rose flower at ankle height with none of the pruning a bush rose demands. Small red blooms open in clusters and repeat from spring through to autumn without deadheading. It is frost hardy, heat tolerant and drought tolerant once settled.

Why you'll love it

• Colour for three seasons. Red flushes from spring into autumn, and spent blooms drop themselves rather than browning on the plant.
• Low and spreading. At 40cm by 80cm it fills the front of a bed instead of blocking the view across it.
• Tougher than a bush rose. Frost hardy, heat tolerant and genuinely drought tolerant after the first year, from Mediterranean gardens to the cool temperate south.
• Safe around pets. The foliage is not toxic to cats or dogs. The prickles are the only thing to think about.
• Bee and butterfly friendly. Open flowers let pollinators reach the centre, unlike the tight blooms of most hybrid teas.

Where it works best

Groundcover and mass planting. Plant 60cm apart, about three plants per square metre. At that spacing they knit together within two seasons and shade the soil enough to slow weeds down.

Borders and edging. Along a path or the front of a bed it gives a soft flowering line that needs no staking and no mid season prune.

Pots and small gardens. One plant suits a pot 350mm or wider. Potted roses dry out and feed out faster, so check the mix every second day through summer.

Growing Rose 'Red Drift' in Australia

Position and climate. Give it at least six hours of direct sun; below that the flowering thins noticeably. It suits subtropical, warm temperate, cool temperate and Mediterranean gardens, and being frost hardy it takes cold southern and tableland winters unprotected. The wet tropics are the exception, where constant humidity brings black spot to any rose.

Soil. Any reasonably drained soil improved with compost through the backfill. Roses will not sit wet, so mound the planting hole on heavy clay, and keep 50mm of mulch clear of the stems.

Water and feed. Deep soak twice a week through the first summer, then ease off as the roots go down. A rose or complete fertiliser in early spring and again after the first flush keeps the repeat flowering running to the end of the season.

Pruning. This is the easy part. In late winter cut the whole plant back by about a third with hedge shears, take out any dead wood, then leave it alone.

What to expect when it arrives

Red Drift is grown in one size, tube stock, so it arrives young: a well rooted plug with several short shoots rather than a flowering specimen. That is the honest trade off with groundcover roses, and it is why they are affordable in the numbers a mass planting needs.

Tubes travel well because there is little top growth to damage. Plant them straight out, keep the water up for the first month, and expect the first solid flush of flower in the season after planting. Plants are delivered Australia wide, with delivery from $29.95. Every plant is covered by our 30 day healthy plant guarantee.

Plant care guides and related reading

• Browse the full rose range
• Compare groundcover plants
• Low growing plant ideas for borders
• Getting new garden plants established

Common questions

How many plants do I need per square metre?

Three, based on 60cm spacing. In a narrow border a single row at 60cm centres reads as continuous once each plant reaches its full 80cm width.

Does it need deadheading?

No. Old flowers drop on their own and the next flush follows without help. That self cleaning habit is why groundcover roses suit low maintenance planting.

How tall will it actually get?

About 40cm, and it stays there. Growth goes sideways to roughly 80cm rather than upward, so it will not creep over a path edge or shade the plants behind it.