PRINCESS HITOMI – pink tea hybrid rose - Kunieda
With its soft pastel blooms and reliable remontant flowers, PRINCESS HITOMI offers a wonderfully romantic focal point for smaller Irish gardens. This upright hybrid tea forms a neat, medium-sized bush that fits easily into front beds and around patios, keeping your planting pleasantly orderly rather than overgrown. The flowers open in charming, very double, cupped heads that hold their colour beautifully, lightening only slightly in strong sun for a consistently elegant display. Own-root stock supports a long-lived, steadily maturing plant that you can simply plant, water and let it grow, even where soils stay heavy and moisture lingers after rain. Over time you can enjoy stems long enough for cutting, bringing its medium-strength scent indoors for fragrant bouquets without needing a professional cutting garden. While basic care such as deadheading and occasional plant protection is helpful, its balanced growth, dense, glossy foliage and premium selection rating keep everyday upkeep manageable for busy gardeners. In a 2‑litre pot the plant is already well rooted and ready to settle, focusing on roots in year one, stronger shoots in year two and its full show of ornamental value by year three, giving you quiet confidence that this rose will become a graceful long-term feature by your home.
Use cases
| Target area |
Reason |
| Front garden specimen by the entrance |
The upright, medium-sized bush forms a tidy, vertical accent that does not overwhelm a small space, giving a welcoming, romantic feel right at the gate or doorstep with minimal shaping, ideal for busy beginners |
| Small group planting in cottage-style beds |
Planted in groups of three to five, the soft pink, cupped flowers repeat in waves, creating a classic cottage look without needing complex combinations; the consistent height makes borders easy to plan and enjoy for home gardeners |
| Cutting corner in an average family garden |
Hybrid tea stems with very double blooms and medium fragrance allow you to cut a few stems for the house through the season, giving a “florist-style” effect from a compact bed that still leaves room for play and seating for family owners |
| Border edging near patios or seating areas |
Its neat spread and upright habit provide a refined, low hedge effect around terraces; the dense, glossy foliage keeps the border looking finished even between flushes, suiting paved or gravel seating spaces for urban households |
| Mixed planting with perennials in heavier Irish soils |
Own-root plants adapt gradually to local soil and care, giving stable, long-term structure even where ground stays wet after rain, especially when planted with drainage-conscious companions, reassuring for Irish gardeners |
| Feature rose in a romantic pastel-themed bed |
The uniform, sugar-glazed pink blooms hold their colour well, lightening only slightly in strong sun, so your pastel palette stays harmonious over the season, working beautifully with whites and soft blues for style-conscious owners |
| Rose bed for long-term, low-fuss enjoyment |
As an own-root, medium-maintenance hybrid tea, it builds a durable framework over the years; with regular watering and simple deadheading it keeps flowering reliably, making rose growing feel achievable for casual gardeners |
| Large container on a bright, sheltered patio |
In a 40–50 litre container with good drainage, this upright rose offers vertical interest and repeat blooms close to the house, coping well with damp Atlantic air when positioned to avoid waterlogged compost, practical for balcony owners |
Decorating ideas
- Cottage Welcome – Place a trio of PRINCESS HITOMI by the front path with Alchemilla mollis and lady’s mantle edging to echo the soft pink blooms – for lovers of traditional Irish cottage entrances
- Pastel Patio – Grow one plant in a 40–50 litre terracotta pot with lavender and dwarf rosemary nearby, using the rose as a scented focal point – for compact urban patios and balconies
- Romantic Ribbon – Line a short garden path with spaced PRINCESS HITOMI plants and underplant with Calamintha grandiflora ‘Elfin Purple’ – for homeowners wanting a refined, gently fragrant walkway
- Calm Corner – Combine this rose with low Lonicera nitida ‘Maigrün’ and pale hydrangeas in a corner bed to create a quiet, contemplative seating area – for families seeking a relaxing garden retreat
- Cutting Nook – Dedicate a sunny strip with three PRINCESS HITOMI bushes and simple foliage fillers for an easy home-cut flower source – for beginners hoping to bring their own roses indoors
Technical cultivar profile
| Characteristic |
Data |
| Name and registration |
PRINCESS HITOMI, hybrid tea rose, exhibition tea hybrid, trade name Princess Hitomi Hybrid tea rose Kunieda; American Rose Society approved exhibition name: Princess Hitomi; female given-name cultivar meaning. |
| Origin and breeding |
Bred by Kunieda Keiji, Rose Farm Keiji, Shiga Prefecture, Japan; bred 2018 and registered 2018 in the central ICR; introduced 2019 by Wabara as a premium hybrid tea selection. |
| Awards and recognitions |
Recognised in cut-flower and exhibition circles with SAF Blue Ribbon and SAF Red Ribbon awards, reflecting high-quality bloom form and presentation suitable for show and floristry use. |
| Growth and structure |
Upright hybrid tea shrub, 95–125 cm high with a 50–70 cm spread; moderately thorny canes, dense, medium-green, glossy foliage, forming a tidy, vertical garden presence over time. |
| Flower morphology |
Very double, cupped blooms with over 40 petals, small flower size around 0.5–1.5 inches; borne mainly in clusters; remontant flowering with a generous second flush in suitable conditions. |
| Colour and phenology |
Soft pastel pink with a uniform, pure tone; buds pale pink to off-white, opening creamy pink, then sugar-glazed pink at full bloom, slightly paler at petal edges, with only slight lightening in strong sunlight. |
| Fragrance and aroma |
Medium-strength fragrance with a pleasantly spreading scent suited to planting near paths, doors or seating areas, and for use as cut flowers indoors where its perfume can be appreciated. |
| Rose hip characteristics |
Occasionally forms hips of negligible size, effectively 0 mm diameter; hips are not a significant ornamental feature and usually do not influence pruning or decorative planning. |
| Resistance and hardiness |
Hardy to approximately −21 to −18 °C (USDA 6b, RHS H7, Swedish zone 3); disease resistance moderate overall, with good black spot resistance but moderate susceptibility to powdery mildew and rust. |
| Horticultural recommendations |
Best in full sun with regular watering in dry spells; medium maintenance, benefits from deadheading and occasional plant protection; spacing 50–90 cm depending on use, 3.3–3.8 plants per m² for mass plantings. |
PRINCESS HITOMI offers romantic pastel blooms, an upright, space-saving habit and reliable repeat flowering on long-lived own-root plants that gradually settle into your garden, making it a reassuring choice if you are considering a new rose.
