Petticoat® – cream-coloured bedding floribunda rose – KORgretaum
If You want a rose that quietly performs in real Irish conditions, Petticoat® is a charming, upright floribunda that combines reliable flowering with healthy, glossy foliage and a neat, compact habit that suits everyday family gardens. Its creamy, peach‑tinted rosette blooms repeat generously, helping You keep borders looking polished from early summer onwards, even when the weather is changeable and the soil tends towards heavy clay that needs thoughtful drainage. Bred by Kordes and ADR‑listed for strong garden performance, Petticoat® offers durable health and winter hardiness, giving confidence that it will stay attractive for many years. As an own‑root plant it builds up slowly and steadily, forming a well‑balanced bush that recovers more easily from damage and pruning than grafted roses. In a normal garden setting You can enjoy a graceful, cottage-style look without fussy routines: plant, water, mulch and give it standard seasonal care. Over time its bushy, flower‑laden framework becomes a dependable feature of the front garden, maturing from strong roots in year one, through fuller shoots in year two, to its best display and stable ornamental value by year three – a gently evolving, romantic presence that simply works.
Use cases
| Target area |
Reason |
| Front garden focal bed by the path |
The upright, bushy habit and medium height create a tidy, welcoming line of creamy rosettes that stays in scale with low walls and small lawns. Low maintenance needs and reliable repeat flowering make it ideal for busy homeowners and beginners |
| Small rose groups of 3–5 plants |
Planted in loose groups, the rosette blooms merge into a soft, billowing mass of cream and peach, giving a strong visual effect without advanced design skills. The floribunda flowering style ensures colour even if individual stems are cut for the house, suiting learners and time-poor |
| Edging for mixed cottage-style borders |
The dense, dark green foliage forms a solid, low hedge‑like edge that frames perennials and herbs while hiding bare soil. Good disease resistance reduces spraying and fuss, ideal where You want classic cottage character with modern ease for families |
| Ornamental beds in small to medium family gardens |
Recommended spacings allow You to fill typical suburban beds neatly, creating structured, long‑lived plantings that do not outgrow their place. Own‑root resilience and good hardiness mean the bed improves year after year, reassuring cautious and budget |
| Coastal and exposed urban front gardens |
The sturdy, erect growth and solid foliage canopy stand up well where wind funnels along streets or from the sea, provided the soil is improved for better drainage on heavier ground. This gives a smart look with limited effort, helpful for coastal |
| Low-maintenance park-style group plantings at home |
Square or hexagonal planting densities make it easy to recreate simple park bedding schemes in a private garden. Once established, only light pruning and seasonal feeding are needed to maintain a carpet of bloom, which appeals to practical, low‑input gardeners |
| Large containers on patios and balconies |
In a minimum 40–50 litre container, Petticoat® forms a compact, upright shrub that flowers repeatedly without taking over limited space. Own‑root growth adapts to pot life, making it a dependable long‑term feature for small patios and balconies, ideal for urban |
| Long-term rose borders with shrubs and perennials |
The combination of ADR-level health, winter hardiness and own‑root longevity makes it a sound backbone plant for mixed rose borders that should look good for many seasons. Planting Petticoat® among shrubs and perennials supports a stable, evolving display for planners |
Decorating ideas
- Cream-and-lavender ribbon – Line a front path with Petticoat® interplanted with low Nepeta x faassenii for a soft cream and lavender edging that stays tidy and easy-care – ideal for busy householders
- Cottage trio – Group 3 roses with Knautia macedonica 'Red Knight' and a loose grass for a romantic cottage border that flowers for months with little extra work – perfect for beginners
- Park-style island bed – Plant Petticoat® in a simple oval island bed, using recommended spacing to create a park-like mass of bloom that needs only light pruning each winter – great for time-poor families
- Balcony statement pot – Use one plant in a 40–50 litre terracotta container, underplant with trailing thyme for a neat, fragrant focal point that copes well with urban exposure – suited to apartment dwellers
- Soft cream hedge – Create a low flowering hedge along a drive, combining Petticoat® with Caryopteris 'Grand Bleu' behind for blue and cream layers that look refined without complex care – ideal for small suburban gardens
Technical cultivar profile
| Characteristic |
Data |
| Name and registration |
Floribunda bed rose, registered as KORgretaum, traded as Petticoat® Flowerbed rose KORgretaum; ARS exhibition name Petticoat. Part of the Flowerbed rose collection; shrub rose and exhibition floribunda category. |
| Origin and breeding |
Bred by Tim-Hermann Kordes, W. Kordes’ Söhne, Germany, from cross ‘Margaret Merrill’ × unknown seedling. Breeding year 1993; introduced 2004, EU registration 2004, US plant patent in 2006. |
| Awards and recognitions |
ADR rose 2004, indicating strong garden performance and health. Honourable Mention at Hradec Králové (2007) and Certificate of Merit at Australian National Rose Trials (2007), confirming international ornamental value. |
| Growth and structure |
Upright, bushy habit with dense, dark green, glossy foliage, moderately thorny shoots. Typical height 85–115 cm, spread 70–95 cm, forming a compact, well-branched shrub suitable for beds, edging and medium-height rose groupings. |
| Flower morphology |
Medium-sized, very double rosette flowers with over 40 petals, produced in clusters. Remontant flowering with generous early flush followed by abundant second bloom. Cluster-flowered habit gives strong visual effect in beds and group plantings. |
| Colour and phenology |
Creamy white outer petals with a pastel peach to peach-cream centre. Buds greenish-cream with peach tip, fading as blooms open to near white. Colour retention is very good, with gradual lightening and a soft, elegant appearance at full bloom. |
| Fragrance and aroma |
Fragrance is very weak and only barely noticeable, with a classic rose-like character rather than a strong perfume. Best chosen where visual impact, flower form and health are more important than scent in the overall garden composition. |
| Rose hip characteristics |
Produces moderately abundant orange-red hips, spherical and 6–10 mm across. Decorative in late season, adding subtle colour and seasonal interest if spent flowers are left on the plant instead of being deadheaded. |
| Resistance and hardiness |
Good overall disease resistance; resistant to powdery mildew and rust, moderate against black spot. Hardy to approximately −21 to −18 °C (RHS H7, Swedish Zone 3, USDA 6b), offering reliable overwintering in most Irish garden situations. |
| Horticultural recommendations |
Low maintenance; needs only minimal pruning and standard seasonal care. Suitable for beds, parks, groups and edging. Recommended spacing: 65 cm for mass planting, 55 cm for hedges, 100 cm as specimen; density 2.5–2.9 plants per m². |
Petticoat® Flowerbed rose KORgretaum brings reliable repeat flowering, compact easy-care growth and long-lived own-root resilience to family gardens, making it a sound choice when You want a beautiful rose that simply fits into everyday life.
