QUEEN OF BOURBONS – pink historical Bourbon rose - Mauget
If You dream of a romantic, old-world rose that still behaves like a reliable garden shrub, QUEEN OF BOURBONS is a graceful historic Bourbon that suits today’s Irish family gardens. Its upright, generous stature and dense, dark green foliage form a naturally elegant backdrop around the home, while the once-a-year summer display of mid-pink, cup-shaped blooms creates a truly memorable highlight. The strongly perfumed flowers fill paths and seating areas with a rich, classic rose fragrance, offering an especially romantic atmosphere on warm evenings. This own-root plant settles in steadily over time, giving You a long-lived, stable shrub that can regenerate well and stay attractive with modest effort. With good planting preparation it copes reliably with typical Irish wet weather and heavier soils needing careful drainage, so You can enjoy a characterful, low-fuss rose that fits calmly into everyday garden life. In the first year it concentrates on roots, the second on shoots, and by the third it shows its full ornamental value.
Queen of Bourbons with a strong, classic rose fragrance.
Queen of Bourbons in different flower-opening stages.
Queen of Bourbons shows a cup-shaped, semi-double bloom.
Use cases
Target area
Reason
Front garden focal shrub
The tall, upright habit and dense foliage make an immediate visual anchor near your entrance or along a driveway, giving a composed, traditional look without fiddly shaping, ideal for a low-effort yet characterful welcome for homeowners.
Romantic cottage-garden border
QUEEN OF BOURBONS flowers once in summer with abundant, mid-pink, cup-shaped blooms that echo classic cottage gardens, pairing beautifully with perennials while keeping maintenance modest, especially rewarding after its three-year establishment for beginners.
Lightly shaded side garden
This rose tolerates partial shade, so it suits side passages and north-east aspects where full sun is limited, still forming a strong, leafy framework and fragrant flower display, a reassuring option for urban-gardeners.
Informal flowering hedge
Planted at hedge spacing, its 150–260 cm height and good disease resistance create a leafy, flowering screen that needs only basic pruning, giving privacy and seasonal interest with relatively little work for busy-families.
Low-intervention rose bed
Resistant to common fungal diseases, this cultivar keeps its foliage attractive in typical Irish humidity, so You can enjoy a historical rose planting with fewer sprays and simpler care, especially suitable for time-poor gardeners.
Feature plant in clay-based borders
Given improved soil and good drainage, it adapts well to heavier Irish garden soils, building a deep root system and long-lived framework, a sound choice when You want a rose that will settle and last for decades.
Mixed shrub and perennial schemes
The semi-double, clustered flowers and dark foliage blend easily with shrubs like Cornus and perennials such as Salvia, providing height and structure that mature steadily, bringing dependable shape to mixed plantings for planners.
Large container near seating area
In a minimum 40–50 litre pot with quality compost and careful watering, it can be grown close to a terrace where its strong fragrance and summer flush are most appreciated, though exposure to strong Atlantic winds and rain may still require some shelter for balcony-owners.
Decorating ideas
Cottage Rose Archway – Train QUEEN OF BOURBONS loosely over a rustic obelisk with Salvia nemorosa at the base to echo its pink tones – for fans of soft, romantic cottage borders.
Historic Front Door Frame – Plant a pair either side of your path, underplanted with low lavender for scent and contrast – for homeowners wanting a traditional, welcoming entrance.
Rural Hedge and Meadow Edge – Use as an informal hedge backed by mown grass and dotted with wildflowers, letting the once-a-year bloom mark midsummer – for country gardeners who enjoy naturalistic structure.
Elegant Clay-Border Anchor – Combine with Cornus alba 'Spaethii' and Helichrysum italicum to set off its pink flowers against gold foliage and silver-grey leaves – for design-conscious gardeners seeking year-round interest.
Perfumed Seating Nook – Place one in a large container near a bench, partnered with fragrant herbs, to create an intimate summer scented corner – for small-garden owners who value atmosphere over quantity of plants.
Technical cultivar profile
Attribute
Data
Name and registration
QUEEN OF BOURBONS is a historic Bourbon rose, also traded as a historic rose by Mauget; an unregistered cultivar without an official registered name but with verified authenticity for garden use.
Origin and breeding
Originating in France in 1834, bred by Mauget from a ‘Rose Edouard’ seedling, this Bourbon rose was first distributed by Exotic Nursery in Australia in 1851 and now offered as a historic garden shrub.
Growth and structure
Vigorous, upright shrub reaching around 150–260 cm in height with a 110–200 cm spread, moderately thorny stems and dense, slightly glossy dark green foliage forming a substantial, garden-structuring plant.
Flower morphology
Semi-double, medium-sized 1.5–2.75 inch cup-shaped blooms in clusters with 13–25 petals, flowering once in summer rather than repeating, creating a concentrated seasonal display rather than continuous blooming.
Colour and phenology
Fresh mid-pink with a slight mauve undertone; buds are deep pink, opening to stronger outer petals and paler centres, then gradually lightening so that petal edges become almost cream before the blooms fade.
Fragrance and aroma
Strong, full-scented rose perfume with a rich, classic character, especially noticeable around seating areas and paths, ideal where fragrance is more important than maximum flower count or pollinator attraction.
Rose hip characteristics
Rose-hip production is generally low, but the plant may occasionally bear 15–25 mm pear-shaped, orange-red hips, adding a discreet late-season accent without creating heavy fruit loads.
Resistance and hardiness
Demonstrates good resistance to powdery mildew, black spot and rust, with hardiness to about -26 to -23 °C (H7, USDA 5b), giving reliable performance in cool, damp Irish climates with modest care.
Horticultural recommendations
Suitable as specimen, hedge or bed rose; prefers improved soil with good drainage, tolerates partial shade, moderate heat and only moderate drought; low overall maintenance and best planted at generous spacings for longevity.
QUEEN OF BOURBONS offers richly scented historic pink blooms, low-maintenance growth and long-lived own-root reliability, making it a thoughtful choice if You want a classic rose that simply settles in and performs with steady grace over the years.
Detailed product attributes
Product Identification Data
Product Name:
QUEEN OF BOURBONS – pink historical Bourbon rose - Mauget
Product Type:
pharmaROSA® ORIGINAL - 2-litre own-root potted rose
Flower Colour:
Fresh, vibrant mid-pink shade with a slight mauve undertone.
Closed Bud:
Deep pink with a slightly mauve tone and a glossy surface.
Freshly Opened Flower:
Outer petals are a strong pink, the inner parts paler with delicate pink veining.
Full Bloom:
Medium pink, the petal centres fade while the edges remain a slightly darker shade.
Pre-Fading Flower:
Faded, light pink, fading to an almost cream colour at the edge.
Colour Fading Description:
As the bloom opens, the mid-pink tone gradually lightens; before the flower fades the petal edges become almost cream-coloured.
Pollinator Attraction:
Relatively unattractive to pollinators; double or fully double flower forms and concealed stamens reduce nectar and pollen accessibility, lowering insect visitation.
Pollinator-Friendly Rating:
Due to its semi-double flowers it is only limitedly pollinator-friendly and is not very attractive to pollinators.
Our product is a rose grown with unique pharmaROSA® cultivation technology!
2 litre, own-root, potted rose.
With shoots appropriate to the season.
With roots thoroughly interwoven through the growing medium.
Quality in line with the requirements of the E.N.A. (European Nurserystock Association).
In unique packaging that prevents damage.
Can be planted during frost-free periods.
True-to-type rose plant with an individual identifier.
The pharmaROSA® own-root potted rose is a well-rooted plant that supports reliable establishment when planted and cared for properly, so it can be planted whenever the soil is not frozen.
Stock: several varieties and several stages of development in a short stock section.Shoot system: intensive growth of fresh basal shoots on a young plant.Root system: presentation of the strong root system interwoven through the growing medium with the pot removed.Balance: mature plant where the development of the root system and the shoots is in harmony.
Information about the videos
The video series is not a “seasonal showcase”, but makes the essence of pharmaROSA® own-root production tangible: how the plant is built, what the root system is like and how the shoots renew themselves. The footage was therefore taken at different times, showing plants at different stages of development, so mixed leaf coverage or differing growth stages may appear in the videos. This is not a “sample” of the batch delivered, but an illustration of how the technology works. The current condition of the rose available to order — typical of the given period and similar to what you can expect to receive in the parcel — is shown at the top of the product page.
Pages for private customers Garden roses for the family garden, with minimal care → ORIGINAL® Premium garden roses – instant impact, a truly showpiece garden → EXTRA® Pages for professionals and private customers Roses for public spaces – large areas, sustainable maintenance → NATURAL® Roses for projects – hedge and row planting, fast implementation → RAPID® For professional partners only Production – propagation material for garden roses, wholesale → NEONATAL®
Company details
PharmaRosa Ltd. Company registration number: 01-09-717479 VAT number: 13075314-2-43 Plant health registration no.: HU130721 Bank account (IBAN): HU85117631891388688400000000 BIC (SWIFT): OTPVHUHB Bank name: OTP Bank Nyrt.
