ROSA PIMPINELLIFOLIA MON AMIE CLAIRE – pink landscape shrub rose – Ivan Louette
Mon Amie Claire is a charming botanical shrub rose that You can simply plant and enjoy, even if You have little time for gardening or heavy, moisture-holding soil that needs care with drainage. Bred from tough Scots rose heritage, it forms a naturally compact bush with dense, matt bluish-green foliage and soft pastel blooms that open pale pink, then gently fade to cream-white without harsh bleaching. The semi-double flowers are strongly pollinator-friendly, with easy-to-reach stamens and a clearly perceptible fragrance, bringing bees and other beneficial insects right into a family garden. Because it is sparsely thorned, it is easier to manage along paths and front gardens. Its reliable disease resistant foliage and good heat and drought tolerance keep it looking neat with minimal care, while the profusion of dark, bird-feeding hips extends the season of interest well into winter, giving You long-lasting, quietly elegant structure year after year as it settles fully into place over three seasons.
Use cases
| Target area |
Reason |
| Low-maintenance family front garden hedge |
Forms a bushy, compact line of shrubs with dense foliage that needs only light pruning, ideal where You want privacy and structure without frequent clipping, supporting heavy Irish soils if You ensure good drainage at planting, for the busy home gardener |
| Pollinator-friendly cottage-style border |
Semi-double flowers with exposed stamens and strong fragrance attract bees and other beneficial insects from May to autumn, while the soft pink-to-cream colour blends naturally with perennials and herbs, suiting the wildlife-loving beginner |
| Naturalistic and woodland-edge planting |
Scots rose parentage and strong hardiness down to about -29 °C make it a good choice for relaxed, natural schemes where it can mingle with grasses and wildflowers and still flower reliably, appealing to the nature-inspired gardener |
| Rock garden or sloping bank |
The compact, bushy habit, sparse thorns and dense, matt foliage create a low, anchoring shrub that fits among stones and groundcovers, adding soft pastel flowers without overwhelming the space, ideal for the space-conscious owner |
| Feature shrub near entrance or patio |
Its clearly perceptible scent and pastel blooms give a welcoming, romantic accent beside doors or seating areas, while self-cleaning flowers and decorative, dark rose hips keep it attractive with few tasks, perfect for the time-poor homeowner |
| Urban bed with limited watering |
Good heat and drought tolerance means it copes well with sunny, exposed positions such as front drives or streetside beds, needing only regular watering in prolonged dry spells, fitting the needs of the urban gardener |
| Seasonal interest with birds and wildlife |
The many dark red to blackish hips that follow flowering are both decorative and a valuable food source for birds, extending interest into late autumn and winter in smaller gardens, rewarding the wildlife-friendly family |
| Large container on balcony or terrace |
Performs well in a generous 40–50 litre container, where its compact form, remontant flowering and strong disease resistance provide steady colour and scent with straightforward care on balconies or paved spaces, ideal for the container gardener |
Decorating ideas
- Cottage hedge ribbon – Line a low front boundary with Mon Amie Claire, underplanting with narrow-leaved lavender and peach-leaved bellflower for a soft pink, blue and lilac drift – for lovers of traditional cottage gardens
- Pastel entrance focus – Plant a trio near your front door with a backdrop of cherry laurel ‘Miki’ to highlight the pale blooms and dark hips against glossy green – for homeowners wanting a welcoming first impression
- Rocky coastal feel – Mix Mon Amie Claire into a free-draining rock garden with low grasses and thyme to echo windswept coastal planting, while still suiting Irish conditions – for those inspired by seaside landscapes
- Urban wildlife nook – Combine it with bee-friendly perennials in a small city bed so the remontant, scented flowers and bird-feeding hips turn a tight space into a pollinator stopover – for balcony and townhouse gardeners
- Terrace statement pot – Grow a single shrub in a 40–50 litre container, edging the rim with trailing herbs so flowers, fragrance and hips can be enjoyed up close – for people who relax on patios and terraces
Technical cultivar profile
| Property |
Data |
| Name and registration |
Rosa pimpinellifolia Mon Amie Claire is a botanical landscape shrub rose from the Scots rose group; commercial name: ROSA PIMPINELLIFOLIA MON AMIE CLAIRE – pink landscape shrub rose – Ivan Louette; exhibition category shrub, hedging and park rose. |
| Origin and breeding |
Bred in Belgium in 2005 by Ivan Louette from ‘Stanwell Perpetual’ crossed with a dwarf Rosa pimpinellifolia collected on the Quiberon peninsula, Brittany; detailed registration and introduction years are not available from current records. |
| Awards and recognitions |
Recommended in 2021 by the M.M. Gryshko Botanical Garden Scots rose trials in Kyiv, Northern Ukraine, as a cultivar with high ornamental value and excellent winter hardiness suitable for urban green-space planting schemes. |
| Growth and structure |
Compact, bushy shrub with dense, matt, dark bluish-green foliage and sparsely thorned shoots; forms a harmonious, rounded outline suitable for hedging or specimen use, with good self-branching and an overall balanced, natural habit. |
| Flower morphology |
Semi-double, cup-shaped flowers, typically 13–25 petals and around 4–5 cm across, borne in small clusters of three to five blooms per stem; strongly remontant, producing an initial flush followed by generous repeat flowerings. |
| Colour and phenology |
Soft, pale pastel pink buds and newly opened flowers gradually fade through white to cream-white, giving a light, airy pastel effect; colour holds well in sun, paling gently rather than bleaching; blooms from May and repeats into autumn. |
| Fragrance and aroma |
Described as having a strong, clearly perceptible rose fragrance; the semi-double blooms with exposed stamens combine decorative value with scent, making it suitable for planting near paths, doors or seating to appreciate the aroma. |
| Rose hip characteristics |
After flowering, petals fall cleanly and the plant carries numerous small, spherical hips about 10–15 mm wide, coloured dark red to blackish; hips are decorative, edible in principle and valuable winter food for garden birds. |
| Resistance and hardiness |
Classed as resistant to powdery mildew, black spot and rust, with generally healthy foliage; hardy to around -29 to -23 °C (RHS H7, Swedish zone 4, USDA zone 5a) and well adapted to sunny, exposed or moderately drought-prone sites. |
| Horticultural recommendations |
Suited for hedges, specimen shrubs, rock gardens, wildflower or woodland-edge beds and large containers; spacing about 60–150 cm depending on use; prefers a well-drained soil, low maintenance with only light pruning and occasional feeding. |
ROSA PIMPINELLIFOLIA MON AMIE CLAIRE offers compact, low-maintenance flowering, strong pollinator appeal and decorative winter hips, while its own-root form supports long-lived, reliable growth, making it a reassuring choice to plant when You are ready.
