Rose Harlow Carr

‘Harlow Carr’ is a jewel-like English Rose that combines classic Old Rose charm with outstanding modern garden performance. Its small, perfectly formed blooms - opening as neat cups and maturing into rosette-shaped flowers with a button eye - glow in an even, mid rose-pink and release a strong, pure Old Rose fragrance, often likened to fine rose cosmetics. Exceptionally healthy and disease-resistant, it forms a vigorous, beautifully rounded shrub that flowers freely from early summer well into autumn, with blooms carried right down to ground level. Bronze-tinged young foliage and an Old Rose character throughout add to its appeal. Don’t be misled by the modest flower size - ‘Harlow Carr’ rewards generously, making it one of the most reliable, elegant, and fragrant roses for today’s gardens.

DESCRIPTION OF THE VARIETY

FLOWERING

‘Harlow Carr’ is a repeat-flowering rose, blooming in flushes from late spring through autumn. After an initial heavy flush in June (in temperate Northern Hemisphere climates), it re-blooms continually until autumn, often up to first frosts in October-November. The flowering is very abundant and almost continuous. It is not unusual to have flowers on this rose even as late as November in mild years. Importantly, it flowers along the entire length of the canes (not just on top of the flowering branches), which contributes to its outstanding display. Bloom frequency is enhanced by deadheading.

Each flower is medium-sized, about 6 - 7 cm in diameter on average (approximately 2.5 inches). In ideal conditions blooms can reach up to 9 cm (3.5″) across, but remain smaller than many classic hybrid teas or larger English Roses. The bloom form is very full and shallowly cupped. Petal counts are often cited around 120 petals. The flower shape initially is a tight, rounded cup with incurving petal edges, they start as delightful little cups and later develop into a classic quartered rosette with a button eye at the center. In full bloom, it resembles miniature old Centifolia roses. The button eye adds to its Old Rose character. Blooms are borne mostly in small clusters of about 3 - 7 blooms together per inflorescence, sometimes solitary on strong shoots. They are well-distributed along the canes, often appearing almost to ground level on the plant. This gives a very floriferous effect: in peak flush, a mature ‘Harlow Carr’ can appear smothered in pink rosettes from the base to the top of the plant.

The flower color of ‘Harlow Carr’ is described as a pure medium rose-pink, a soft yet saturated mid-pink tone. The Royal Horticultural Society’s description calls it “pure rose-pink”. In horticultural color charts, this would fall into an intermediate pink group (e.g., RHS Colour Chart around Red-Purple Group 68C to 68D, though an official RHS number was not published in sources). The petals may show a slightly lighter reverse or paler edges as they mature, but overall the bloom maintains its clear pink without fading or muddling. The flowers of this rose retain their color until they finish. Under normal growing conditions the variegation is not observed on the flowers of this rose.

The petals of this rose variety drop cleanly and the plant self-cleans, so even without meticulous deadheading the shrub remains attractive. This self-shedding trait keeps the shrub neat and continually sets new buds for the next flush.

Fragrance:

The fragrance of ‘Harlow Carr’ is exceptionally strong, and firmly of the Old Rose character. It has a rich damask-rose scent often described as the quintessential “rose perfume” reminiscent of classic rosewater or antique rose attar. Notably, The Guardian garden columnist James Wong places ‘Harlow Carr’ among the top picks for classic rose fragrance, underscoring it as a must-have for those who love the rich “old rose floral scent”. While the scent is predominantly that deep rose essence (due to damaskene and related alcohols common in old roses), some noses detect subtle notes of cloves or myrrh in cool weather.

PLANT

The rose variety ‘Harlow Carr’ is classified as a Shrub rose and is part of David Austin’s English Shrub Roses collection, this denotes a complex hybrid lineage combining heritage rose traits with modern remontant blooming. It shares lineage characteristics with the Shrub class in the broad sense, but also embodies the Old Rose hybrid aesthetic.

The growth character of this rose is bushy, compact, and well-branched, maturing into a neat, rounded shrub about 90 - 120 cm (3’ - 4’) tall and wide. The canes are of medium thickness, freely branching, and armed with numerous prickles. Young shoots often have a bronzy or reddish tint on the stems and new leaves. Notably, in the first couple of years the stems can be somewhat lax, especially under heavy bloom or rain, with the slender young stems bend toward the ground. As the plant matures, however, it develops stronger canes and forms a pretty rounded plant that blooms from top to bottom. The mature habit is broadly spreading but not overly tall, making it suitable for foreground plantings and even large containers. In classification terms, it is an rather English Old Rose hybrid, carrying the grace of old Centifolia or Damask ancestry but on a smaller, more manageable framework.

Foliage:

There is a normal quantity of the foliage on the plants of this rose variety. The foliage is deciduous, arranged alternately on the stems. The number of leaflets on normal mid-stem leaves is usually 5 with instances of 7, including the terminal leaflet. Emerging leaves are often bronze-tinted or reddish, a trait inherited from Old Garden Rose genetics. They mature to a medium green color with a semi-glossy to matte finish. The leaves are somewhat reminiscent of old Rosa gallica or centifolia types – broad, with serrated edges and a textured surface - contributing to the Old Rose look of the plant.

Prickles:

The prickles are present on stems of all ages, moderate in size but very abundant. Gardeners note that ‘Harlow Carr’ is extremely thorny, so heavy gloves are recommended when pruning. The prickles have medium green colour when they are young maturing to grayish brown as they mature.

Disease resistance:

Rose variety ‘Harlow Carr’ quickly was broadly recognized as very healthy, it has strong disease resistance, especially to common rose maladies like black spot (Diplocarpon rosae), powdery mildew (Podosphaera pannosa), and rust (Phragmidium spp.). In the garden, its foliage remains clean deep into the season, even by autumn. Part of this resilience is attributed to breeding - Austin’s later generations of English Roses, such as this 2004 introduction, benefited from selection for black-spot resistance. ‘Harlow Carr’ shows minimal defoliation from black spot even in humid summers, and only minor susceptibility to mildew in extremely droughty or crowded conditions (no major issues reported in open sources).

Its winter hardiness also contributes to plant health; it can tolerate cold down to about –15 °C (5 °F) with minimal damage, meaning it can survive winters in USDA Hardiness Zone 5 and, with protection, Zone 4. The cultivar is additionally noted as heat-tolerant as for English rose - an important stress trait for warmer climates, it has performed well even in Mediterranean climates where some English Roses falter; its blooms do not ball in high humidity and the color holds in strong sun.

The cultivar name ‘Harlow Carr’ is a tribute to RHS Garden Harlow Carr, a famous public garden in Harrogate, North Yorkshire. The naming was in celebration of the RHS’s 200th anniversary (1804–2004). David Austin’s catalog confirms: “Named after the Royal Horticultural Society’s garden in Yorkshire, to celebrate the 200th anniversary of the society’s formation.”. The choice of this name underscores the rose’s British pedigree and ties to horticultural excellence, as RHS Harlow Carr is known for its extensive rose gardens and trials.

English Shrub Roses

ORIGIN OF THE VARIETY

Rose variety ‘Aushouse ’ / 'Harlow Carr' originated by David Austin by crossing the unnamed seedling with the English shrub rose variety ’Ausman’ / ‘The Countryman’.

BACKGROUND OF THE VARIETY

Austin’s aim in that generation of roses was to create more compact, hardy English Roses with true Old Rose fragrance and reliable repeat bloom. In ‘Harlow Carr’, these goals converged. Austin himself expressed that this rose “is almost the ideal English Rose of gem-like beauty”. By using ‘The Countryman’, known for its strong scent and old-fashioned form, he ensured fragrance and introducing a smaller flower size, while improving health and disease resistance and repeat flowering. The result was a rose that did not need the large size often associated with intensely fragrant varieties.

COMPARISON WITH PARENTS

Rose ’Ausman’ / ‘The Countryman’ itself is a medium pink English Shrub Rose with an Old rose form. Genetically, ‘Aushouse ’ / 'Harlow Carr' has a rich heritage: through ‘The Countryman’, it carries Gallica and Damask heritage (from ‘Comte de Chambord’, an 1860 Damask Perpetual) and modern Floribunda influence (from ‘Lilian Austin’, a prior Austin rose with some modern genes). David Austin has mentioned that ‘Aushouse ’ / 'Harlow Carr' belongs to the old Centifolia line of English Roses, characterized by rosette blooms and Old Rose scent, which often involve ‘Comte de Chambord’ descendants.

COMPARISON WITH THE CLOSEST COMMERCIALLY AVAILABLE CULTIVAR

Distinguishing ‘Aushouse ’ / 'Harlow Carr' from similar cultivars is useful given the large Austin catalog of pink English Roses.

  Its compact size and small bloom set it apart from larger David Austin pinks like ‘Gertrude Jekyll’, which is taller, with bigger blooms. Compared to ‘Gertrude Jekyll’, rose ‘Aushouse ’ / 'Harlow Carr' has smaller flowers and a lighter pink hue, but both share an intense Old Rose fragrance. Notably, ‘Aushouse ’ / 'Harlow Carr' tends to be healthier; ‘Gertrude Jekyll’ is very fragrant but can be blackspot-prone later in the season, whereas ‘Aushouse ’ / 'Harlow Carr' stays clean.

 Another contemporary is ‘Rosemoor’, introduced the same year - ‘Rosemoor’ has larger, deeper pink blooms and a strong myrrh-rose scent, on a somewhat bigger shrub (up to 150 cm (5 feet)). By contrast, ‘Aushouse ’ / 'Harlow Carr'’s blooms are nearly “miniature” by Austin standards, but produced in greater abundance; David Austin noted gardeners should not overlook it “simply because the flowers are small”, as its myriad “gem-like” blooms create a massed effect.

 In terms of floral form, the quartered rosette of ‘Aushouse ’ / 'Harlow Carr' with a button eye is reminiscent of some old Centifolia dwarfs like ‘De Meaux’ and ‘Petite de Hollande’ - in fact, Austin explicitly likened it to those 18th-century miniatures. Among Austin’s later pinks, one could confuse it visually with ‘Olivia Rose Austin’, another medium pink rosette, but Olivia Rose has a sweeter, lighter fragrance and glossier foliage; ‘Harlow Carr’ retains the pure damask scent and has a more matte, grey-green leaf.

 Another comparison is ‘Princess Anne’ which is also compact and healthy, but her blooms are a distinct cherry-pink and of different form.

USDA 5