9 Recommended Roses for Clay Soil

Clay soil can be tough on gardeners. When it comes to growing roses, clay soil presents some specific obstacles. Some roses have a reputation for being demanding, but that’s somewhat circumstantial. By choosing the right type for your environment, they can actually be fairly easy to grow. 

The primary issue with clay soil is poor drainage. Clay particles are small, and they compact easily and tightly. This compacting makes it difficult for water to drain properly, which increases the risk of root rot. It also causes the soil to remain colder in the spring. This delays germination and early growth. 

How to Improve Your Clay Soil

The purpose of amending clay soil for roses is to improve drainage and aeration. It’s also beneficial in boosting biological activity and soil structure. 

The hardest part of the process is breaking up the soil to begin with. Dry clay is hard and challenging to work with, whereas wet clay is slippery and presents its own set of challenges. It’s essential to time it correctly in relation to the weather. If you do it during a drought, you’ll quickly exhaust yourself. Conversely, if you do it just before a significant rainfall, it can revert before you have the chance to finish. 

The sweet spot is after rain, when the water has drained, but before the clay hardens again. This will be the easiest and most effective time to break up the soil for amending. You’ll save yourself a lot of frustration if you time it right. 

Make sure that you’ve finished your work before another heavy rain, or you’ll end up back at square one. This is a project you should aim to complete in a weekend, if possible. Once you start, it’s best to finish as quickly as you can.

After you’ve broken up the clay, mix in generous amounts of organic material; there are many materials that are great for this purpose. Compost and manure are the most common materials used to amend clay; however, leaf mold and shredded bark are also suitable options for this purpose. You may already have these in your yard, which is a definite plus. 

Cover crops are also great for bolstering the receptiveness of clay soil for roses. The roots help to aerate, and the organic matter mixed in will loosen it up. These methods all encourage the presence of other organisms that are beneficial to soil structure, such as earthworms and beneficial microbes. 

Once amended, you’ll want to maintain a healthy soil structure. Mulching regularly is an excellent way to do this. Top dressing with compost yearly is also advantageous. Now, let’s take a look at some beautiful roses that will thrive in your clay soil.

‘Blanc Double de Coubert’

	botanical name Rosa rugosa ‘Blanc Double de Coubert’
	sun requirements Full sun
	height 4’-7’
	hardiness zones 4-9

‘Blanc Double de Coubert’ is a wonderful old-fashioned rugosa rose. These are excellent choices for clay soil, and once established, are exceptionally low-maintenance. Rugosas have vigorous roots that break through clay with ease. They are more tolerant of occasional wet conditions and have good resistance to fungal diseases. 

This award-winning plant is a stunning, upright grower with tons of large, white, semi-double blooms. Under ideal conditions, it’s a constant bloomer from early summer to frost. This incredible heirloom received the Award of Garden Merit from the Royal Horticultural Society. The flowers are fragrant, and the hips that follow are large and beautiful. 

‘The Generous Gardener’

	botanical name Rosa ‘Ausdrawn’
	sun requirements Full sun
	height Up to 10’
	hardiness zones 5-9

This David Austin rose is precisely what we can expect from the king of rose breeding. ‘The Generous Gardener’ is a repeat bloomer with Old Rose charm and form. Introduced in 2002, it is also a recipient of the RHS Award of Garden Merit. It has the qualities of both an English rose and a modern hybrid. Its vigor makes this rose compatible with clay soil. 

‘The Generous Gardener’ is a large shrub or short climber with a bountiful blooming habit. The large, soft pink blooms have a strong, classic fragrance with undertones of musk and myrrh. Amend your soil with plenty of compost to keep this one happiest. It has great fungal disease resistance. 

‘Bonica®’

	botanical name Rosa ‘Bonica 82’
	sun requirements Full sun to partial shade
	height 3’-4’
	hardiness zones 4-9

Floribunda roses grow well in clay soil as long as you prepare it well for proper drainage. They are tough and adaptable, performing well with an abundance of nutrients that clay offers. Once established, they tolerate heavy soil better than modern hybrids. 

‘Bonica®’ is a pretty, compact Floribunda with glossy, dark green foliage. This serves as the perfect backdrop for the abundant sprays of lovely pink flowers. The blooms are semi-double and have a light fragrance. It’s a winner of the Award of Garden Merit, as well as the 1997 World’s Favorite Rose. 

‘Therese Bugnet’

	botanical name Rosa x ‘Therese Bugnet’
	sun requirements Full sun to partial shade
	height 5’-7’
	hardiness zones 3-9

‘Therese Bugnet’ is a hybrid rugosa. As is the case with their heirloom parents, these roses are sturdy and vigorous. They’re well known for their exceptional cold tolerance and adaptability to poor soil conditions. This is an ideal cultivar for those with clay soil in northern climates, where many roses struggle to survive the harsh winter conditions. 

This variety has pretty foliage and produces fragrant, double blooms in a perfect shade of shell pink. ‘Therese Bugnet’ has an upright growth habit and blooms repeatedly from June until frost with proper care. This variety will grow as far north as Zone 3 and features beautiful, showy hips that brighten the autumn garden.

‘Zephirine Drouhin’

	botanical name Rosa ‘Zephirine Drouhin’
	sun requirements Full sun to partial shade
	height 6’-15’
	hardiness zones 5-11

Bourbon roses are well suited for clay soil, and they’re tolerant of warm climates, as well. For those of us in the South, this is an outstanding cultivar. ‘Zephirine Drouhin’ is a stunning Bourbon climber that is thornless and adaptable. It’s popular for use in challenging environments, such as urban settings and shaded gardens. 

Introduced in France in 1868, ‘Zephirine Drouhin’ has incredible staying power. Because it’s thornless, it’s popular for use in arches, walkways, and other high-traffic areas. It’s able to bloom well with fewer hours of sunlight than most. It repeatedly produces an abundance of gorgeous, rose-pink, double blooms from late spring until frost.

‘Queen of Denmark’

	botanical name Rosa ‘Konigin von Danemark’
	sun requirements Full sun to partial shade
	height 4’-6’
	hardiness zones 3-9

Alba roses are another type that is well-suited to clay soil. They’re also cold-tolerant, with excellent hardiness and the ability to bloom well in partial shade. ‘Queen of Denmark’ is a spectacular cultivar featuring beautiful, blush-pink, fully double blooms. It only blooms once a year, in early to mid-summer. 

‘Queen of Denmark’ is disease-resistant and elegant, with a long history. It’s tough and tolerant, with vigorous roots. It’s also resistant to common fungal diseases, such as black spot and powdery mildew. The beautiful pink flowers have a strong, rich, old rose fragrance.

‘Peggy Martin’

	botanical name Rosa ‘Peggy Martin’
	sun requirements Full sun
	height 10’-15’+
	hardiness zones 5-11

Sweet ‘Peggy Martin’ is my very favorite climbing rose. With the dense Georgia red clay I contend with, roses can be difficult. But not ‘Peggy Martin.’ This climbing polyantha is rugged and tolerant, with excellent disease resistance. The vigorous root system does a great job of breaking through dense, clay-heavy soil. 

‘Peggy Martin’ is a substantial plant growing to 15 feet or taller. It’s a repeat bloomer, but the spring bloom is the most spectacular. This pretty plant flowers like crazy right around Easter. It’s incredibly easy to care for and resilient. It is a perfect choice for beginners with clay soil.

Knock Out® ‘Peachy’

	botanical name Rosa ‘Radgor’
	sun requirements Full sun
	height 3’-4’
	hardiness zones 4-11

Knock Out® roses are famously popular for their low-maintenance nature and continuous blooming habit. They are adaptable and tolerant of poor soil conditions and have excellent disease resistance. This series is popular among those who need a low-maintenance rose that blooms continuously.

‘Peachy’ is an excellent Knock Out® variety. It flowers abundantly from spring through fall. The petals are perfectly pink, with a yellow glow from the inside that gives them a peachy hue. It’s a multi-award-winning cultivar with great heat tolerance. 

‘New Dawn’

	botanical name Rosa ‘New Dawn’
	sun requirements Full sun to partial shade
	height 10’-15’
	hardiness zones 4-9

‘New Dawn’ is a vigorous and dependable vining variety. Gardeners love it for its dependability and tolerance of less-than-ideal conditions, including clay soil. It has a long flowering season with a strong spring flush and repeat blooming through the fall. It’s typically grown as a climber but also makes a nice shrub.