Buying Roses
Best Roses for Beginners
The best roses for beginners are tough, disease-resistant, repeat-blooming shrubs that forgive mistakes — Knock Out, Drift, Bonica, Iceberg, and reliable David Austin varieties like Olivia Rose Austin.
If you are new to roses, start with varieties bred for resilience rather than for the show bench. These plants resist disease, bloom repeatedly, and shrug off imperfect care while you learn.
Standouts include the Knock Out and Drift series for sheer toughness, Bonica and Iceberg for dependable landscape performance, and disease-resistant English roses such as Olivia Rose Austin for old-rose beauty without the fuss. Give any of them full sun, decent soil, and a yearly prune, and success is almost guaranteed.