Rosa 'Alexander Mackenzie'

Rosa ‘Alexander Mackenzie’ medium to deep red blooms have a classic look, resembling the blooms of grandiflora, and hybrid tea roses. A hardy Canadian pink climbing rose of the Explore Series, developed by Agriculture Canada. Blooms have a lovely faint raspberry fragrance. The shrub grows vigorously, tall and upright. The foliage opens tinted with red, then matures to darker green. The very full double blooms are up to 3” in diameter, and are born in large clusters. Blooms repeat minimally. This is a great shrub rose for groupings, as a specimen plant, and in a shrub border. An excellent cut flower.  ‘Alexander Mackenzie’ will also make a wonderful pillar rose, climbing to 6 or 8 feet when left unpruned. Will survive to zone 3b without protection, further north protection is necessary. Attracts butterflies. Deer resistant.

The Explorer roses were developed by the Agriculture Canada research stations in Ontario and Quebec. Although the program no longer exists, a number of excellent roses during its life. The Explorer roses range in size from under 3 feet to large shrubs over 6 feet to climbers up to 9 feet. Most of these hybrids have semi-double blooms and are commonly in shades of pink or red. Some are highly fragrant, and others have no fragrance. Most are repeat bloomers and exhibit good disease-resistance.