Come early summer, a Sally Holmes rose covers itself in broad clusters of peachy buds that open cream and fade to white. This vigorous rose can fill an open bed or climb a support with broad clusters of changing color.
What Is the Sally Holmes Rose?
Sally Holmes is a hybrid musk rose that behaves as a large shrub or a small climber. Its flowers are single, with 4-8 petals, and they open in big clusters. The buds start soft peachy pink, open a creamy cantaloupe shade, and age to white, with gold stamens at the center.
In Pacific Northwest gardens it reaches 8-10ft. high. The spread there is 6-7ft., which tells you to leave real room around it. Elsewhere, mature height is given as 6-12 feet, so check the plant tag for the size in your region.
That size gives it several jobs in a yard:
- A climber on a fence or wall
- A pillar rose beside a path or entry
- A tall shrub that runs between other perennials
From the almanac
Roses in your state
The dates on this page depend on where you live. Your state's page carries its frost dates, its USDA zones and the year laid out month by month.
Northeast
Southeast
- Alabama
- Arkansas
- Delaware
- Florida
- Georgia
- Kentucky
- Louisiana
- Maryland
- Mississippi
- North Carolina
- South Carolina
- Tennessee
- Virginia
- West Virginia
Midwest
Southwest
West
Pacific Northwest
Canada
Where Does the Sally Holmes Rose Grow Best?
Sally Holmes is rated for USDA zones 5 – 9. It is vigorous, repeat-flowering, and resistant to disease.
- Puget Sound and the Willamette Valley: It stays vigorous and keeps repeating in a region where damaging rose diseases are common.
- Upper Midwest and Great Lakes: check with your local county or provincial extension office for zone guidance.
- Gulf Coast: check with your local county or provincial extension office for zone guidance.
Check with your local county or provincial extension office to see if your area falls within the range. The state selector just below this section takes you to the page for your own state.
How to Care for the Sally Holmes Rose Through the Year
Spring
Watch the canes as the weather warms. Once buds swell and leaves begin to show, you can see which canes came through winter alive and which dried out.
Pruning
Sally Holmes flowers prolifically and repeat-blooms.
Bloom
The first flush arrives in early to mid summer, with the clusters opening peach and cream. Flowers on one stem fade at different times, so a cluster often holds several colors at once.
Summer
Between flushes, the job is steady water at the base and a thick mulch layer. Skip overhead watering where you can, since wet leaves invite trouble even on a resistant rose. Keep an eye on long new canes and tie them in before wind whips them.
Autumn
A second round of flowers comes in early autumn, and the bloom season runs from June to October in many gardens. Keep deadheading through that flush. Stop feeding once the weather cools, so the canes harden and are not pushed into soft new growth.
Winter
Sally Holmes Rose Diseases and Weak Points
Disease is where this rose earns its reputation. In the Pacific Northwest, it does not succumb to the damaging diseases that plague roses in the region.
Sally Holmes handles a number of common rose problems well.
| Threat | How Sally Holmes handles it |
|---|---|
| Black spot | Resistant |
| Mildew | Resistant |
| Damaging rose diseases of the Pacific Northwest | Does not succumb to them |
The weak points are mostly about space and fragrance. It needs room to reach its full size, and a plant that large needs a sturdy support if you train it upward. The scent is only slight, so look elsewhere if you want a rose you can smell from across the yard.
Is the Sally Holmes Rose Right for Your Yard?
It suits a yard with a wall, fence or open bed to fill, and a gardener who wants a repeat-blooming, disease-resistant rose. It is a poor fit for a small patio pot, or a spot where you want strong fragrance.
- Pick a spot with room for a plant that grows tall, then leave space around it so air can move.
- Look at your state page for the pruning and planting months that fit your climate.
- Set up a trellis, fence wires or a pillar if you want to grow it as a climber.
Common Questions
Does the Sally Holmes Rose Have a Scent?
Only a slight one. It will not perfume a whole patio, but it is gentle enough to sit beside without being overwhelmed.
What Do the Flowers Look Like Up Close?
Each bloom is single with 4-8 petals, buff to creamy white, with gold stamens in the middle. They open in large clusters, so the effect is of a mass of flowers rather than individual roses.
Does Sally Holmes Need Staking to Climb?
Yes. It can be grown as a climber if properly staked, so give the canes a fence, trellis or pillar to lean on and tie them in as they lengthen.