Enhance Rosa glauca in your garden with colorful PNW plant pairings

WHAT IF YOU could grow a rose that offered nine months of gorgeous foliage and a fountainlike presence in the garden, with delicate blooms and ornamental fruit for wildlife? Rather than strain credulity — who’s going to believe in a rose with clean foliage and multiple seasons of shifting interest? — it’s probably easier to think of blue-leaf rose (Rosa glauca) as a handsome shrub worthy of prime placement in any garden.

Blue-leaf rose, formerly called redleaf rose (Rosa rubrifolia), is a species rose with arching, nearly thorn-free canes clothed in striking foliage. New growth, both stems and leaves, emerges flushed with burgundy before maturing to a dusky blue green in summer. Bloom season produces clusters of small, lightly fragrant, deep pink roses with a pale center. The flowers are fragile and fleeting, but that’s OK, because the ruddy fruits that follow are the main attraction, especially in late summer, when the foliage transitions to burnished gold. Even after leaf-drop, the showy hips persist on the canes like winter’s own ornaments until resident birds have their fill.

Speaking of wildlife, over on Vashon Island, garden designer Jil Stenn complements a graceful stand of Rosa glauca with dwarf purple barberry (Berberis thunbergii f. atropurpurea), a prickly barrier that also deters browsing deer. ‘Concorde’ is an especially compact barberry with deep burgundy foliage that holds throughout the summer before turning crimson in fall, together with the ripening rose hips.

Rosa glauca is a sturdy, disease-resistant plant that grows 6 to 8 feet tall. Provide well-drained, even sandy, soil in full sun. It’s drought-tolerant once established, and occasional summer water during long dry periods keeps the foliage and hips looking their best. Pruning stems to the ground every five years or so in early spring encourages strong upright canes and maintains the plant’s arching rounded form.

I’m a firm believer that a good plant is even better with good company, which is another way of saying: more plants. Rosa glauca is a garden colorist’s dream. For a garden picture that starts out quiet before kindling with autumn color, combine blue-leaf rose with equally tonal plants. Sicilian honey garlic (Nectaroscordum siculum) is a hardy ornamental onion that blooms in late spring. Slender 3-to-4-foot stems topped by pendant umbels of ivory, grayed wine and green echo the subtle coloration of the rose.

The hot pink flowers of bigroot geranium (Geranium macrorrhizum) repeat those of the rose in early summer, while the matlike foliage of the sturdy perennial fills any gaps left when the honey garlic goes dormant. Boost summer interest with colorful switchgrass (Panicum virgatum). A clumping grass that kicks into growth with warm weather, ‘Shenandoah’ produces an upright stand of blue-green foliage that begins taking on ruby tips in July. Then, just as the hips on the rose are maturing, the switchgrass turns a deep wine, topped by a haze of tiny dark red seed heads.

Looking for a punchier combo? Try skirting the rose with Geranium Rozanne®, a hardy geranium that blooms from June until frost with waves of saturated purple-blue flowers. Round out the planting with finely textured threadleaf bluestar (Amsonia hubrichtii). Native to North America, this long-lived perennial produces clouds of icy blue blossoms in summer against feathery green foliage that later turns brilliant gold in fall before going dormant.

It’s worth noting that all the plants mentioned above are Great Plant Picks selections, chosen for their excellent performance in Pacific Northwest gardens. Now it’s your turn to play the color game.