Cardinal Hume – park shrub rose for professional own-root production
Reliability and vigour make Cardinal Hume a practical, low-risk choice for own-root nursery production, combining dense, bushy habit with remontant flowering for sustained landscape value. Its medium-sized, double, lilac‑purple clusters support a clear identity in retail shrub ranges, while the compact, slightly spreading framework suits 2–3 L containers as the standard product path. Onward growers benefit from low-maintenance behaviour backed by very good disease resistance, reducing spray interventions in production beds and finished stock. Own-root longevity underpins long-term bed plantings and hedge projects, supporting homogeneous stands with reduced replacement across seasons. The cultivar’s H7 hardiness and dependable performance help service contracts even in cooler, wind‑exposed parts of the UK, effectively addressing harsher northern and Scottish garden conditions. With a clear finished-product positioning as a “standard finished product” for retail and reseller channels, its stable colour presentation and medium muscat-like fragrance offer a dependable, repeatable proposition. For planning purposes, Cardinal Hume fits the typical own‑root development arc, with roots establishing in year one, framework building in year two and full ornamental impact from year three, supporting predictable scheduling for thematic and collection gardens.
Usage options
Finished-product ideas
- 2–3 L park shrub line – Core shrub SKU based on bush-trained, compact plants with remontant flowering and good disease resistance, released as a standard finished product for continuous bench presence – retail / reseller channels.
- Urban hedge module – Uniform 2–3 L plants grouped and marketed for low-maintenance hedging, leveraging dense foliage, spreading habit and own-root regenerative capacity – public-realm and landscaper supply.
- Collection-garden feature block – Batches of colour-consistent, lilac‑purple shrubs for thematic and collection plantings, built on reliable garden performance and repeat bloom – specialist garden projects and show gardens.
- Large patio specimen container – Up‑potted 2–3 L plants finished in 40–50 L containers to express the full bushy framework, remontant flowering and medium muscat-like fragrance – premium retail and design-led projects.
- Municipal flowerbed shrub unit – Standardised, disease-resistant shrubs ready for bed planting, optimised for low maintenance and stable structure from own-root plants – municipal and institutional procurement programmes.
Technical cultivar profile
| Parameter |
Data |
| Name and registration |
Registered as HARregale, marketed as Cardinal Hume Park - shrub rose HARregale, shrub / park rose type; American Rose Society exhibition name Cardinal Hume, shrub category. |
| Origin and breeding |
Bred by Jack Harkness, R. Harkness & Co. Ltd. (United Kingdom) from complex shrub and Rosa californica parentage; introduced and registered in 1984 for park and shrub use. |
| Awards and recognition |
RNRS Certificate of Merit (1984), providing useful third-party confirmation of garden and display performance for professional users and trade partners. |
| Growth and structural characteristics |
Bushy, slightly spreading shrub, 80–130 cm high with 120–200 cm spread, dense dark-green, slightly glossy foliage, moderately thorny stems; bush-trained, compact habit suited to container production. |
| Flower morphology |
Medium-sized, double flowers with 26–39 petals, cup-shaped, borne in clusters; remontant, producing an abundant second flush of blooms, with moderate self-cleaning that benefits from some manual deadheading. |
| Colour data and phenology |
Deep lilac‑purple tone (RHS 60A outer, 61A inner); opens rich reddish crimson, deepens to dark mauve‑purple, then to dull purplish-brown with silvery-lilac tones; colour holds better in cool conditions than in heat. |
| Fragrance and aroma |
Medium-strength fragrance with a soft, muscat-like character, clearly noticeable around the plant yet not overpowering, contributing to the ornamental value of beds, parks and specimen plantings. |
| Hip characteristics |
Occasional spherical hips, 8–13 mm diameter, scarlet red; not typically a dominant ornamental feature but may add minor seasonal interest where blooms are not fully deadheaded. |
| Resistance and winter hardiness |
Rated H7, hardy to approximately -21 to -18 °C, Swedish Zone 3, USDA 6b; resistant to powdery mildew, black spot and rust, with moderate tolerance of heat and drought given regular watering. |
| Horticultural recommendations |
Recommended for flowerbeds, parks, specimen use, hedges and urban green spaces; standard container route with 2–3 L target pots, low maintenance demands and generally minimal plant protection inputs. |
Cardinal Hume HARregale offers disease resistance, bushy container-friendly growth and own-root longevity for predictable, durable shrub stands; please contact us to align on propagation volumes and delivery scheduling.
