Gertrud Fehrle – pharmaROSA® NEONATAL rooted cutting
Romantic shrub rose material for professional growers who need predictable premium performance in exclusive nostalgia ranges: bush-trained, 3–5 cane own-root cuttings designed for a container route into 5–7 L premium pots, achieving stable, ball-shaped blooms that remontant strongly and deliver a consistently abundant second flush. The dense, dark green foliage and tall, bushy framework provide structural value for themed collections and show displays, while own-root longevity supports homogeneous stands and low replacement in retail-focused production. With winter hardiness suitable for exposed northern projects and reliable cream-white colour expression, this cultivar aligns well with UK nursery logistics and public-realm supply lines. Over a natural arc of root establishment in year one, shoot and framework build in year two, and full ornamental expression from year three, its strong fragrance and nostalgic flower form underpin a credible exclusive finished-product offer for resellers targeting discerning rose customers.
Usage options
Finished-product ideas
- 5–7 L Romantic Feature Shrub – premium cream-white, nostalgically formed shrub finished from bush-trained NEONATAL material into 5–7 L pots, emphasising strong fragrance and tall, bushy habit – target audience/channel: retail garden centres and specialist rose resellers.
- Fragrance Collection Signature Rose – a branded SKU within a scented romantic range, highlighting the strong anise fragrance and very full blooms, produced via a consistent premium container route from own-root cuttings – target audience/channel: fragrance-led retail concepts and catalogues.
- White & Cream Nostalgia Line – colour-themed line built around the cream-white, softly yellow-centred flowers and dense dark foliage, supplied as uniform 5–7 L premium containers – target audience/channel: design-focused retailers and landscapers specifying romantic palettes.
- Hardy Romantic Shrub for Northern Sites – emphasising winter hardiness and structural shrub form, produced on own roots for long-term stability and sold as premium containers ready for public or exposed plantings – target audience/channel: nurseries and wholesalers serving northern and coastal projects.
- Collection Garden Showcase Plant – used as a named romantic cultivar in thematic and show gardens, grown from authenticated NEONATAL propagation for identity security and maintained as a premium container specimen – target audience/channel: rose collections, show gardens, and brandable nursery display ranges.
Technical cultivar profile
| Parameter |
Data |
| Name and registration |
Current trade name Gertrud Fehrle Romantic Rose Schultheis; American Rose Society exhibition name Gertrud Fehrle; nostalgia rose in the Romantic rose commercial group, shrub exhibition category. |
| Origin and breeding |
Romantica shrub rose bred by Christian Schultheis at Rosenhof Schultheis, Germany; parentage ‘James Galway’ × ‘Lucetta’; bred, registered and introduced in 2011 through Rosenhof Schultheis. |
| Growth and structural characteristics |
Bushy shrub habit reaching approximately 160–240 cm in height and 120–200 cm spread; moderately thorny shoots; dense, slightly glossy, dark green foliage gives good structural volume in premium shrub containers. |
| Flower morphology |
Very full, large flowers with more than 40 petals; ball to pompon shaped solitary blooms on stems; remontant with a well-developed second flush, enhancing flowering continuity under professional container production. |
| Colour data and phenology |
Cream-white petals with a soft lemon-yellow centre; newly opened flowers show pale butter-yellow centres that fade; colour retention moderate, with overall creamy tones maintained until petal fall; ARS YB, RHS 155D and 4D. |
| Fragrance and aroma |
Strong, distinctive anise-scented fragrance that is clearly noticeable and characteristic; flower form and scent make it suitable for fragrance-led romantic assortments in premium shrub and container production. |
| Hip characteristics |
Due to very double flowers, hip set is generally poor; where formed, hips are spherical, orange-red, around 6–10 mm in diameter and not expected to be a major ornamental or production feature. |
| Resistance and winter hardiness |
Moderate disease resistance with moderate sensitivity to powdery mildew, black spot and rust; hardiness around -21–-18 °C, RHS H7, Swedish zone 3, USDA 6b, supporting use in colder and more exposed planting areas. |
| Horticultural recommendations |
Medium maintenance requirements with occasional pest control needed; recommended as bush-trained with 3–5 strong framework canes; best routed into premium container production, notably 5–7 L pots for exclusive finished products. |
Gertrud Fehrle offers strongly remontant, cream-white nostalgic blooms on a tall, bushy shrub; as an own-root pharmaROSA NEONATAL cutting it supports long-lived, predictable premium container production stands, making it worth aligning capacities and timelines together.
