Cecile Brunner rose is elegantly simple.

Few modern rose cultivars are as tolerant of neglect as Cecile Brunner rose. Furthermore, few recover as efficiently from renovation after many years of neglect. Old overgrown thicket growth that might be unsightly while bare through winter can be spectacular in bloom. Alternatively, it does not mind aggressive pruning, even if only stumps remain. It easily regenerates with fresh new canes.

Bloom is nicely profuse early in summer. The individual fluffy pink flowers are not much more than two inches wide, but are rarely alone. They develop in big and possibly billowy clusters. The faint fragrance is easy to ignore, but appealing to some. After primary bloom, subsequent bloom is sporadic. Green stems are less prickly than stems of most other roses. Foliage is rather light green.

Shrubs are vigorous but compact. They may not get much taller than two feet. Most stay less than four feet tall. However, there are actually a few cultivars that are known as ‘Cecile Brunner’. Those that are most familiar are climbing types that can easily get higher than twenty feet. Their bloom is sparse after profuse early summer bloom. Some might bloom rather profusely again for autumn.

13 thoughts on “Cecile Brunner Rose”

      4. To me, roses are grown for the flowers, rather than as landscape features. The hybrid tea roses that are my favorite are not particularly pretty plants, but excel at bloom. So many of the modern types (that are marketed at ‘Heirloom’) are prettier in the landscape, but not as good for cutting (even though they claim to be). Climbing ‘Cecil Brunner’ is exquisite in the landscape, even if not so good for cutting, but just does not last like it should. Common bougainvillea provides more long term color.

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      5. My dad was so good at growing roses and taught me a lot about their care, but I haven’t had many myself. I do have 3 of those knockout ones from Lowe’s that were given to me as a retirement gift, 3 different shades of pink, and I planted them together. That was 6 years ago. They are definitely a landscape feature, not good for cutting, but they bloom all summer and their first show is amazing. No care roses, that gives me more time to concentrate on growing veggies. 👍 The last couple years as they got thicker, planted in a row, there have been birds nest in them and that’s a fun thing. Last year it was catbirds, and as curious as they are, they were both all around me every time I was out there doing things. 4’ away sometimes, like they weren’t afraid of me at all. I love summer, as you’ve seen from my blog.

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      6. Knockout roses were sent to me for trial. I was not impressed. I prefer roses to be good for cutting. Like you say, knockout roses are landscape features only. They have potential to be useful in some of the landscapes at work, but I am none too keen on them.

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      7. Mine were a gift, so I had to plant them. As they go on, I’m glad to have them for the color and the good place for birds to feel safe to build. I don’t trim them so they’re pretty big and thick.

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  2. It’s very unusual for a rose to be offered as a climber and a shrub, and for them to be different varieties rather than the same one, just pruned differently. This is the only one I can think of.

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    1. They are separate cultivars. Some exhibit slight variations of color, although I have never seen any of those. ‘Climbing Cecile Brunner’ is a sport of the primary ‘Cecile Brunner’. The shrub form supposedly blooms sporadically after the primary bloom phase. The climbing form blooms only sparsely, if at all, after the primary bloom phase.

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