Lying silent and still in the dead of the night, the thoughts of ways to improve your landscape come to mind. Though the property lines are close together, the current landscape makes you feel miles apart inside. Is your yard too small? Is the fence too high? Is your flower garden not bright? Though many roses are pretty, those stems can hurt you. But what if I told you, not every rose has its thorn.

Perhaps you are not familiar with the famous Peggy Martin rose (Rosa ‘Peggy Martin’). Do not let the lack of thorns on this plant fool you into questioning its toughness; however, as the story of this plant reflects the resilience of the city it is forever associated with. Following the tragedy of Hurricane Katrina, Peggy Martin of Plaquemines Parish returned to her home to observe what two weeks’ time under twenty feet of saltwater had done to her property. Few plants survived the harsh reality of what took place, with what would then be named the Peggy Martin rose literally rising from the still soaked surface. Its tenacious twining habit and bountiful blooms offering inspiration for a still reeling region.

Hardy from zone 4-9, this sun-loving plant is renowned for its fragrant, luxuriously deep pink blooms that appear in spring (and sometimes even rebloom in fall on mature specimens). Peggy Martin roses are well known for being climbers, gracefully adorning trellises, walls, fences, and any structure within proximity, adding some vertically vibrant color and character. These roses are typically 6-15’ in height and width, depending on pruning style and the desired training form. Perhaps one of its most sought after, albeit less showy, traits is the thornless stems. While the back of the leaves can be described as slightly prickly, the thornless canes are a welcome feature for the ungloved gardener. Peggy Martin roses are generally low maintenance plants, typically not one to be concerned about with pests and disease, so poison might not be on your playlist. A complete fertilizer applied in both spring and fall as well as some supplementary irrigation in times of drought is recommended for this rose. Pruning to remove dead and damaged canes should be performed in late winter after the worst of the cold weather is finished, and cuts made to coerce the canopy to the desired shape can also be done at this time.

The ease with which Peggy Martin roses can be trained vertically, provide stunning aesthetics, and not pose a prickly predicament for plant enthusiasts makes this southern staple ideal for the landscape. An inclusion on the Spring 2023 Louisiana Super Plant list, many gardeners across the South would say Peggy Martin roses are “nothin’ but a good time”, thinking “How can I resist?”.

~Dr. Damon Abdi and Dr. Jeb Fields

Peggy Martin Roses growing in the New Orleans Botanical Gardens.