Walk into a nursery and you’ll see rows of tags. Peace. Mister Lincoln. Knock Out. It feels like a lot. But then you look at the botanical records and realize we are actually drowning in petals. If you’re asking how many different types of roses are there, the answer depends entirely on who you’re talking to and how much coffee they’ve had.
A botanist will tell you there are about 150 to 300 species in the Rosa genus. That sounds manageable. But then the American Rose Society (ARS) drops a bombshell: there are over 30,000 recorded varieties, or "cultivars." Honestly, even that is a lowball estimate. New hybrids pop up every single year while old, forgotten garden roses linger in abandoned cemeteries, waiting to be rediscovered.
Roses are weird. They mutate easily. They cross-breed like crazy. Because of that, the "official" number is always moving.
The Three Big Buckets
To make sense of the chaos, the rose world uses three main categories. It’s not a perfect system, but it helps.
1. Species Roses
These are the OGs. They are the wild roses that grew long before humans started messing with them. Most have five petals. They usually bloom only once a summer. Think of the Rosa rugosa or the Rosa gallica. They are tough as nails. They don't need you. They grow in ditches and on sand dunes, and they'll probably outlive us all.
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2. Old Garden Roses
This is where things get romantic and incredibly confusing. To be an "Old Garden Rose," the variety must have existed before 1867. Why 1867? Because that’s when the first Hybrid Tea rose, 'La France,' was introduced.
This group includes:
- Albas: Very old, very white or pale pink, very fragrant.
- Damasks: These are the ones used for rose oil and perfume. They smell like a dream.
- Centifolias: Also called "Cabbage Roses" because they have so many petals (sometimes 100) they look like a head of lettuce.
- Moss Roses: They have a weird, pine-scented fuzz on the stems that feels like moss. It’s kinda sticky.
3. Modern Roses
This is everything after 1867. These are the roses you see at the supermarket or in most suburban front yards. They were bred for one thing: repeat blooming. While an Old Garden Rose might give you a spectacular show in June and then quit, Modern Roses keep going until the frost hits.
Why the numbers are so hard to pin down
You’d think we’d have a better count by now. We don't.
One reason is the "lost" roses. Throughout the 19th century, breeding was a massive trend in Europe. Thousands of varieties were named, sold, and then forgotten when the next big thing came along. Sometimes, a "new" discovery in an old garden turns out to be a variety that hasn't been seen in 150 years.
Then there’s the naming problem. A rose might have one name in France, another in the UK, and a trademarked marketing name in the US. The rose 'KORbin' is sold as 'Iceberg' in most places, but it's the same plant. When you're trying to figure out how many different types of roses are there, these duplicates inflate the numbers and give researchers a massive headache.
Hybridization is another factor. Most modern roses are the result of centuries of mixing genes from across the globe. We took the hardiness of European roses and mixed it with the repeat-blooming "remontant" traits of Chinese roses (Rosa chinensis). The result is a genetic soup.
Classification by growth habit (The stuff you actually care about)
If you aren't a botanist, you probably don't care about 1867. You care about what the plant does in your garden.
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Hybrid Teas are the classic "long-stemmed" roses. One flower per stem. Very elegant. Very finicky. They get black spot if you look at them wrong.
Floribundas are the workhorses. They produce clusters of flowers. If a Hybrid Tea is a solo violinist, a Floribunda is the whole damn orchestra. They are generally shorter and bushier.
Grandifloras were created because people couldn't decide. They are a mix of the two above. They grow tall like Hybrid Teas but have clusters like Floribundas. The 'Queen Elizabeth' rose is the most famous example. It’s a beast of a plant.
Climbers don't actually climb. Not like ivy. They don't have tendrils. They just grow really long canes that you have to tie to a fence or a trellis. If you don't tie them, they just flop over and look sad.
Shrub Roses are the catch-all. This is where the famous David Austin "English Roses" live. They look like old-fashioned roses but bloom like modern ones. This category also includes "Landscape Roses" like the Knock Out series, which are basically indestructible hedges that happen to have flowers.
The scent factor
Not all roses smell. It's a tragedy, honestly.
In the rush to breed roses that last two weeks in a vase or resist every fungus on the planet, the scent gene often got tossed out. Scent is chemically expensive for a plant to produce. If the plant is putting all its energy into thick petals and disease resistance, it doesn't have much left for perfume.
However, if you go looking for Old Garden Roses or specific modern breeders like David Austin or Meilland, you'll find smells you didn't know existed. Some smell like myrrh. Some smell like citrus or tea or even green apples.
The rarest of them all
People love to talk about the "Blue Rose." It doesn't exist. Not naturally. Roses lack the delphinidin pigment required to produce a true blue. Anything you see labeled as a blue rose is either a light purple (like 'Blue Moon') or has been genetically modified in a lab using pansy genes (like the 'Suntory Blue Rose Applause').
Then there’s the Juliet Rose. It’s famous for being the "£3 million rose" because that’s how much David Austin spent breeding it over 15 years. It’s a peach-colored masterpiece. It’s not rare because it’s hard to grow; it’s rare because of the sheer investment it took to bring it into the world.
How to choose from the 30,000
It is overwhelming. Don't just buy what looks pretty in the picture.
- Check your zone. A delicate Tea rose from the 1800s will die in a Minnesota winter.
- Be honest about maintenance. If you aren't going to spray for fungus every two weeks, do not buy a finicky Hybrid Tea. Get a Shrub rose or a Rugosa.
- Think about space. Some climbers will hit 20 feet. Some miniatures stay at 10 inches.
- Visit a local rose garden. See what's actually thriving in your specific climate.
Practical Next Steps
Stop looking for a single number. The world of roses is too big for that. Instead, start your own collection by identifying your "must-haves."
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If you want the highest fragrance, look into Damask or English Shrub roses. If you want a plant you can't kill, look for Rugosas or Knock Outs. For the history buffs, hunt down an Apothecary's Rose (Rosa gallica officinalis), which has been grown for medicinal purposes since the Middle Ages.
Log your finds. Use an app like PictureThis or iNaturalist when you see a rose you like in the wild. Check the ARS database if you want to see if a specific name is officially recognized. The deeper you go, the more you realize that 30,000 isn't a burden—it's an invitation to find the one plant that fits your life perfectly.