Rose (Rosa 'Distant Drums') in the Roses Database

Distant Drums is a rose everyone should grow. The color is distinct from any other rose, and the scent is strong and a bit unusual, more like licorice.
I grow this in zone 6/7, without winter protection, and my mother successfully grows it in zone 5 without protection or any spray regimen. For us, the shrub stays small, under 4'. It blooms until the end of season, sometimes into November.

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Distant Drums is categorized as a mauve blend, but it resembles many of the russet roses in my garden. The brick-red buds open to reveal blooms with a copper center and lavender outer petals. These age to an enchanting combination of smoky mauve and beige.

This is one of the roses Dr. Buck hybridized with an eye to color rather than disease resistance, and it is prone to black spot in my garden. It is one of the few Buck roses regularly available in grafted form, however, and my grafted Distant Drums is easily three times the size of my two own-root Distant Drums bushes. It has an anise scent, which may not appeal to everyone.

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A very unusually colored rose, it stands out in my garden. Survives zone 5 winter with mulch protection. Got about 3' tall and bloomed generously 2nd year in the ground.

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