Shrub roses for meadow planting

Rosa ‘The Lark Ascending’

An upright David Austin rose, hence the name, which is hardly ever out of flower. Clusters of sunset-inspired, soft apricot-yellow, cupped blooms appear in succession but it’s always airy in form. Lightly fragrant, not very thorny and very disease resistant. Bred by David Austin, 2012. Height 5ft

Rosa ‘Alba Maxima’

Known as the Jacobite Rose, this has fully double, button-eyed white flowers softened by clotted-cream middles. The steely grey foliage is notable and this very old rose is vigorous and longlived. Red hips follow on, so you may want to leave pruning until late winter.

Bred in about 1700. 8ft

Rosa ‘Mortimer Sackler’

This repeat-flowering, pale-pink climber has pointed buds that open to produce large sprays of loosely formed flowers. The thornless stems make it easy to train and the small leaves are very healthy.

David Austin, 2002. 10ft

Rosa ‘Königin von Dänemark’ (syn. ‘Queen of Denmark’)

A willing Alba rose reliably bearing fully quartered, button-eyed silver-pink flowers throughout summer. The dark-pink buds and grey-green foliage create their own summer haze. Booth, 1826. 4ft 9in

Rosa ‘William Lobb’

The Old Velvet moss rose with ruffled, strongly fragrant purple-crimson blooms that fade and grey as they mature. Vigorous and healthy, with softly prickled ‘mossy’ stems. Laffay, France, 1855. 8ft 2in

Rosa ‘Hyde Hall’

A repeat-flowering, exquisitely shaped mid-pink rose that’s extremely floriferous. A hint of sunset-orange inside each flower adds warmth to this large shrub rose and it’s hardly ever out of flower.

David Austin, 2004. 5ft

Gaps in the doors of the Tool Tower allow swallows to nest inside and there are butterflies galore, lured by the meadows