Perfect patio pots
For something shorter to grow in a pot on the patio, there are few roses healthier than ‘Princess Anne’, which has the glossiest stems and leaves in spring that look like they’ve been given a morning polish each day! The ruffled, plum-purple flowers show many beautiful shades of pink and purple as they age and they just keep coming week after week in summer and early autumn on a sturdy bush that grows to 1.3m (4⅓ft) tall. Cutting the stems back a bit when deadheading can keep it shorter if necessary. While this is a short shrub with large flowers and leaves, there are also purpose-bred ‘patio roses’ with small leaves and flowers that will rival summer bedding plants for colour without the need for yearly replacement! One with good disease resistance is ‘Pretty Polly’, which flowers all through summer with pink ‘button-hole’ blooms, starting out crisply against very glossy foliage. It grows to 60cm (2ft) tall.