Rosa chinensis 'Mutabilis': Butterfly Rose

'Mutabilis' China Rose – Color-Changing Blooms

Prized for unusual flowers blooming continuously spring to frost. Single cupped flowers open honey-yellow, become coppery-pink, then watermelon, finally rich mahogany. Reddish-purple disease-resistant foliage, evergreen in warm climates. Can be shrub or trained as climber to 10 feet high, 6 feet wide. Origins mysterious; considered China rose. Suitable as specimen, informal hedge, mixed borders, containers.

Culture

Fertile, moist, well-drained soil in full sun or partial shade. Good air circulation, remove fallen leaves. While dormant: prune lightly or back up to 1/3, reduce side shoots 1/2–1/3. Renovate: prune 1 in 4–5 shoots from base. Propagate by softwood cuttings spring–summer, hardwood cuttings fall. Many potential pests and diseases.

Features

• Color-changing flowers: yellow → copper-pink → watermelon → mahogany
• Continuous bloom spring to frost
• Disease-resistant, evergreen in warm climates
• 6–10 feet tall, 3–6 feet wide

Uses

Beds, borders, cut flowers, hedge, specimen, trellis in cottage and formal gardens.