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Growing David Austin’s ‘Abraham Darby’ Rose

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Abraham Darby

Please note this post has been edited since it’s original posting. Although we still grow ‘Abraham Darby’, ours consistently shows problems with blackspot after the first flush of blooms which is very frustrating and sadly, this rose may have to go.

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‘Abraham Darby’ is cross between ‘Aloha’ and ‘Yellow Cushion’. It’s blossoms have a strong, fruity-sweet scent.

Named for Abraham Darby I, a man who played an important role in the Industrial Revolution, Austin introduced this rose in 1985 as a cross between the modern roses ‘Aloha’ and ‘Yellow Cushion’.

‘Abraham Darby’ has large, double, cupped blooms which are rather heavy and may need support such as being trained on a pillar.

‘Abraham Darby’ is described as a “well-formed shrub” reaching height/width of 5 feet with good disease resistance and repeat bloom. The blossoms are large, (approximately 5″ across), and are full, double, cupped, and have a strong fruity-sweet scent. I’ve seen Abraham Darby being listed as hardy to zones 5-10 and 4-8. Our garden is safely in zone 6.

‘Abraham Darby’ is described as being resistant to black spot and mildew, but susceptible to rust. (In our garden, we have not see the rust but do have problems with blackspot.)

‘Abraham Darby’ has very dense, thick growth. I sometimes have to get in there and prune away some of the canes in the center of the plant to give it more air circulation. The leaves are bright green and glossy; even when not in bloom, this is an attractive plant. It recovers quickly from pruning and with dead-heading will continue to bloom all season.

‘Abraham Darby’ makes beautiful cut flowers and last a long time in a vase. Sometimes they are borne singly and sometimes in clusters.

The roses are so large and heavy that they droop on the plant, and with the addition of it’s also somewhat arching canes,  it’s former placement in the garden at ground level meant that the roses couldn’t be fully enjoyed. I transplanted our ‘Abraham Darby’ into a very large pot in early spring so now the roses are at eye-level, and the canes can flow for a pleasing, billowing appearance. If you choose to grow this rose yourself, I highly recommend training it to a pillar or placing it in a container as I did. You will get much more enjoyment out of it!

‘Abraham Darby’ is a shrub rose but can be trained to climb. It blooms on new wood so should be pruned early in the season.

‘Abraham Darby’ blooms on new wood, so pruning early will encourage new growth and lots of flowering. Roses are heavy feeders, so I give ours plenty of organic material to grow in and feed them regularly during the growing season.

‘Abraham Darby’ is a David Austin creation and can be purchased HERE.

‘Abraham Darby’ Postcards can be purchased in my shop. SOLD OUT

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  2. I fell in love with Abraham Darby a few years ago while touring a rose garden in Maryland. When I designed and planted my own Austin garden last fall, I placed Abraham Darby in the center, like the sun in our solar system, to be the star of the garden. He’s still small (as are all the other roses around him, having only been in the ground for six months) but he has put on growth and has already flowered twice. I can’t wait to see what he will do as he matures!

  3. Abraham Darby is a lovely rose. This is an Austin I do not grow. Not sure how it would do in my Deep South garden. Beautiful pictures.

    1. Thanks Chris! Hmm, I’m not sure, but it might be worth giving a try. 😉

  4. I was just given an Abraham Darby rooted cutting from a co-worker. How soon can I expect to see it blooming? I live in sourthern California. I planted the cutting next to my ice-bergs roses where they get morning sun and shade all afternoon. Thank you, Norma

    1. Hi Norma! Lucky you to have received a cutting of ‘Abraham Darby’! I think you will love this rose. I’m not sure how long it will take before you start seeing some regular blooms, but young roses can flower right away, for example: Last summer I took a cutting from ‘Dr Van Fleet’ (which incidentally is in Abraham Darby’s family tree) and it gave me 1 pretty blossom only weeks after it took root. With my other baby roses, I usually don’t see regular blooming until they are 2 or 3 years old. Good luck!

  5. Beautiful photos of your Abraham Darby. I have a one-year-old Abraham Darby rose which blossomed spectacularly last year, even though we had a cool summer. It is a vigourous rose!
    I live in St. John’s, Newfoundland (Canada), which is on the ocean , so the winter isn’t too cold, but we do get snow for several months. Abraham made it through the winter and is looking pretty good, but not as advanced as my other roses. My zone is 5b.

    1. Thank you Cynthia! I’m a little jealous you live by the ocean. 😉 ‘Abraham Darby’ is a really special rose–definitely one I like to recommend to anyone wanting to try growing roses in a container. That’s really good to know that it’s hardy to zone 5b…thank you for sharing!

  6. love love LOVE my A.B. in Portland OR. Purchased Spring 2011 from Heirloom Roses and it is a stunner this year, full of fragrant and beautiful flowers!

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