A Buyer’s Guide to the Rose Field: New Varieties for 2026
Hello gardeners. My name is Mary. I've been part of the tree and shrub team here at Sky for years, and as Sky Nursery's Rose Buyer, it's been my honor (and great challenge) to select each of the 314 varieties we will carry this year. For some, I fell immediately in love with the color or the blossom form; others, with their heavenly perfume or ease of care, or all of the above!
So I thought I'd pull together some of the varieties I am most excited to see this year, featuring special and brand new varieties, either to the industry as a whole, or specifically to Sky.
If you find it difficult to choose the right rose for you from our list, don't worry! I always want to remind folks that ANY member of the tree and shrub team is both experienced and excited to talk roses with you. Each of us has our own stories dealing with different growing conditions and space for these special plants, and we want to help you succeed in your own back yard.
On the other hand, if you already know exactly which roses you want, we try to make your selections super easy to find. It's no mistake that our rose field is organized exactly the same as our printed rose list, with 'classic roses' first (hybrid teas, floribundas, and grandifloras), followed by minis, then general shrub roses, then Knock Out shrub roses, rugosas, groundcover roses, climbing roses, and last but not least, David Austin and tree roses.
Within each section, the roses are alphabetized with picture signs, (*Psst!* The signs also give you ratings for fragrance and disease resistance –a key detail for NW gardeners to know how much work may be needed to care for a given variety)– as well as grower info tags on each individual plant.
Without further ado, I am excited to share with you a few of my favorites from the twenty-seven new (or new-to-Sky) rose varieties we are receiving this year! Fresh off the field from some of our trusted growers, these roses are making their debut in the garden industry, and you never know, one might just be the perfect fit for you!
This year, roses are expected right around Valentines Day weekend. *How romantic!* Sign up for our short and sweet notification email when they are ready for sale.
'Nothing But Class'
Weeks Roses | Hybrid Tea
This classy dark pink rose has a compact bushy form that is upright yet with less height than other hybrid teas. This makes it perfect for the patio or landscape. It has an aromatic-sweet-fruity scent and re-blooms throughout the season with elegant spiral blooms. It’s a great cut flower option. On top of everything else, it has great disease resistance!
'Fashion Forward'
Weeks Roses | Floribunda
This rose has medium pink and white bicolor blooms with a 'cuppy,' quartered shape that takes the old fashioned/English rose style to the next level! The bush has a slightly spreading growth habit that makes a handsome splash in the landscape or in a container. With its strong scent (fruity with notes of citrus) and abundant blooms, a few cut stems will give you an outstanding vase of roses for your home.
'Living the Dream'
Weeks Roses | Grandiflora
Truly a rose that lives up to its name, with large, old-fashioned cuppy quartered blooms that starts as a yellow-gold aging into blushes of magenta. It’s so full, it can reach a petal count of 160! And its intense fruity/citrus aroma can be enjoyed from quite a distance. Living The Dream re-blooms throughout the season, making it an ideal rose for cut flowers, and the dream continues, with great no-fuss disease resistance.
'Warm & Fuzzy'
Weeks Roses | Miniature Rose
This lovely little rose is a 'moss rose' variety known for the fuzzy texture of it's flower buds. (which I find adorable and satisfying, especially since the blooms have a fun juniper/musk fragrance that also comes from the buds if you rub them together gently. This variety was originally introduced by Weeks Roses in 2009, but it has now been 'improved' to prevent the petals from fading or turning blue as the even-toned red blooms age. It has a slightly taller growth height than other miniature roses, maxing out at two feet, and very good disease resistance.
'Light Years Away'
Weeks Roses | Floribunda
From a nebula far, far away comes this comet of a rose, whose dark magenta-colored blooms can reach a count of 100+ petals each, in an old-fashioned, spiraled bloom pattern. With supernova disease resistance and out-of-this-world fruity fragrance, your garden will shine all the brighter! Light Years Away's re-bloom rate is excellent too, giving you endless blooms to enjoy throughout the season, both outdoors and in. (We recommend cutting entire clusters of flowers instead of individual stems with this one.)
'Martha Stewart'
Star Roses | Hybrid Tea
If you were to dream up a rose reminiscent of the 90s home/crafting/cooking queen herself, you'd probably end up somewhere near this delicate apricot and ballerina pink number here. An elegant and BRAND-NEW-to-the-industry rose with classic cupped blooms and a citrus honeysuckle fragrance that will have your garden smelling lovely and bright. Large, full blooms come in flushes from late spring to fall. A highly graceful form, with solid disease resistance, and excellent performance in cut flower arrangements. Quintessential Martha. 
'Purple Aura'
Star Roses | Floribunda
This purple-magenta hued rose blooms in a flourish of clustered, classically shaped blooms with an intoxicatingly warm, spicy, cinnamon, clove fragrance. If you prefer a bold splash of color and very good disease resistance in your garden, this may be a great choice for you.
'Scarlet Drift'
Star Roses | Groundcover Rose
A bushy groundcover variety with low-growing, dense' hedge like foliage that can be very useful in a variety of garden settings. Scarlet Drift is the earliest blooming rose in the beloved Drift series! Though this won't be the most fragrant rose you've ever encountered, it offers excellent disease resistance, especially to powdery mildew, a typical blight in the humid PNW summer.
'Barbra's Baby'
Certified Roses | Hybrid Tea
Developed by Barbra Streisand in her own home rose garden, this rose is a pink 'sport' of the dulcet-red rose Lasting Love (which we are also carrying this year). It has the intense fragrance, pointed buds, and classic form of its parent variety, but with an even more alluring color combination of deep pink with a golden-yellow base.
DAVID AUSTIN ROSES
'Tottering-By-Gently'
David Austin Roses | English Rose
This rose was introduced in England several years ago, but this is the very first year we could score some here at Sky! Its beautiful buttery-yellow blooms have a soft musky fragrance of orange-peel. And, if you're looking to attract more bees to your garden, single petaled varieties like Tottering-By-Gently are more supportive because they offer easier access to pollen! This rose is a great choice for gardeners looking to brighten up shadier or part-sun areas, and it also would perform well in a vibrant hedge border. So totter gently by the Sky rose field this season and into spring, or take a gander at our rose list, to see our 17 other David Austin roses, in stock this year!
Despite our creative team patiently asking me to choose a favorite rose for 2026, I find it nearly impossible to pick just one. *sorry guys!* There are so many things I love about each of them, especially after spending hours pouring over rose catalogs. But, if I absolutely had to, I'd say that the upgraded Warm and Fuzzy is near and dear to my heart. I just can't get over their unique, fuzzy buds and the fragrance!
Again, as for a rose ETA, it changes every year! The vast majority of our product is grown locally in the northwest, but some of our further afield rose shipments have been delayed by winter storms in other parts of the country. Click here to sign up for a quick email from us as soon as they arrive and are ready to shop.
If you're looking for more care advice, you can get a good breakdown of basic northwest rose care on our website here, or as always, come in and speak to us out in the Tree and Shrub yard. We're always here to help.
Written by Mary in Trees & Shrubs, Sky Nursery Rose Buyer
Please Note: We are not able to offer special orders or requests for roses not included on the rose list. Variety selection is made with careful consideration and deliberation alongside each of our trusted rose growers, and is based on current industry trends, appropriate and availability.