Thorny / Spiny
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Century Plant · Agave americana A massive architectural rosette of thick blue-grey leaves armed with sharp spines and a vicious terminal spike, crowned after decades by a towering branched flower stalk. A bold drought-proof sculptural plant. -
Dwarf Japanese Barberry · Berberis thunbergii 'Atropurpurea Nana' A compact thorny deciduous shrub with rich burgundy-purple foliage that intensifies to fiery red in autumn. Its dense prickly growth makes a low barrier hedge or colour accent. -
Paper Flower · Bougainvillea glabra A thorny, vigorous evergreen climber celebrated for its dazzling, long-lasting papery bracts in vivid magenta and purple surrounding tiny white true flowers. Thrives in heat and revels in poor, dry soils. -
Great Bougainvillea · Bougainvillea spectabilis A robust, large-growing climber armed with stout thorns and clothed in showy crimson, red and orange bract clusters over a very long season. A spectacular subtropical screen for hot, sunny positions. -
Peruvian Apple Cactus · Cereus repandus A tall columnar blue-green cactus with prominent ribs and spined areoles, opening large fragrant white night flowers followed by edible red fruit. A bold vertical accent and living hedge in dry gardens. -
Silver Torch Cactus · Cleistocactus strausii A slender columnar cactus densely clothed in fine white spines giving a silvery silken sheen, sending out horizontal deep-red tubular flowers from mature stems. A graceful upright accent for hot dry spots. -
Golden Barrel Cactus · Echinocactus grusonii A magnificent globular cactus forming a ribbed ball clad in fierce golden-yellow spines, slowly broadening with age into a glowing sphere. A prized sculptural specimen, now rare in the wild. -
African Milk Tree · Euphorbia trigona An upright branching succulent with three-sided green ridged stems lined with small paired spines and teardrop leaves, exuding an irritant milky sap. A fast architectural feature, often mistaken for a cactus. -
Blue Barrel Cactus · Ferocactus glaucescens A handsome barrel cactus with a powdery blue-green ribbed body armed with golden-yellow spines, opening a ring of pale yellow flowers at its crown in summer. A striking, slow sculptural specimen. -
Rosemary Grevillea · Grevillea rosmarinifolia A hardy prickly-foliaged shrub resembling rosemary, flushing red-and-cream spider flowers through autumn, winter and spring. Excellent dense habitat and screening for small birds. -
Chin Cactus · Gymnocalycium mihanovichii A small ribbed globular cactus, famous in its chlorophyll-free red, pink or yellow grafted 'moon cactus' form, producing delicate pink flowers. A colourful, compact novelty for bright windowsills. -
Mahonia · Mahonia x media 'Charity' An architectural evergreen with bold ruffs of spiny holly-like leaflets and upright sprays of fragrant yellow flowers in winter, followed by blue berries. Superb for shady feature planting. -
Pincushion Cactus · Mammillaria spp. A popular clustering globular cactus covered in spiralled spined tubercles, ringed in spring with a crown of small pink, white or yellow flowers. One of the easiest and most rewarding cacti for beginners. -
Prickly Pear · Opuntia ficus-indica A large segmented cactus of flat oval green pads armed with spines and fine barbed glochids, bearing yellow flowers and edible red-purple fruit. A declared weed in much of Australia, so plant with care. -
Golden Robinia · Robinia pseudoacacia 'Frisia' A fast-growing tree whose pinnate foliage glows golden-yellow from spring through summer before turning amber in autumn, lighting up the garden. Tough and tolerant of poor soils. -
Abraham Darby Rose · Rosa 'Abraham Darby' A robust English rose with large, deeply cupped blooms in a glowing blend of apricot, peach and pink. Strongly fruity fragranced, it forms a big arching shrub or can be trained as a climber. -
Apricot Nectar Rose · Rosa 'Apricot Nectar' A classic floribunda bearing big clusters of pinkish-apricot blooms with a fruity, sweet fragrance. Robust and floriferous, an enduring favourite for warm-toned borders. -
Bewitched Rose · Rosa 'Bewitched' An award-winning hybrid tea with large, high-centred clear rose-pink blooms and a strong damask fragrance on long cutting stems. Vigorous and prolific. -
Black Boy Rose · Rosa 'Blackboy' A famous Australian-bred heritage climber raised by Alister Clark, with deep velvety crimson-maroon blooms and a strong old-rose fragrance. Vigorous and mostly spring-flowering. -
Bonica Rose · Rosa 'Bonica' A landscape floribunda producing arching sprays of soft pink double blooms over a long season, followed by orange hips. The first rose inducted into the Rose Hall of Fame for shrub roses, tough and almost care-free. -
Brilliant Pink Iceberg Rose · Rosa 'Brilliant Pink Iceberg' A colourful Iceberg sport with cerise-pink blooms often marbled and streaked with cream. Carries the same reliable, disease-resistant and prolific nature as its parent. -
Burgundy Iceberg Rose · Rosa 'Burgundy Iceberg' A sport of Iceberg sharing all its toughness and free-flowering habit, but with rich deep wine-purple blooms that reverse to silvery mauve. Striking massed or as a hedge. -
Cecile Brunner · Rosa 'Cecile Brunner' A dainty heritage polyantha known as the Sweetheart Rose, bearing perfectly formed miniature pale-pink buds with a light, sweet fragrance. Charming, healthy and almost continuously in bloom. -
Climbing Iceberg Rose · Rosa 'Climbing Iceberg' The climbing sport of the famous Iceberg, draping pillars, arches and pergolas in cascading clusters of lightly fragrant pure-white blooms. Vigorous, nearly thornless and extremely reliable. -
Crepuscule Rose · Rosa 'Crepuscule' A heritage Noisette climber flowering almost year-round in warm climates, with soft apricot-orange blooms and a light tea fragrance. Few thorns and remarkably tough. -
Crown Princess Margareta Rose · Rosa 'Crown Princess Margareta' A vigorous English climbing rose with large, full rosettes of rich apricot-orange and a fruity tea fragrance. Healthy and tolerant, it can be grown as a big shrub or trained upward. -
Double Delight Rose · Rosa 'Double Delight' A striking bicolour hybrid tea with creamy-white blooms vividly edged in strawberry-red, the colour deepening in sun. Richly spicy fragrant and a perennial show-bench winner. -
Double Knock Out Rose · Rosa 'Double Knock Out' A fuller-flowered form of the Knock Out shrub rose, with double cherry-red blooms over a long season. Shares the same exceptional disease resistance and low-care, self-cleaning habit. -
Eden Rose · Rosa 'Pierre de Ronsard' An immensely popular climber bearing heavy, old-fashioned cupped blooms of creamy white flushed with rose-pink at the centre. A Rose Hall of Fame inductee, beautiful on pillars and arbours. -
Flower Carpet Amber Rose · Rosa 'Flower Carpet Amber' A carpet rose from the next-generation Flower Carpet series, with warm amber-apricot blooms that age to soft cream. Heat-tolerant, disease-resistant and exceptionally free-flowering. -
Flower Carpet Coral Rose · Rosa 'Flower Carpet Coral' A compact spreading carpet rose with clusters of warm coral-pink blooms above glossy foliage. Disease-resistant and drought-tolerant, perfect for the front of borders and containers. -
Flower Carpet Pink Rose · Rosa 'Flower Carpet Pink' The original Flower Carpet carpet rose, smothering the ground in clusters of bright pink blooms over glossy disease-resistant foliage. Extremely tough, drought-tolerant and almost care-free. -
Flower Carpet Red Rose · Rosa 'Flower Carpet Red' A spreading carpet rose covered in vivid red clusters of single to semi-double blooms above healthy glossy foliage. Tough, drought-tolerant and ideal for banks, borders and mass planting. -
Flower Carpet White Rose · Rosa 'Flower Carpet White' A spreading carpet rose massed with clean white blooms above glossy green foliage. Disease-resistant, drought-tolerant and excellent for groundcover or trailing over walls and containers. -
Fragrant Cloud Rose · Rosa 'Fragrant Cloud' A hybrid tea celebrated for its powerful, classic rose perfume and large coral-red to orange-scarlet blooms. A Rose Hall of Fame inductee and one of the most fragrant roses ever bred. -
Gertrude Jekyll Rose · Rosa 'Gertrude Jekyll' An English rose renowned for its quintessential old-rose perfume, often cited as the strongest of any Austin variety. Rich pink rosette blooms on an upright shrub that can also be trained as a climber. -
Gold Bunny Rose · Rosa 'Gold Bunny' A compact floribunda producing a long, generous display of bright unfading golden-yellow blooms. Reliable, healthy and available in both bush and climbing forms. -
Graham Thomas Rose · Rosa 'Graham Thomas' One of David Austin's most celebrated English roses, with cupped rosettes of glowing warm yellow and a fresh tea-rose fragrance. Vigorous and free-flowering, it can be grown as a shrub or short climber. -
Heritage Rose · Rosa 'Heritage' An English rose with beautifully cupped, soft shell-pink blooms of great delicacy and a lemony myrrh fragrance. Healthy and repeat-flowering on a graceful, rounded shrub. -
Hybrid Tea Rose 'Mister Lincoln' · Rosa 'Mister Lincoln' The classic long-stemmed florist's rose — one large, high-centred, velvety-red bloom per stem with a powerful old-rose perfume. Upright and made for cutting. -
Iceberg Rose · Rosa 'Iceberg' The world's most popular floribunda, producing masses of lightly fragrant pure-white blooms almost continuously. Tough, disease-resistant and nearly thornless, it is the backbone of countless Australian gardens. -
Julia Child Rose · Rosa 'Julia Child' A rounded floribunda bearing buttery golden-yellow blooms with a sweet liquorice-anise fragrance. Exceptionally healthy and free-flowering, it earned multiple international awards. -
Just Joey Rose · Rosa 'Just Joey' A much-loved hybrid tea with large, loosely ruffled coppery-apricot blooms and a fruity fragrance. Voted the World's Favourite Rose, it flowers freely and reliably. -
Knock Out Rose · Rosa 'Knock Out' The landmark landscape shrub rose that revolutionised low-care roses, with cherry-red single blooms produced continuously. Outstanding disease resistance and self-cleaning, needing almost no spraying or deadheading. -
Lady of Shalott Rose · Rosa 'Lady of Shalott' One of the toughest and most weather-tolerant English roses, bearing chalice-shaped blooms of warm salmon-orange with golden undersides. A warm tea fragrance with hints of spiced apple and clove. -
Lorraine Lee Rose · Rosa 'Lorraine Lee' A beloved Alister Clark Australian-bred rose flowering through autumn and winter when few others bloom, with warm rosy-pink blooms and a tea fragrance. Tough, heat-tolerant and near-evergreen in mild climates. -
Mary Rose · Rosa 'Mary Rose' A reliable, bushy English rose bearing loose rose-pink rosettes almost continuously, with a light old-rose fragrance. One of the most dependable and free-flowering of all Austin shrubs. -
Mister Lincoln · Rosa 'Mr Lincoln' A vigorous hybrid tea bearing huge, velvety deep-red blooms on long stems, prized for one of the most powerful damask fragrances of any rose. An enduring favourite for the cutting garden. -
Mme Alfred Carriere · Rosa 'Madame Alfred Carriere' A robust heritage Noisette climber tolerant of shade and poor soils, bearing loosely double blush-white blooms with a rich, sweet fragrance. Excellent for north or shaded walls. -
Munstead Wood Rose · Rosa 'Munstead Wood' An English rose with sumptuous deep velvety crimson blooms ageing to dark wine, opening from rich red buds. Carries a strong old-rose fragrance with fruity notes of blackberry and damson. -
Nancy Hayward Rose · Rosa 'Nancy Hayward' A vigorous Alister Clark Australian-bred climber with large, single carmine-rose blooms that glow against bright green foliage. Heat-tolerant and reliable in warm climates. -
New Dawn Rose · Rosa 'New Dawn' A shade-tolerant climber with abundant, lightly fragrant pearly blush-pink blooms held over glossy disease-resistant foliage. The world's first patented plant and a Rose Hall of Fame member. -
Oklahoma Rose · Rosa 'Oklahoma' A hybrid tea bearing enormous, near-black deep crimson blooms with a heavy, intoxicating perfume. A sister seedling of Mr Lincoln, ideal for dramatic cut flowers. -
Olivia Rose Austin Rose · Rosa 'Olivia Rose Austin' Considered one of the healthiest and most reliable of all English roses, with soft pink cupped rosettes and a fruity fragrance. Early to flower and remarkably resistant to disease. -
Pal Joey Rose · Rosa 'Pal Joey' An Australian-bred rose with large, ruffled blooms in soft russet-apricot tones and a pleasant fragrance. A relaxed, free-flowering shrub for the cutting garden. -
Papa Meilland Rose · Rosa 'Papa Meilland' A hybrid tea with large, velvety dark crimson blooms and one of the strongest, most intense damask fragrances of any rose. A Rose Hall of Fame inductee prized by perfume lovers. -
Pascali Rose · Rosa 'Pascali' A classic white hybrid tea producing high-centred, weather-resistant creamy-white blooms on long straight stems. A Rose Hall of Fame inductee regarded as one of the best white cutting roses. -
Peace Rose · Rosa 'Peace' The world's most famous hybrid tea, with large globular blooms of soft yellow edged in rose-pink and glossy dark foliage. Robust, free-flowering and historically released as WWII ended. -
Pink Knock Out Rose · Rosa 'Pink Knock Out' A pink-flowered member of the Knock Out family, bearing single bright pink blooms continuously through the warm months. Robust, disease-resistant and undemanding in the landscape. -
Pope John Paul II Rose · Rosa 'Pope John Paul II' A modern white hybrid tea with large, high-centred pure-white blooms and a strong sweet citrus fragrance. Exceptionally clean glossy foliage and excellent disease resistance. -
Queen Elizabeth Rose · Rosa 'Queen Elizabeth' The original grandiflora, a tall, upright rose with high-centred clear pink blooms on long stems. A Rose Hall of Fame inductee, robust and excellent at the back of a border or as a flowering hedge. -
Seduction Rose · Rosa 'Seduction' A free-flowering floribunda with creamy-white blooms edged in rose-pink, popular grafted as a standard or weeping standard. Healthy, prolific and excellent in formal plantings or containers. -
Sexy Rexy Rose · Rosa 'Sexy Rexy' A New Zealand-bred floribunda carrying large trusses of camellia-like soft pink blooms in such profusion they almost hide the foliage. A multi-award winner valued for its sheer flower power. -
Souvenir de la Malmaison Rose · Rosa 'Souvenir de la Malmaison' A treasured heritage Bourbon rose with large, flat quartered blooms of pale blush-pink and a spicy, intense old-rose fragrance. Best in drier climates where the quartered flowers open cleanly. -
Sunsprite · Rosa 'Friesia' A compact floribunda smothered in clusters of bright golden-yellow blooms that hold their colour without fading. One of the most fragrant of all yellow roses. -
The Fairy Rose · Rosa 'The Fairy' A tough, spreading polyantha groundcover rose smothered in dense sprays of tiny soft-pink rosettes from summer into autumn. Disease-resistant, undemanding and lovely cascading from pots and low walls. -
The Generous Gardener Rose · Rosa 'The Generous Gardener' An English climbing rose with delicate, soft pink cupped blooms and a delicious fragrance blending old rose, musk and myrrh. Healthy and vigorous, ideal trained on a wall or arch. -
The Pilgrim Rose · Rosa 'The Pilgrim' An English rose with beautifully formed flat rosettes of soft yellow that pale to cream at the edges. Fragrant and free-flowering, it grows as a large shrub or short climber. -
Wedding Day Rose · Rosa 'Wedding Day' A rampant rambler that smothers itself in huge sprays of small single white blooms opening from yellow buds, with a strong fruity fragrance. Ideal for scrambling through large trees or over sheds. -
Raspberry · Rubus idaeus Sweet summer berries on upright, prickly canes that crop best with support and yearly pruning. Spreads by suckers, so it rewards a contained, sunny bed.