When put together in one thread like this, and I know there are even more, it's amazing how many purple and lavender roses there are. There can't ever be too many!

A Gakica "Tuscany" is the closest I've come to purple.

Did anyone say Ebb Tide? I just got it, bare root, last year and it is still small. Only got 3 blooms last summer but I love the deep dark color. No picture to post because I am on my tablet, not my computer.

Veilchenblau

Glory of Edzell

Nightmoss

Mountain Mignonette

RDV

Ellen Tofflemire

I didn’t see anyone mention Lavender Veranda. For a plant on the smaller side, I have been quite happy with its color and vigor.

Wow I havent even heard of a few of these. You guys all have such beautiful photos. Lavender, lilac, and purple are my favorite rose colors!

How could I forget- Spirit of Freedom has a lilac-y pink tone!

THANK YOU mustbnuts zone 9 sunset 9 FOR THE BELOW INFO:

"I grew Sweet Chariot and wasn't all that fond of it but have Vineyard Song and I adore that rose!" mustbnuts

Will have to ask LongAgoRoses which one is more fragrant, since I'm tempted to order both as own-roots for my zone 5.

Spirit of Freedom is light pink at Chicago Botanical Garden with tons of blooms. I have too many light pinks and need more purple. Deep Purple was very wimpy for me, survived only two zone 5 winters, I posted its bush-shot in HMF, won't recommend for cold zone nor heavy-clay. Kordes roses need fluffy & loamy soil:

Twilight zone is vigorous as 6th-year own-root The color is purple with high-potassium fertilizer, does well in 4 hours of morning sun: Below pic. was taken late fall before frost.

Below is its spring flush:

'Vineyard Song' and 'Sweet Chariot' are both powerfully fragrant, but they have distinct fragrances. Subtly different in quality, but closely related.

I saw this thread and couldn't resist posting - I love purples and lavenders! I grown many of the ones people have listed (am hoping I can find a source for Purple Lodge here in the US, somebody mentioned Burlington?) But there's one I have to suggest that nobody has mentioned: Sven. Its not a well-known rose; to my knowledge, Northland Rosarium is the only place that carries it. It is a great and truly beautiful rose! Its sort of polyantha style, with clusters of small, lovely pinky-purple flowers. For me, its grown into a large graceful shurb that just covers itself with flowers, repeatedly all through the growing season. And I don't always keep up with dead-heading, but that doesn't seem to stop Sven from flowering. No disease that I've ever seen. I have 3 of them now, and even though I'm running out of space, I wouldn't part from a one of them. On top of everything else, Sven is supposedly hardy to zone 3; not an issue for me, since I'm in zone 6, but I'd grow Sven if I was in zone 3 or zone 10, such a great rose! Another really promising-seeming one, new to me this year, is Puppy Kisses; can't say too much yet but so far so good. Single flowers, and very purple, seems vigorous!

I look up Sven, it's so cute and charming !! Does it have a wafting scent? THANK YOU.

LongAgoRoses in NC has purples: Wise Portia, Sweet Chariot, Vineyard song, Midnight Blue, Outta the Blue, Austin The Prince, Purple Lodge and Chartreuse de Parme (parents are Yves Piaget and Big Purple). Their shipping charge is cheap at $11 per 4 roses to my Chicagoland.

Remontants: I am a HUGE fan of all things purple and of Tom Carruth’s creations! I love both Midnight Blue and Ebb Tide in pots. I use Black Gold organic potting soil. In my PNW garden, these two cultivars have been pretty darn healthy, they’ve been heavy and very remontant bloomers and they have been both deeply purple and deliciously fragrant. Another absolutely wonderful dark burgundy-purple rose that makes a lovely patio plant is Kim Rupert’s Purple Buttons. Gorgeous! I highly recommend trying PB if you can get ahold of one. Mine came from Rogue Valley, but I think another nursery ir two may offer PB. The Prince is a bit skimpy on foliage, but oh those huge, intoxicating, Gallica purple blooms! Pretty darn healthy for me.

Nonremontants: Paul Bardon purples are ALL exquisite! I am trying to get my hands on every one in commerce. I am currently obsessed with Nightmoss and hoping to move mine out of its 5 gallon nursery pot and into the garden this fall. Tuscany Superb is my all time favorite rose. I wait with great anticipation for its annual show just as gardeners have been doing for 100s of years!

Apologies that I can only find a photo of Midnight Blue at the moment. I‘ll look around for other pics.

Carol

Strawchicago, thanks for the tip on Long Ago Roses! My birthday is coming up ....

I don't really detect much fragrance from Sven, maybe a very light scent. But nothing wafting - you have to stick your nose in the flowers. Or I do anyhow - I'm aware that different people have VERY different experiences of scent. Anyway, I don't hold this against Sven, he's just a super rose!

Carol, I'm with you, I'd LOVE to get all of Paul Bardon's purples! But it just seems like Rogue never has them. I SO wanted to get Umbra, but what they sent me was decidedly not Umbra, and its been listed out of stock ever since. I'm on the wait list, but my understanding is that Paul isn't even sure they still have a mother plant. Sigh. At least I was able to get Etienne.

Congratulations on your Etienne, Frances! That one is tough to get. You and I must be kindred spirits. :-) I’m working on acquiring an Umbra, too, someday. Umbra is such a romantic froth of scallops, and it turns such wonderful shades of pink, mauve and lavender! Carol

Carol, if you ever manage to get your hands on Umbra, please let me know how and where! I think of all the Bardon purples, that's the one I want the most ...

Me too.

Frances, I can let you know if I get ahold of Umbra. I’ll add you to my ”following” member list in case that is needed for us to touch base. You might also check in again with Paul. He may have discovered Umbra and might be willing to add you to his Umbra list since he has re-opened his propagation business just a little bit to help all of us very desperate forum members acquire some of his beautiful creations. I asked to be waitlisted if he locates his Umbra. I also have a friend who may be able to get an Umbra cutting for me. It would have to root and grow up before I could propagate. I hope RVR can locate its Umbra. RVR sent me some wonderful Mariannes this spring. Carol

I have started to grow purple and lavender roses 3 years ago. I have to say my favorites are Celestial Night and Violet's pride. Celestial Night has excellent disease resistance, and in my mild climate, color that is dark and continued to be dark even in the summer. It grow to > 5 feet for me. However, no sense which doesn't matter for me as my sense of smell is not great.

Here is Celestial night

Here with Love Song:

Violet Pride smells great and is very prolific here.

Carol, thank you SO much for putting me on your following list! It would be so, so great to someday get to grow Umbra!!! I'll check with Paul, too!

@strawchicago z5

Like Mustbnuts in CA, my experience growing Vineyard Song was in the desert hot dry. I think they were ordered from Burlington (I ordered 6). V.S. bloomed almost continuously, and was dry heat tolerant. I never bent down to sniff the blooms, so I cannot report on its fragrance in that climate. I would grow it again in a heartbeat... thinking now that maybe I should...

Edited to Add- Vineyard Song

Lynn: Many thanks for your info., much appreciated. I have a dry spot which I need drought-tolerant roses like Vineyard song, plus LongAgoRoses informed me that Vineyard song can take shade better than Sweet Chariot. My garden is too shady, but I have dry spots near trees (I blocked tree's roots with cement blocks dug down to 2 feet).

I took a few more purple rose pics to post. Pardon the dead fern fronds behind The Prince and white phlox! I never got back to my front bed cleanup after Portland hit Death Valley temps in June. Carol

Purple Buttons (Kim Rupert)

This one is great in a pot and produces fragrant, dahlia button blooms.

The Prince (David Austin)

Poseidon is lavender, not purple, but it sure looks great with purple! Carol

Paul Barden‘s not-in-commerce Gallica rose grown from seeds given to him by Cheryl Netter. I call it ”Paul’s Unnamed Purple Gallica,” or “PUP Gee.” It produces an abundant kaleidoscope of blooms in velvety grape, violet, magenta, cotton candy and lavender blush. Carol

Tuscany Superb

Bayse’s Purple (even the canes are purple)

A close-up shot of The Prince’s perfect bloom. Plus a couple more.

Kim Rupert’s Lauren mingling with Hybrid Musk Daphne.

Another couple of shots of PUPG

Violette

Veichenblau

Sometimes Munstead Wood hits lovely notes of purple.

Midnight Blue again. My second plant.

I hope I’m not flooding the thread with photos! Purple roses are my thing, and all of the purples I have posted are nigh perfect in my garden! Munstead Wood is a color exception to this category in that it is usually redder than it is purple. (I actually love red and purple growing side by side or cohabitating in a bouquet.) Munstead is thorny but gorgeous, deliciously scented and healthy for me. I honestly highly recommend each and every one of these purple roses that might fit your requirements and thrive in your climate. They have all been fantastic floral performers and tough, healthy plants! I am hunting for some more shots of gorgeous Barden purples like Ellen Tofflemire and Rook as well as pics of Reine des Violettes and Cardinal de Richelieu. Carol

Oh, and while I’m searching, here’s a rarely grown China hybrid, mauve Frederic II de Prusse. This one was a gift to me from a very generous WA rose friend and was a favorite of Josh TX who used to post here. It grew in his grandmother’s garden. This is a GREAT rose! Fragrant, disease free, gorgeous. Carol

Wonder what happened to Josh? I am also from TX and enjoyed his posts.........

Alameda, I’ve got an email address that I hope still works. I’m going to try contacting Josh. His beloved grandmother passed away, and he was dealing with RRD when I last heard a couple years ago. He’s been on my mind this spring as I’ve been admiring Frederic II. Carol

Carol: Love all the pics. you posted, great reference for purple roses. Thank you.

Portland, hope you can reach him and maybe lure him back......he was such a nice guy. We all get tripped up from time to time........there are several people I miss that arent here anymore - one nice couple, Digger Dave & Deb - had gorgeous gardens I think in Montana.....they havent been around in several years.

The pictures here OMG!! How to you folks do it? They are fantastic.

Beautiful rose BUT I ordered two last year from Jackson and Perkins and both died in Texas heat

The closest to perfect purple for me is Twilight Zone. Ebb Tide is good. When The Prince is at its darkest, it's very good, and so is Munstead, though it's quite a reddish purple. All photos taken this spring in the last few weeks. Diane

The Prince

Twilight Zone

Wild Blue Yonder

Young Lycidas

I'm a little surprised 'International Herald Tribune' has not been mentioned here (or did I just miss it?). My favorite purple. Flowers nearly continuously, on a neat, rather compact bush. Not particularly fragrant to my nose, but always beautiful.

I think it's hard to beat the Gallicas for purple hues. Here's 'Belle de Crecy' this year:

And the ever-lovely 'Umbra':

Among the repeat-blooming roses, the not-'Purple Lodge' being sold in the US can still manage some impressive purple shades:

And 'Excellenz von Schubert' is perhaps more mauve than purple, but it has a nice effect against the fresh green foliage of early summer:

First, my garden is in Maryland, USDA Zone 7a. Hot and humid summers, cold but not brutal winters, and heavy red clay soil. I am in the epicenter for the black spot fungus which will completely defoliate most modern roses by July.

I have grown Angel Face, Lagerfeld, Midnight Blue, Novalis (aka Poseidon), Plum Perfect, Reine des Violettes, Sterling Silver, Twilight Zone, Veilchenblau, and Wild Blue Yonder. Of these I currently have Plum Perfect and Poseidon.

ANGEL FACE (Floribunda, Swim & Weeks, U.S., 1968) was a runt grown grafted. I cannot imagine what it would do own root. Also black spot prone and the flowers are mauve, not purple. The blooms are gorgeous and the fragrance is positively orgasmic, but no, never again.

LAGERFELD (Grandiflora, Jack E. Christensen, U.S., 1986) was a black spot disaster in the Mid-Atlantic and a runt growing on its own roots in my clay soil. La Madame de Shovel got great satisfaction executing it.

MIDNIGHT BLUE (Floribunda, Tom Carruth, USA, 2001) was even worse. It grow backward on its own roots. For five years I would see a handful of leaves poking out of the mulch, and that was it. Pity because it bloomed its first year and of all the roses listed was the darkest with the best TRUE PURPLE color. Did not need a shovel to remove. A quick pull with my bare hand and it was gone. I may try it one day in a container because that one bloom was truly astonishing.

PLUM PERFECT (Floribunda, Tim Hermann Kordes, Germany, 1997). Actually two own root plants on their second year. They came from the Antique Rose Emporium. I do like what I see so far. The Old Garden Rose flower form is beautiful. THE COLOR IS NOT PURPLE. It is a rich mauve color that does not wash out or fade. Fragrance is highly variable, from nothing to a nice medium scent. Most of the time it is light but detectable. The two plants are about 2-3 feet tall and as wide. They bloomed the first year, and bloomed even more this year. Everybody touts its disease resistance, but the foliage on my plants have black spot. Nothing too bad but it is early in the season. Last year it completely defoliated by August. I am hoping the disease resistance will improve as the shrubs mature.

POSEIDON (aka Novalis, Floribunda, Tim Hermann Kordes, Germany, 2004) beats them all. The fragrance is medium in strength (stronger and more consistent than Plum Perfect), vigorous as all get out on its own roots (WARNING: shrub gets BIG) in clay soil, and the only rose that beats it in my garden for black spot resistance is Double Knock Out. Blooms ARE NOT PURPLE. They are a light cool lavender that I swear look almost blue in direct sunlight. Alas, rain is its enemy as it causes the petal edges to brown. I keep it because it is so dang healthy and is my husband's favorite rose.

STERLING SILVER (Hybrid Tea, Esther Gladys Fisher, U.S., 1955) - just don't.

REINE DES VIOLETTES (Hybrid Perpetual, Mille-Mallet, France, 1860) is not purple. Blooms start a rich cool pink then progressively take on mauve tones as they age. I know, not what you are looking for, but it IS the most beautiful mauve rose that I have ever seen, and I have seen many. Every single part of the plant is fragrant, from the leaves to the stems and flowers. Touching is encouraged because this rose is absolutely thornless. Graceful growth habit too. Simply lovely. So why do I no longer have it? Flowers have ZERO vase life, black spot defoliates the shrub by mid-summer and it must be grown grafted if to successfully thrive in heavy clay. Sad truth, I got sick and can't do chemicals any more.

TWILIGHT ZONE (Grandiflora, Tom Carruth, USA, 2009) had disappointing color. I see all these pics with blooms in a rich shade of imperial purple, but not on my plant. Dark crimson shaded magenta most of the season. Ebb Tide and Midnight Blue have better color. Fragrance IS wonderful and the vigorous (if grafted) plant low thorned but the foliage must be sprayed if somewhat clean foliage is an ambition. Got shovel pruned and replaced with Plum Perfect.

VEILCHENBLAU (Rambler, by J.C. Schmidt/Blumenschmidt, Germany, 1909) looked like something out of a dream. I am not kidding. It is a once blooming rambler that at twilight in full bloom ... OMG ... those flowers really do look blue! Wafting sweet fragrance, nearly thornless canes. Vigorous as all get out in clay soil. So why did I get rid of it? The rambler blooms ONCE and it is a very short bloom period at that. Two weeks! Blink too long and the blooms are gone! I am sorry but I need more performance than that.

WILD BLUE YONDER (Grandiflora, Tom Carruth, USA, 2003) is not purple. It is a bicolor: mauve tipped red. It performed well enough but the color was garish to me. So I killed it.

Of all the roses that I have grown only MIDNIGHT BLUE was a true purple. Actually, a Tyrian (imperial) purple to be precise with black tones. I once saw EBB TIDE at a garden center with blooms that were a similar color.

Lots of purples are not really purple,in my garden (iykwim)...and those that manage at least a purplish glow seem to lose out in a trade-off for health. I threw in the towel quite quickly with purple roses - I have no shortage of other purple plant choices in the non-rosy world. However, if I am allowed to mention lavender/lilacs and mauve, I have just one recommendation which has survived numerous rose retirements... a not very well known little thing called Odyssey. It does have a slight purple pedigree,having been bred by Frank Cowlishaw, (Rhapsody in Blue, Purple Skyliner). I have grown both of those too, but BS did for them so off to the compost they went. Amongst Odyssey's modest charms is really decent health...and an ability to play well with others ...unlike most of my other roses which have become a bit oafish over the years.

Is anyone growing "basye's purple rose" or "deuil de Paul Fontaine"? What can you tell me about the size/fragrance? Repeat? Are they really that dark? Also, I have one establised Ebb Tide that has those nice dark purple flowers, but two newer ones that are skewing rather pink? Could I have the wrong plant or is it due to this awful "heat dome" this summer that is turing the EU into AZ? What about the rose Indigo? Does that live up to its name? So many times, I have bought a purple rose based on pic, but it just doesn't do it! Also, a recommendation, "Diablesse des mers", has some fabulous purple in it...

@Rose Paris

I grew both, years ago. 'Basye's Purple' was a genuinely unique thing and the blooms were amazing. However, it suckered up to 6 feet from the original plant and for a while it was a real nuisance. After ten years it apparently ran out of steam and dwindled down to a couple of stray shoots and then one year it was gone. I don't miss it.

I did also grow 'Deuil de Paul Fontaine' for a few years, but I had a very different experience with it than Kim did. (I'm in the Pacific NW) In my garden it was contantly chlorotic and sad looking. At one point it did reach 2.5 feet tall, but always struggled with Mildew and Blackspot. One spring it just failed to leaf out and that was that. I'm sure that in the right climate it will do OK, but it was not a strong grower and suffered badly from disease. I don't miss it either.

'Indigo' isn't bad, but it too suckered widely in my garden so that after 15 years I had shoots of it coming up as much as 25 feet from it's original location, mixed in with multiple other roses. That's not a trait I appreciate.

@Paul Barden, thanks for your sharing your experience and expertise! The 25-ft thing does sound complicated!

New query, but the colors of Rotes Phänomen seem really rich, true to life?

Wow - thank you all for all of the amazing photos!

Jackie

No rose is truly purple in my climate, at least not beyond a mild Spring, most turn magenta pretty fast or simply fry. Lavenders are similarly lavender for a very short time, tending to be lilac pink, e.g. Love Song. Ebb Tide is pretty good, with smokey purple tones before the magenta kicks in, similarly Stormy Weather.

However, for those in Europe, I can recommend ’Palais Biron’ aka the original Purple Lodge. The bloom form and early purple tones are fabulous, vigour excellent but with occasional cane dieback, foliage health is good (some blackspot but not debilitating), it’s very rain tolerant and reasonably heat resistant for a purple. The fragrance is superb. I no longer have it because most canes turned to charcoal after a bout of extreme heat combined with scorchingly hot winds from Africa. Not helped by it’s position near the edge of a south-facing stone terrace! It does have some magenta moments later on but otherwise fades to an attractive violet pink. I would have it again in a better location..

NollieSpainZ9, I had always wondered about Purple Lodge, so thanks for that info. Interesting about Ebb tide, too. I have one that's around 2 that I am sure is the right color as it did some form of purple all through last summer, with its largest and darkest blooms being in fall( like DA's The Prince at its best but purpler, darker and just as fragrant). But it hardly bloomed this year due to the heat and a horror-film worthy caterpillar attack--just these huge paleolthic, hairy critters that came out at night. But I had also gotten some new ones before the summer because I like it so well and it takes up little space, and these new ones (in a different monster insect-free zone) were so pinkish, I wondered if I had the right ones or it was this summer's apacolyptic EU heat? (Could the random creatures be due to that too?) Also, how does it compare with Twilight zone?

It could have been the heat turning Ebb Tide pinkish, Rose Paris and your hairy creatures were probably one of the moth caterpillars. Some of the latter are spectacularly bizarre and a few do munch on roses, even though it’s, strictly speaking, not ’their’ plant. I don’t actually have ET anymore either but its another I would buy again if I had the right location. It did produce some lovely clusters, but was a really slow developer. It picked up when I dug it up and potted it, but still, I got bored of it being a two cane wonder. At it’s best:

Twilight Zone was useless here, the blooms were rarely more than semi-double and mostly magenta. The thinner petals burnt even in Spring and planted in the shade of a North-facing wall. Most purples do seem to be better suited to cooler climes than mine.