Floribunda Rose 'Hot Cocoa'

Cocoa is a great floribunda rose to have as a foundation planting. My concerns were keeping it at around 3 feet to complement the slow gr...Read Moreowing Hollies and Yews in front of my house. I have kept them around 3 feet using deadheading and late winter cut back to 18 inches. It is in it's second year. I purchase another one this year before they sold out late Spring here in North Carolina.

Registration name: Rosa 'WEKpaltlez'.
Bred by Tom Carruth (USA), 2002
Introduced in the USA as 'Hot Cocoa'. Also known as ...Read More
'Hot Chocolate' & 'Kiwi'

Known as ‘Hot Cocoa’ in the United States - this same rose was renamed 'Kiwi' in New Zealand. The proceeds going to the Kiwi Recover...Read Morey Trust which was set up to help save our national iconic bird.

This lovely hybrid tea rose is described as having ruffled blooms in shades of rusty terracotta-red with deliciously scented blooms which are produced throughout the season on a healthy shrub.

I've cared for 9 of these over three years. Here in blackspot heaven, they've shown little blackspot---just a little near the ground---an...Read Mored I haven't needed to spray.

Very vigorous. So far the habit is rigidly upright and sparsely branched---I grow hybrid teas with a wider habit. I'll be doing more midseason pruning next season, but last year they reached over six feet high after having been cut back to 18" in the spring.

Produces flowers nonstop here. The color is rich and unique, a warm variable rusty orange-red with subtle smoky lavender overtones. It's complex and variable, and I think it's very beautiful. It varies a lot with the weather, especially the temperature---with more of the smokey lavender in cool weather, and a clearer brighter orange when it's hot. It reads well in the landscape, but photographs don't do it justice.

The fragrance isn't strong. The flowers open too quickly to make good cut flowers.

The stems are exceptionally thorny. The thorns are needle-sharp and spaced so closely it's impossible to hold a stem barehanded without getting punctured.

2/2015: They're still upright, but in their fourth season they're finally putting on more girth in their habit.

What an unusual rose! The best description of the color would be to call it "coral." Its true color is very difficult to catch on camera....Read More The fragrance is sort of spicy, but not very strong. Regardless of a very poor growing season this year, Hot Cocoa bloomed repeatedly since I bought it in early spring. By October, it was just finishing up. I can only imagine how it would have performed had it had better weather!

The only bad part about keeping this rose is that the aphids swarm to it. I had to repeatedly spray, and really had to keep on it, lest they chew the buds and new growth to bits. However, the beauty of this rose was well worth the "chore."

I always have a lot of comments when I bring a vase of these to work. They almost look like they have been dusted with cocoa powder. Th...Read Moree most unusual color in my garden.

Absolutely adore the brick color. Blooms last a long time. Hard to photograph. Conversation piece, for sure.

This rose is in my all-time favorite top 10!! Unique color blossoms, that keep coming all season, and wonderful disease resistance.....Great rose!!

This is a great rose with very little problem with disease. The foliage is shiny healthy green and the blooms are very pretty and differ...Read Moreent. The brick red is a color you don't see very often with roses. It's always in bloom in my zone 5 garden.

This rose is a conversation stopper in the garden. It's hard to photograph the color but in my garden it starts out a rich red brown and...Read More then fades to a medium red with coral undertones. New growth in the spring is a dark green burgundy. Very floriferous and has an excellent rebloom habit. It is subject to black spot and powdery mildew - but then all roses in my area are. No exception. I advise treating it preventatively if you are in an area with these problems.

One of my favorite roses from last year with a most beautiful and unusual color. I especially like the way the aging flowers darken.
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I'm crossing my fingers and hoping this one survives our Maine winter.

I planted this rose in spring, and it has bloomed continuously right until fall. The flowers on my bush are a very unusual smoky orange-...Read Morebrown, although I have seen some at the local nursery which were a much more boring reddish-orange. I wish it had a little fragrance, as it is so beautiful. My bush has reached about 3 foot in it's first year with strong erect canes.

I have many roses, but I have to say that this one is my favorite. It's beautiful color is unique-I have never seen one even close to it...Read More. It does very well in central Texas and I would highly recommend it.

Medium tall Floribunda with a smoky chocolate orange bloom ( sometimes with a hint of purple) Lightly fragranced, intense green foliage....Read MoreThe more sun the more intense the color. Does have a tendancy to develop black spot but it is easily controlled. I have 3 of these and they are my favorites in the garden.