Cupcake is a miniature hybrid shrub in the rose family (Rosaceae) bred by Mark Spies in 1981. Parentage is seed: Gene Boerner and pollen: Gay Princess (floribunda, Boerner before 1966) × Yellow Jewel Cupcake will grow 1-1.5 feet tall with a similar spread. Plant in fertile moist well-drained garden soil in full sun for best results, Avoid crowding and overhead watering to help reduce diseases. Prune in late winter to remove dead or diseased canes and prune to 1/3 of its size or more if needed. The 1.5 inch delicate pink double flowers have a mild fragrance and will bloom from spring through fall. The foliage is glossy gray-green on canes with prickles. Cupcake won an American Rose Society Award of Excellence in 1983. Use this shrub in a container, in small places as a patio, in the border front or mass-planted. Insects, Diseases, and Other Plant Problems: Good disease resistance. See pests of roses to the left. Deer will browse roses. VIDEO Created by Elizabeth Meyer for "Trees, Shrubs and Conifers," a plant identification course developed in partnership with Longwood Gardens. More information on Rosa .
Curated pairwise relationships between this plant and others in the library — who feeds
whom, who competes, who confuses the pests. Green reads as a good pairing, red as one to avoid.
No curated interactions recorded for this species yet.
Also noted by NC State
Related species the NC State Plant Toolbox flags for this plant — look-alikes to tell
apart, and plants that play a similar role in a planting. Ones we carry in the library are linked.
Fills a similar nicheRosa Child 's Play™ ' SAVachild'Rosa 'Loving Touch'Rosa Minnie Pearl™ 'SAVahowdy'
Full plant profile
Growing Conditions
Plant type
Herbaceous Perennial; Rose
Life cycle
Perennial; Woody
USDA zones
5a, 5b, 6a, 6b, 7a, 7b, 8a, 8b, 9a, 9b, 10a, 10b
Light
Full sun (6 or more hours of direct sunlight a day)
Soil texture
Clay; High Organic Matter; Loam (Silt); Sand
Soil pH
Acid (<6.0); Neutral (6.0-8.0)
Soil drainage
Good Drainage | Moist
Available space
12 inches-3 feet
NC region
Coastal; Mountains; Piedmont
Growth rate
Rapid
Maintenance
Medium
Canopy layer
4 - Herbaceous
Form & Appearance
Habit / form
Erect; Rounded; Spreading
Texture
Medium
Foliage
Deciduous
Leaf color
Green
Leaf type
Compound (Pinnately , Bipinnately, Palmately)
Leaf arrangement
Alternate
Leaf margin
Serrate
Leaf feel
Glossy
Hairs present
No
Leaf detail
Glossy gray-green compound leaves
Flower color
Pink
Flower value
Fragrant; Good Cut
Flower form
Solitary
Flower shape
Cup
Flower size
1-3 inches
Flower detail
1.5-inch wide soft pink blooms with deeper pink centers have a mild fragrance. Up to 40 petals. Blooms singly or in small clusters. Blooms continuously
Bloom time
Fall; Spring; Summer
Fruit detail
The fruit is insignificant.
Stem color
Green
Stem detail
Green canes with prickles
Wildlife & Ecology
Native status
Unknown
Wildlife value
Butterflies
Landscape Use
Landscape location
Patio; Slope/Bank; Walkways
Landscape theme
Cottage Garden; Cutting Garden; English Garden; Fairy Garden
Design feature
Border; Mass Planting
Garden tags
#deciduous shrub #minature rose #deciduous #rose #long bloom season #border front #patio #pink flowers #mass planting #fragrant flowers #container plant #shrub rose #fairy garden