Beautiful Roses in Hawaii: What Grows Best, Amazing Rose Gardens, and More!

Written by Cindy Rasmussen
Updated: August 22, 2023
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If you visit Hawaii, you are immediately greeted with a lei of gorgeous flowers: striking lavenders, brilliant pinks, or soft yellows. You may actually smell the fragrant flowers before seeing them! Leis are traditionally made with orchids, pikake, hibiscus, and plumeria but these are not the only beautiful flowers you will find on the islands. While roses are not typically used in leis or worn ornamentally tucked behind the ear, you will find booming blossoms of a variety of roses in Hawaii. Read on to find out what roses grow best on the islands, learn about a few amazing rose gardens to visit and discover the official flower of the island of Maui!

Can you Grow Roses in Hawaii?

Let’s start with the question of growing roses in Hawaii. As you may already know, Hawaii has a hot climate and roses typically prefer cooler climates. But by choosing the right rose species and with proper care roses can not only be grown in Hawaii but can provide beautiful blooms year-round.

What Roses Grow Best in Hawaii?

Hybrid tea roses need six hours of sunlight each day.

Hybrid tea roses come in a variety of species and colors, such as bright pink!

©Irene Fox/Shutterstock.com

Hybrid tea roses are some of the most popular roses grown in Hawaii. These produce large blooms that make for great cut flowers to add to any dining room table or patio. They come in a variety of species and colors to choose from. Some popular hybrid tea roses include:

  • Peace Rose: Delicate white blooms with a dusting of soft pink on the edges. These have 40-45 petals per bloom and are moderately fragrant.
  • Chicago Peace: A type of the peace rose with similar characteristics but displays bright pink blooms. It has more petals than the peace rose with a petal count of 45-60.
  • Bolero: A very full blooming rose with nearly 100 petals per flower, these make a stunning addition to any rose garden. The blooms are all white and are a great option for Hawaii because they look similar to some of the old garden roses. Old garden roses are more difficult to grow in the warm Hawaiian climates.
  • Tahitian Sunset: A unique colored hybrid tea is the Tahitian sunset rose. This variety produces large blooms that are a mix of apricot and pink in color. A whole bed of these is truly striking and also quite disease resistant, so a good choice for Hawaii.
  • Veteran’s Honor: These classic red roses may be what you first picture when you hear the word “rose”. Bright red blooms and an elegant shape with long green stems make this a great choice for a cut flower arrangement. This species is one of the favorites of the Honolulu Rose Society.

What is a “Volcano Rose”?

The “Volcano Rose” of Hawaii is known as the “Loke-o-ka-Iua-Pele”. These pink roses actually grow along the active volcano of Kilauea on the Big Island of Hawaii. As traditions state, Kilauea is the home of Pele the great volcano goddess. Pele is revered as the one who created the Hawaiian Islands. She shapes the landscape by both forming land and destroying areas with violent eruptions and scorching lava. Despite the harsh conditions in and around these volcanoes, beauty can evolve. The pink volcano rose is often found around volcanoes including in Hawaii Volcanoes National Park. These are hybrid multiflora that produce large pink blooms that tend to fade a bit to a blush pink.

What Amazing Rose Gardens can you Visit in Hawaii?

A closeup of the vibrant orange-pink Peace rose, a hybrid tea rose

They have more than 215 rose bushes representing more than 70 different rose varieties. The garden has hybrid tea roses, like the peace.

©Alex Kinval/Shutterstock.com

If you want to see (and smell) a variety of roses before deciding on a collection of roses for your garden or you just want an enjoyabl afternoon stroll, here are some of the amazing rose gardens you can visit in Hawaii!

  • Queen Kapiolani Hibiscus and Rose Garden: This small but beautiful garden is located on Oahu in Honolulu. It features the official state flower, the fragrant hibiscus, but also has a rose garden with a variety of colorful roses. The garden was created by King David Kalakaua who dedicated the park to his wife, Queen Kapiolani.
  • Oahu Urban Garden Center Rose Garden: If you are looking for variety then the Oahu UGC Rose Garden is the place to visit. They have more than 215 rose bushes representing more than 70 different rose varieties…that’s right, 70 different varieties! The carefully planned garden has hybrid tea roses like the peace, veteran’s hero and Elle, and Floribundas like the yellow sparkle and shine. You can find stunning climbing roses like the deep red Don Juan and Grandifloras like the glowing peace. Every color you can imagine is represented in this Honolulu garden.
  • Hawaii Tropical Bioreserve and Garden:  If you want to see more traditional tropical plants of Hawaii and a few species of roses as well, then you will want to visit the Hawaii Tropical Bioreserve and Garden in Papaikou. Here you will find blooming Hawaiian roses (Osteomeles anthyllidifolia) which is a shrub plant that produces white blooms. These are not scientifically roses but belong to the species anthyllidifolia. They are still a traditional flower of Hawaii that is worth visiting. Another noteworthy flower at the garden is the rose of Siam (Etlingera corneri). Again, not scientifically a rose but the bright, heavily petaled bloom looks like a beautiful rose.  

What is the Official Flower of the Island of Maui?

The official flower of the island of Maui is the damask rose (Rosa damascena), or locally the lokelani. Did you know each of the eight main islands of Hawaii have an official flower and color? The damask rose has large pink blooms. It is one of the most fragrant roses in Maui. It is nearly thornless which is nice if you are cutting these to display in a vase on your dining room table. They sport 17-25 large petals and continuously bloom throughout the year. It is one of the only non-native flowers to be an official flower, but one look at these delicate roses and you will understand why they were the flower of choice!

The photo featured at the top of this post is © NOPPHARAT9889/Shutterstock.com


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About the Author

I'm a Wildlife Conservation Author and Journalist, raising awareness about conservation by teaching others about the amazing animals we share the planet with. I graduated from the University of Minnesota-Morris with a degree in Elementary Education and I am a former teacher. When I am not writing I love going to my kids' soccer games, watching movies, taking on DIY projects and running with our giant Labradoodle "Tango".

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