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Jude the Obscure (Rosa 'Jude the Obscure'), whole plant
  • Jude the Obscure — close-up of leaves and flowers
  • Jude the Obscure — seasonal appearance
  • Jude the Obscure in a garden setting

Jude the Obscure

Rosa 'Jude the Obscure'

Medium · Some experience

About Jude the Obscure

Jude the Obscure is a David Austin English rose introduced in 1995, famous for its exceptional guava and white wine fragrance — ranked among the most powerfully scented Austin roses ever bred. Producing pale yellow to apricot cupped blooms of incurved old-rose form on a tidy 4 to 5 foot shrub, it blooms heavily from late spring through fall. A fragrance-first Austin rose beloved by American rosarians.

  • Fragrant
  • Long-blooming
WATER
Regular
Top inch dry
LIGHT
Full sun
6+ hrs direct
HARDY
Hardy to -20°F (-29°C)
USDA hardiness zones 5–9

How to care for Jude the Obscure

Watering

  • Springevery 5 days
  • Summerevery 3 days
  • Fallevery 7 days
  • Winterevery 14 days

Soil · Rich & loamy

  • Top dressingBark mulch15%
  • Main mixRich loam + compost 3:170%
  • DrainageGravel15%

Use fully finished compost — fresh compost burns roots.

FERTILIZER

Balanced Feed 14-14-14

An even feed covers all three needs at once, keeping leaves, roots and blooms moving together with nothing pushed out of balance.

N33%P33%K33%
  • Nitrogen · Leaves
  • Phosphorus · Roots + Blooms
  • Potassium · Strength
  • Springevery 30 days
  • Summerevery 30 days
  • Fallevery 45 days
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At a Glance

  • Height4–5 ft (1.2–1.5 m)
  • Spread3–4 ft (0.9–1.2 m)
  • Flower colorYellow, Cream
  • Foliage colorGreen
  • SoilLoamy, Well-drained, Rich
  • LocationsYard

Bloom time

BLOOM CYCLE

Peak bloom

May–Sep

J
F
M
A
M
J
J
A
S
O
N
D

Apricot-yellow incurved cupped blooms with guava-wine fragrance, deadhead for repeat

Fragrance

STRONG FRAGRANCE

Intense tropical guava and sweet wine scent.

Toxicity

Humans Slight

Unknown toxic principle

Slight

  • Stem
  • Contact

EXPOSURE Touching stems.

EFFECT Pricks from thorns.

NOTE Not toxic; thorns cause mechanical injury.

Safe

EXPOSURE No exposure route is reported.

EFFECT No toxic effect is reported.

NOTE Listed as non-toxic for dogs; avoid eating ornamental plants unless confirmed edible.

Safe

EXPOSURE No exposure route is reported.

EFFECT No toxic effect is reported.

NOTE Listed as non-toxic for cats; avoid eating ornamental plants unless confirmed edible.

Educational information, not medical or veterinary advice. If exposure is suspected, contact a doctor or veterinarian.

History

Illustrated historical scene for Jude the Obscure

Rosa 'Jude the Obscure' is a pale yellow English shrub rose bred by David Austin at Albrighton, England, released in 1995 from proprietary parentage, named for Thomas Hardy's 1895 tragic novel Jude the Obscure set in the Dorset and Oxford countryside. The distinctly incurved cupped chalice-shaped blooms open pale buff-yellow with a richer warm-yellow heart, hiding their centres behind incurving outer petals, and carry one of the most intense fragrances in the entire Austin range, an extraordinary tropical fruit scent combining guava, sweet white wine, and old rose. Rose writers frequently rank it among the top three most fragrant English Roses ever bred.

The upright shrub reaches 1.2 meters and blooms continuously, though it needs careful placement in warm sunny gardens to fully develop the fragrance. Moderately disease-resistant.

Its exceptional tropical guava-and-wine fragrance made it an instant classic for fragrance-focused American rose gardens.

Symbolism & meaning

What It Symbolizes

Jude the Obscure embodies literary devotion, named in honor of Thomas Hardy's final and most heartbreaking novel. Its deeply cupped pale-yellow blooms carry one of the most distinctive fragrances in the rose world — a tropical scent of guava and sweet white wine, unique among English roses. This is a flower for readers and romantics alike, a bloom whose name and perfume both linger in the memory long after the season ends.

  • Literary devotion — honors Thomas Hardy's final novel
  • Tropical fragrance — guava and white wine scent unique in roses

Where the Name Comes From

Named for Thomas Hardy's 1895 novel 'Jude the Obscure', one of the last works by the Victorian English novelist.

Uses & Fun Facts

  • Rounded apricot blooms carry a strong fruity myrrh fragrance

Related plants

More Rosa plants

Plants with similar care

Frequently asked questions

How often should I water Jude the Obscure?

In summer, water about every 3 days; in winter, about every 14 days. Adjust for heat, pot size and drainage.

How much light does Jude the Obscure need?

Full sun: 6+ hrs direct. Watch the leaves — scorching or stretching means the light needs adjusting.

Is Jude the Obscure toxic to cats or dogs?

Pets Safe (Dogs Safe · Cats Safe) Educational information, not medical or veterinary advice. If exposure is suspected, contact a doctor or veterinarian.

Is Jude the Obscure easy to grow?

It is moderately demanding: a good choice once you have a little experience.

When does Jude the Obscure bloom?

It typically blooms May–Sep in the Northern Hemisphere.

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