ANTIKE 89™ – red-white climbing rose - Kordes
With its striking bicoloured blooms and dependable climbing habit, ANTIKE 89™ brings classic rose character to pergolas, arches and house walls without demanding elaborate care. Large, very full flowers appear in generous flushes through the season, giving a traditional, almost old-fashioned charm that still fits seamlessly into modern family gardens. This own-root plant is supplied well rooted in a 2-litre pot, ready to establish steadily and give long-term structure in typical British conditions, even where you need reliable anchoring in breezier, exposed spots near the coast. Plant once and it will mature from root-building in the first year to stronger shoots in the second, and by the third year you can expect full ornamental impact. Its medium maintenance level suits gardeners who can manage simple pruning and occasional tidy-up of spent blooms. The colour stays pleasingly fresh on the plant, helping you maintain a clean, well-presented display around the home. Use it as a statement feature over a front gate or to soften boundary fences, where its height and dense foliage provide lasting garden privacy.
Usage options
| Target area |
Reasoning |
| Front-garden arch or gateway |
As a tall, vigorous climber with dense, glossy foliage, ANTIKE 89™ quickly creates a welcoming frame over arches and gateways. The repeat-flowering, red-and-white blooms give a strong focal point that reads well from the street yet remains tidy with moderate dead-heading and light pruning, making it practical for busy homeowners and beginners. |
| House wall or sunny fence |
Its 2.25–3.75 m height range makes it ideal for training along warm, sunny walls or fences, where the well-anchored growth and own-root resilience develop into a long-lived framework. This allows you to “plant and settle” the rose once, then maintain it with simple annual pruning, suiting time-poor urban and suburban gardeners. |
| Pergola or seating-area pergola |
The combination of dense foliage and showy clusters of large, full flowers gives attractive overhead cover on pergolas without excessive shading. Trained along beams and uprights, it forms a durable, woody structure that enhances seating areas season after season with only moderate tying-in and shaping for relaxed family gardens. |
| Pillar or obelisk feature |
Its naturally upright climbing habit and medium spread mean ANTIKE 89™ winds neatly around pillars, posts, and obelisks without overwhelming them. This creates strong vertical accents in smaller beds and cottage-style schemes, keeping the footprint compact while still giving height and colour for design-conscious home owners. |
| Small rose border or mixed cottage bed |
The refined red-and-white flowers integrate beautifully with perennials and grasses, offering a sophisticated colour highlight rather than a flat block of red. Planted with partners such as garden phlox or blue fescue, it adds depth and contrast while remaining manageable in mixed plantings for style-focused cottage-garden enthusiasts. |
| Cut-flower section in a family garden |
Large, double, exhibition-grade blooms on long, sturdy stems make this variety useful for occasional cutting without stripping the garden of colour. Its remontant flowering provides several opportunities through the season to take a few stems indoors while the plant continues to decorate the garden for home-based flower lovers. |
| Structured pair planting at entrances |
Using two plants flanking a path or doorway, the consistent, well-branched growth habit helps create balanced, mirror-image plantings. Over a few seasons the own-root plants develop into stable, symmetrical climbers, offering dependable form with only routine winter pruning for symmetry-minded front-garden planners. |
| Exposed or breezier suburban plots |
Its climbing framework and dense, well-attached foliage lend good stability when trained properly, helping it cope in gardens where wind can be an issue, including more open and coastal-influenced sites with reliable anchoring in windy, rain-swept positions for practical, low-fuss rose buyers. |
Styling ideas
- Classic-archway – Train ANTIKE 89™ over a metal or wooden arch with lavender and blue fescue beneath to echo its cool-toned foliage and set off the bicoloured blooms – ideal for traditional front-garden romantics.
- Cottage-fence – Let it climb a sunny picket or trellis fence, interplanted with garden phlox and hardy geraniums for a soft, layered cottage look – suited to those wanting charm without complex maintenance.
- Formal-pairing – Place two climbers at either side of a gate or path entrance, underplanted with low box or dwarf barberry to emphasise structure – perfect for homeowners seeking orderly, symmetrical design.
- Pergola-retreat – Cover a compact pergola above a bench, combining with shade-tolerant pots beneath for a calm seating corner framed by flowers – good for urban gardeners creating a small-feel sanctuary.
- Vertical-highlight – Use a single plant on an obelisk or pillar in a mixed border, repeating red accents with nearby perennials for a cohesive scheme – attractive to design-led beginners building confidence.
Technical cultivar profile
| Property |
Data |
| Name and registration |
Climbing rose, large-flowered climber; registered as KORdalen, marketed as Antike 89™ Climbing rose KORdalen, ARS exhibition name Antike 89 for shows and catalogues. |
| Origin and breeding |
Bred by W. Kordes & Sons in Germany (1987), from (‘Grand Hotel’ × ‘Sympathie’) × (unnamed seedling × ‘Arthur Bell’); first commercially introduced in 1989, registered in 1988. |
| Growth and structural characteristics |
Strong climbing growth reaching 2.25–3.75 m high, 0.7–1.3 m spread; dense, dark green glossy foliage on well-branched, thorny canes; needs support and tying for walls, arches, pillars, or pergolas. |
| Flower morphology |
Large, very full, cup-shaped flowers with 40+ petals, usually borne in clusters; strongly remontant with generous second flush; moderate self-cleaning so some spent blooms benefit from manual removal. |
| Colour data and phenology |
Red-white bicolour: creamy-white base with vivid red margins (RHS NN155C, 45A). Buds dark red over pale bases; colour holds well, only moderately fading in strong sun through successive flushes. |
| Fragrance and aroma |
Considered a scentless rose with no noticeable fragrance; decorative value comes from flower form, size, and bicolour effect rather than scent, making it suitable where fragrance is not a priority. |
| Hip characteristics |
Limited hip production due to very double blooms; where formed, hips are ellipsoidal, orange-red, around 12–18 mm in diameter, offering occasional late-season decorative interest on the plant. |
| Resistance and winter hardiness |
Rated to about –29 to –32 °C (USDA zone 4b, RHS H7, Swedish zone 5). Disease resistance moderate to black spot, mildew, and rust; tolerates heat reasonably but needs watering through long droughts. |
| Horticultural recommendations |
Best in full sun with supports on walls, fences, arches, pillars or pergolas; plant 90–180 cm apart depending on use. Medium maintenance; regular pruning, feeding, watering, and occasional plant protection advised. |
ANTIKE 89™ offers reliable repeat flowering, strong vertical structure and elegant red-white blooms on a durable own-root climber, making it a thoughtful choice if you would like a long-lived feature rose.
