Starting next spring, gardens may take on a look of royalty with a new rose — the Queen Mary 2.

Named after the recently launched transatlantic ocean liner, the pure white hybrid tea rose was bred by the House of Meilland in Le Luc, France.

“This is a rare quality because there are not too many roses that will do well on both sides of the ocean,” said
Jacques Ferare, research director for Star Roses, the North American distributor for Meilland.

The rose will be released in the United States next year and in Europe in 2006.

The white hybrid tea rose has clear blooms on long stems, suitable for cutting, with a unique voluptuous fragrance of rose and banana, according to Star Roses. It grows 3 to 5 feet high.

Hardy under normal conditions in Zones 5 through 9, this rose is ideal in a border, as an accent shrub or in mass plantings near a patio, deck or open window.

“Queen Mary 2 is best suited for East Coast climates and is more tolerant of disease,” Ferare said.

The Queen Mary 2 Rose was introduced at the same time that Cunard Line launched its $800 million ship of the same name, the largest luxury passenger ship ever built. Queen Elizabeth II christened the ship in January while holding a bouquet of the new roses. The first Queen Mary rose was released in 1937, one year after the first Queen Mary ship’s maiden voyage.