NICOLAS HULOT® – yellow hybrid tea rose – Meilland
Designed for compact, rainwater-wise urban plots, NICOLAS HULOT® brings balance to front gardens where you want maximum effect from a single rose with minimal fuss. Its strong, classic hybrid tea form and very large blooms give a smart, elegant look to London terraces and small family gardens, while a very strong, garden-filling scent creates a richly fragrant path after rain, even where summers are cool and damp with heavier soils and coastal winds. The warm, sun-yellow flowers open from high-centred buds and repeat in generous flushes, keeping a cheerful mood from early summer onwards. Grown on its own roots in a 2‑litre container, it settles reliably, regenerates well after pruning, and builds long-term resilience with each season. Year by year, the root system strengthens, the top growth follows, and by the third year you can expect full ornamental presence with dense foliage and abundant blooms in a relatively compact, upright habit, ideal where space is limited yet style and sustainability still matter.
Usage options
| Target area |
Reasoning |
| Feature rose by the front door |
The very strong, garden-filling fragrance and XL, high-centred yellow blooms make this variety a natural focal point where you pass daily, offering perfume and structure with only moderate care for busy homeowners. |
| Compact rose bed in a small family garden |
Its upright, medium-height habit and dense, dark green foliage give clear vertical structure without shading everything else, suiting modest beds where you want a single, reliable “hero” plant for beginner gardeners. |
| Cutting patch for home bouquets |
Originally bred as an exhibition-style hybrid tea, it produces long, straight stems with solitary, high-centred blooms that hold well in the vase, providing repeat flushes of classic yellow roses for home florists. |
| Rainwater-conscious front garden redesign |
Performs well in heat and copes with moderate drought when watered deeply, so it works with mulched, free-draining planting pockets that capture and slowly release rainwater for sustainability-minded owners. |
| Mixed border with perennials |
Its medium disease resistance and own-root stamina allow it to hold its place among perennials such as lavender, sage or nepeta, keeping shape and colour while neighbours knit around it for low-maintenance gardeners. |
| Own-root long-term specimen |
As an own-root rose, it avoids graft suckers and can regenerate from the base after hard pruning or winter damage, building a stable framework and ornamental value over many years for patient planners. |
| Large container on balcony or terrace |
Suited to a substantial pot of at least 40–50 litres, where its compact footprint and upright growth offer height, fragrance and colour without dominating the space, particularly valued by urban balcony users. |
| Partially shaded city courtyard |
Tolerant of partial shade and moderate humidity, it keeps colour and flower form in sites that receive only a few hours of sun, even where coastal winds and heavier soils are common, reassuring time-pressed beginners. |
Styling ideas
- Golden-Pathway – Plant a pair flanking a narrow front path, underplanted with low nepeta to soften the edges – ideal for scent-lovers who want a welcoming entrance.
- Sunny-Pocket – Use as a single specimen in a small, sunny bed with gravel mulch and thyme to echo the warm yellow tones – suited to low-care urban front gardens.
- Classic-Cuttings – Arrange three plants in a triangle within a dedicated cutting patch, backed by white gaura for airy contrast – perfect for home floristry enthusiasts.
- Lemon-Border – Combine with lavender, sage and soft pink lupins to create a layered, pollinator-friendly frame around the rose – great for family gardens seeking relaxed elegance.
- Balcony-Focus – Grow one plant in a 50‑litre container with trailing variegated ivy and heucheras for foliage contrast – ideal for terrace owners wanting a single, showpiece rose.
Technical cultivar profile
| Parameter |
Data |
| Name and registration |
Hybrid tea rose, registered as MEIfazeda; trade names Nicolas Hulot®, PERFUMELLA® and Golden Perfumella; exhibition hybrid tea category for cut and garden display. |
| Origin and breeding |
Bred by Alain Meilland for Meilland International, France; introduced and registered in 2004, with breeding completed in France before that date; parentage undisclosed. |
| Growth and structural characteristics |
Upright hybrid tea with dense, slightly glossy dark green foliage, moderate prickles and a compact footprint; typical height 80–105 cm and spread 50–75 cm in garden conditions. |
| Flower morphology |
Very double, high-centred hybrid tea blooms with 40+ petals on mainly solitary stems; extra-large flower size, exhibition-style form and reliable remontant repeat flowering in flushes. |
| Colour data and phenology |
Strong warm yellow, ARS yb, RHS 8B outer and 12A inner; buds pale lemon, opening bright sun-yellow, then fading through buttery to creamy lemon as blooms age in the garden. |
| Fragrance and aroma |
Very strong, garden-filling perfume with classic rose character overlaid by peachy fruit notes; scent is prominent around seating areas and paths, particularly noticeable in still evening air. |
| Hip characteristics |
Hip set is generally low due to very double blooms; occasional small, 8–12 mm, ovoid orange-red hips may form, offering modest late-season ornamental interest for close observers. |
| Resistance and winter hardiness |
Medium disease resistance, especially to powdery mildew and black spot, with rust resistance noted; hardy to about −15 to −12 °C (RHS H6), coping with typical UK winters in most regions. |
| Horticultural recommendations |
Suited to beds, parks, specimens and cutting; prefers fertile, well-drained soil, regular deadheading and periodic protection in high disease-pressure sites; tolerates partial shade and summer heat. |
NICOLAS HULOT® offers large, fragrant yellow blooms on a compact, long-lived own-root plant that settles steadily into family gardens and terraces; consider it if you value enduring structure, scent and dependable performance over many seasons.
