J.A. Bentall of England bred The Fairy in 1932 from Paul Crampel and Lady Gay, and the result became one of the enduring workhorses of the small rose world. It is a Polyantha, a class defined by tight clusters of miniature flowers rather than large individual blooms. The flowers are a soft pink, fully double, one inch across, produced in such density that the shrub is rarely without color from May through frost. They may fade to blush white in summer heat, and they carry little to no fragrance, which is an honest trade for the remarkable continuity of bloom.

The compact form tops out at 3 feet tall and wide, making it genuinely useful as a low hedge, ground cover, border edging, or container specimen. The glossy small leaves have good resistance to fungal diseases, and the plant tolerates air pollution, which is notable for a rose. It is drought-tolerant once established and needs only minimal pruning in late winter to control size rather than any structural renovation. Protect crowns in colder winters in zones near the lower limit of its hardiness range of 5 to 11. Butterflies work the flowers alongside bees, and fertilizing in early spring and summer keeps the bloom cycle strong throughout the season.