A rose by any other name would smell as sweet, so William Shakespeare’s Juliet famously declared.

But a rose that has been genetically improved would smell even sweeter according to scientists who have cracked the DNA code of Britain’s favourite flower.

Experts have created the first complete map of the popular flower, which they believe could help restore the heady scene that has dulled in recent years.

Researchers said that by developing the blueprint - the first high-quality genome of the flower- they could engineer roses to be more fragrant, more colourful and longer lasting.

Due to extensive cross-breeding, modern roses have complex DNA sequences that are difficult to reconstruct and previous attempts to fit together rose DNA molecules have resulted in fragmented and hard-to-read assemblages.

But now they have found a way to edit the genes of roses, even if such bouquets are still a few years down the line.