A newer HT, Grande Amore, Is from Germany and has past their ADR no spray test. It will be a new addition to my garden this season.

Thank you. I will look into Grande Amore.

I'm just a bit north of you around Cullman. I have to spray all my HTs to keep them clean of blackspot. Some not very often, but there aren't any HTs I currently grow that are completely no spray for me (I have around 75 HTs). I have heard good things about both Beverly and Francis Meilland being very disease resistant, and they could possibly be grown no spray here...but I haven't tried either yet. I do have some floribundas (Weeks Easy to Love series), some polyanthas and some OGRs (teas, chinas & noisettes) that I grow no spray if you are interested in something other than an HT.

Hey, me again.
Do you follow the Redneck Rosarian (http://www.redneckrosarian.com/)? He's in Birmingham (he's one of the directors of the Birmingham Rose Society). He grows Francis Meilland. I don't see Grand Amore on his rose list, but I know he posted a picture of it last summer. You could ask how they do for him and if he has other suggestions.

Thanks, pat bama. I would love to see some of your roses and will check out your page.I have seen postings on the web by the Redneck Rosarian who obviously grows magnificent roses in my area. I am new at growing roses. Used to have knock outs which performed beautifully, but I am ready for another look and a bigger challenge so I am giving my knockouts away to friends and want to try some hybrid teas and other floribundas. My guess is that no matter what rose I try I will have to spray. Thank you so much for the advice.

I think you will really enjoy growing roses here. Roses seem to love our climate and really flourish except for the blackspot issue and those dreaded Japanese beetles in early summer. Be forewarned that most roses will get much larger here than their tags say they do. If you want to try some floribundas, I would highly recommend the Easy to Love roses from Weeksâ¦they all do very well for me and are as no care as Knockouts here. Easy Going and Easy Does It seem to be the best for no spray. The others will spot a little without spray, but not badly and doesn't effect their ability to bloom their heads off. Website link for info on them is below. I love all my HTs, but I do spray them when necessary. Some easy ones for our area that don't require too much spray are Double Delight, Dolly Parton, Chris Evert, Pope John Paul II and Grand Dame. All the Peace varieties do well here, but require frequent spraying. Same for Fragrant Cloud and Rio Samba. My best lavender is Royal Amethyst, but it does need frequent spraying, too. For local rose sources, HannaâÂÂs Garden Shop in Birmingham has a good selection. A link to their current inventory is below. Some of those are left over from last year and should be on clearance now. I picked up several for $5.00 each last February and those are doing great. Bennett nursery (Mr. Bennett is the sweetest and most knowledgeable man around) and The Greenery, both in Huntsville, are also good rose sources. They have websites, but donâÂÂt list their inventory. Bennetts roses aren't in yet, but should be within the next couple of weeks. The Greenery plants theirs from bare roots and do have theirs out now, but won't sell them for about another month. Petals from the Past, just south of you in Jemison, is a wonderful source for antiques roses, and they carry a good many moderns in the spring, as well, but those arenâÂÂt listed on their website. The owner there is SO helpful. He carries Quietness, a Buck rose, that's on my wish list. It supposedly is very disease resistant here and grows much like an HT.
Let me know if there is a rose you are interested in and have questions about. I grow about 130 roses now...mixture of old and new...it's possible I'll have the rose and have local experience with it and pics I could share.
Sorry for such a long post, but hoping it's helpful. Have fun!

http://www.weeksroses.com/_RoseGroups/EasyToLove.html

http://www.hannasgardenshop.com/inventory/department.php?id=26&nozeros=on

http://petalsfromthepast.com/

HereâÂÂs a picture of one of my rose beds last August:

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Dizzy, Elina is no spray in my hot humid garden. Belinda's Dream, while not an HT, is wonderful here no spray and makes a good cut flower. She's a heavy bloomer. Mr. Lincoln is no spray in my garden.

Pat, that's just beautiful.

Wow Pat! That garden of yours is absolutely magnificent! Thank you so much for sharing the picture and alsothis wonderful information. I am familiar with both Hannah's and Petals from the Past, and I was actually considering doing some antique roses in place of or in addition to the floribundas, so I will definitely check them out. I was not familiar with the Huntsville stores, but am glad to know about them. I love garden shop hopping. Thanks also to Floridarose for your suggestions! I am getting my bed prepared and ready now. I can't wait to go shopping.

I spray, but my cleanest roses are:
Beverly (new last yr.)
Tahitian Sunset
Pacific Celebration (new last yr. on fort., wasn't expecting such a clean bush)
Grande Amore (gets some BS closer to fall)