I am in Essex. We have what I suspect is an Aloha that only has minimum die back each year. The previous owner of the house planted it and it has gone own root long ago. It does get a bit of blackspot, but it has decent foliage without spraying throughout the season.

Ascot is another HT that has little/very limited winter dieback. Intriguing/interesting flowers for a hybrid tea.

Another HT that I don't grow but saw that growing unprotected around here is Queen Elizabeth.

My Firefight, Francis Meilland, Valencia and Tiffany seem to have made through this tough winter OK with some green canes left (1/2 to 1/4) without winter protection. But none of them, IMHO, is hardy here. Not a hybrid person myself and got tempted by the rave reviews . Regretted plantting them soon after, so there is no real love lost if they do kick the dust... :)

What purpose do you see these roses performing? Unless you want to win HT Queen at Newburgh, there are probably roses that aren't HTs that will do any job better. If you are looking for high centered cutting roses, there are things like Frau Karl Druschki.

Just about any HT in Zone 6 will make it through a cold winter if you bury the graft 1-2 inches below the soil line. (You could also toss some oak leaves on the rose for winter--but not necessarily required.)

In Zone 6 you will have some die-back of the canes, but I've never had a plant die due to cold. Just trim the canes down to where the center of the cane is white (not tan/brown). Then let nature do its thing and produce lots of new growth and buds. HTs rather thrive on strong pruning techniques anyway, so having to prune back due to some winter cane damage won't be a problem for the HT.

Gallica is right--HTs are only one type of rose. Many others out there also--and many that are even more cold hardy than the HTs are. It's all a matter of personal preferences.

Kate

Aren't roses grafted on multiflora rootstock supposed to be hardy to Zone 5b? Palatine is sold out of the majority of their hybrid teas, but there are still several good varieties available.

I had over 100 HT and with the good repeat, I enjoyed being able to frequently take dozens of cut flowers to work to share. The only roses that survived were the climbers and old garden roses. Some of them only bloom once a year. Some of the others continuously bloom but don't make good cut flowers. Starting last year I started planting HT and I'm up to 8. All are caged and will be pruned to fit in the cages. I will start having a regular supply of cut flowers again.

Aren't roses grafted on multiflora rootstock supposed to be hardy to Zone 5b?

Sara--I don't know for sure if multiflora makes that much difference (though I have a number of them myself from Palatine), but many HTs will survive Zone 5 if the graft is buried deep enough--like 4-6 inches below the soil line in zone 5. The canes will not be cold hardy and will have to be pruned back as I described above, but as long as the graft is protected, the rose will put out new canes every year.

Kate

There is a lot of bias against HTs because they do tend to be more disease prone than some of the other roses. However, that also depends on where you are and you are in a black spot prone area. In NJ just about anything you get is going to have some black spot problems. So get what you like!

You have two choices. You can spray or you can learn to live with some spots and just enjoy the lovely blooms. I do the later now and find I spend a lot more time smelling the roses than worrying about spots.

Most HTs will survive just fine in zone 6 winters. Some years you'll be surprised at how little you'll need to prune off in the spring. Some years, like this one, you'll have to prune a lot more off. But they will survive and grow and bloom beautifully. Trying to say this one or that one will or will not do well in you garden is hard because every garden is different and what might do great for me could be awful in your yard and vise versa. Pick out some you love and try them. If they don't work don't be afraid to cut your losses and try something else until you find the ones that do well and you love.

It's not just the winters that are the problem, but the combination of the winters and the summers. The roses die back, then don't get the heat they need to rebound. After a couple of years of that, they are one cane wonders, and will never recover. It's one reason that Martha Stewart became a die hard Austin fan. They are just hardier enough to not die back to stubs, so regrow considerably better. It is also why the HT default in HMF is zone 7. The founder struggled with HTs in an eastern 6b.

Some of my most disease resistant roses are HT's and floribundas.
Some of my most disease resistant roses are not HT's or floribundas.
Some of my most disease prone or not performing roses are not HT's or floribundas.
Some of my most disease proneor not performing roses are HT's and floribundas.

That has been my personal experience in my Med climate. I realize that in other climates things could have been skewed to one or the other direction.
Nik

This post was edited by nikthegreek on Tue, Mar 18, 14 at 9:26

I have HTs that are at least 10 to 15 years old and they are not one cane wonders and never have been. It depends on the rose. It can also depend on the micro climate in your yard and the care you give it. There are no hard and fast rules for roses. That's why I always say to give things a try in your garden and make your own decisions on what works for you and what doesn't.

I live near Allentown, PA which should be near you. I have ten HT's here that grow well without winter protection. Most winters there is little die back. I'm guessing this winter has killed more cane but I expect everyone to survive.

That said, I have reduced my HT collection. As Mad Gallica posted, "its a combination of the winters and the summers". Fungal diseases weaken them in the summer. Winter cold and moisture a little more...

There are many "other" roses which are easier to grow and are just as satisfying. There is a long list of Antiques, Austins, Bucks and shrub roses which thrive in zone 6.

I recommend the Buck rose "Earth Song" if you want an HT look:

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