I've been working on rose pruning the last week or so and have had a few 'Huh!?' moments.

Have a Hot Cocoa planted very near a Pretty Jessica. HC is three years old and PJ was a band planted last year about 18" H. Same bed - same soil - same environment. PJ was hardy to tips and it takes wind from the west which was rough this winter. I had to take HC back two thirds.

Queen of Sweden and Princess Alexandra are right next to each other. Barely had to prune anything on QOS. PA was better than HC, but a bit more than QOS.

Also, I think SDLM is hardier than given credit for. I know that there are people on the forum who have had issues and talk about how she can't handle the cold or has too much dieback. I disagree. She's currently larger than HC and maybe required pruning by one third. I think I lost the biggest chunk of her to my husband's snowblowing skills.