I don't know anything about roses but yours look very pretty :)

You might try a rugosa hedge for your "windbreak shrubs" - they do well in salty air, and thrive on the Coast of Maine, so they are OK with cold winters. That way you could have roses protecting your roses!

Jackie

Are you right near the coastline, or further inland? In general, some of the Austins do just fine in the Maritimes, but location and microclimate can certainly play a role. Make sure also that you only buy roses grafted on multi-flora and not on Dr. Huey understock which is what they most often sell in garden centers on the east coast. They import their Austins from the Austin nursery in Texas and they are the wrong root stock for Canada. Pickering Nurseries would be your best choice for bare-root Austin roses grafted on multiflora.

Have tried a great number of Austins over the years, and the ones that do best and thrive in a PEI garden in an extremely eexposed and windy, but inland location (Hunter River area) are the following:

Crocus Rose
Wild Edric
Gentle Hermione
Harlow Carr
Mary Rose and its 2 sports Winchester Cathedral and Redoute'
Eglantyne
Constance Spry (Grows as a 5-6' shrub)
Sharifa Asma
The Mayflower
William Shakespeare
Charlotte
Mrs. Doreen Pike
Wiliiam Shakespeare 2000
Munstead Wood
Miss Alice
John Claire
Queen of Sweden

Others will do ok if given a more sheltered location, but the list above has been established over a number of years as essentially rock solid choices in the specific climate and very windy and exposed conditions of this PEI garden.

Lastly, the Kordes Fairytale and Vigorosa series of roses, while generally lacking fragrance, all seem to thrive in the same conditions. There hasn't been a single one that doesn't do well, where as by comparison, the Austins have been hit or miss. Palatine nurseries is your best choice for multi-flora grafted Fairytale and Vigorosa roses and Pickering Nurseries also carries a good selection, but the bare-roots are superior from Palatine if you can get them.

Good luck.

thanks to the ladies for their suggestions, I am not directly on water but within one city block of a large body, and neighbours have told me the salt can be spread by the wind, had never thought of it before moving here. And yes, I will probably use rugosas for the windbreak I will put in this summer, and will check out that list from PEI to choose... yesterday I broke down and bought yet another rose though, such a good price, bought a Therese Bugnet from Walmart! Less than $12.00, and on her own roots too .. gotta love that. Prices here are really, really good compared to my west coast home. Thanks everyone.. Will go back and write down your suggestions, these postings disappear down the list so fast don't they?

Therese Bugnet should thrive for you.

Also received your email. I think you may have confused Hortico with Pickering Nurseries. Hortico is famous for shipping mislabelled plants, not Pickering. Palatine is still the best choice if they have a plant you want. The quality of their bare root roses is outstanding.

Corn Hill is a good nursery in northern New Brunswick. I haven't ordered from them personally because they aren't really setup to ship across the border, but Canadians who have dealt with them have been pleased.

I'd also recommend the botanical garden in Annapolis Royal if you haven't been there.

Here is a link that might be useful: Corn Hill