How authentic do you want to be? Do you want to stay true to the Revolutionary War period? If so you will pretty much restrict yourself to once-blooming European roses, not ones that repeat.

Albas, Gallicas, Damasks, Eglantines and Centifolias would all be good candidates. Autumn Damask is an exception. It will bloom once in spring/early summer and then repeat some in the fall. It is a thorny beast but has the somewhat scruffy look you are describing, and the flowers are well-scented. The lovely and incredibly fragrant Rosa moschata (Musk Rose) would repeat all summer, but I believe it may be too frost tender for zone 6. Since you mention growing herbs, you might want to consider R gallica officinalis, the Apothecary Rose. Since it was once grown for medicinal purposes, it would be right at home in an herb garden. And finally, you could plant a species rose native to your area. That would be the least showy but perhaps most authentic approach.

If it were me, I would plant two or three of the period-correct once blooming old garden roses. They are quite lovely and provide an extravagant burst of color like a fireworks explosion. Then I would add several fragrant modern roses of old-fashioned appearance for color through the summer. These roses are sometimes called 'reproduction roses', and there are examples from David Austin (English Roses), Meilland (Romantica Roses), and Poulsen (Renaissance Roses). To keep the authentic look, I would select from the pink/white/dark red color groups. Avoid yellows, apricots, oranges, and true bright reds. These are all modern colors as far as roses are concerned, starting in the later 19th century and growing much more vivid in the 20th century.

A little off topic, do you know the catalog Old House Gardens? They sell heirloom bulbs, just the thing to enhance your old-fashioned garden.

And have a wonderful time! Please feel free to post pictures of your period-inspired garden. We are pretty much all fans of heirloom plants on this forum, as well as heirloom roses.

Rosefolly

Here is a link that might be useful: Old House Gardens

I just thought of this. You are very likely to find wild roses growing on your property that are not native. Rosa multiflora has become invasive in much of the country. If you do find it, please consider digging the plants up and destroying them. They are considered a noxious pest, Not only do they ruin good pasture land that has been let fallow, but they also can harbor a mite that carries a disease that kills the roses we grow on purpose.

Here is a link that might be useful: Rosa multiflora

I am guessing that you've checked the period gardens at The Hermitage in Nashville? I've been there just a few times but have read it is historically as accurate an early 19th century garden as there is in the United States. Andrew Jackson purchased it in 1804, so it's roughly the time frame you want. I'm guessing by not wanting it to look like an "estate" you wouldn't want the beds laid out as Rachel Jackson did but the plants themselves would be historically appropriate, I think.

I remember r. roxburghi, r. gallica and a few others I don't remember in mixed beds. I'd guess r. laevigata would also be appropriate.

You might check with the Southern Garden History Society also. If Ann Peck doesn't post here, you might email and ask her. I'm guessing she might know a lot. I agree with what Rosefolly says about multiflora, also.

Good luck, sounds like fun.

"How authentic do you want to be?"

What we built is more of a 1900-1920 farmhouse. As if the folks in the "big house" built something across the field for a family member. So even if I was hung up on being authentic, something 100 years old would really be more in keeping with the rest of the house--not so old as Revolutionary. In truth the house itself gives an old feel with its basic design and the use of authentically old elements--old doors, floors, beams, light fixtures. I didn't want to recreate a period as much as borrow the aura and warmth of history and incorporate it into modern living. Although the house might fool you the first time you see it, "New Old House" magazine is not going to come calling. :-)

Like the house I'm looking to give this fence line the feel of something older, but I'm not married to the history. It does seem logical to me though that a plant that is authentically antique is going to flourish better under condition that are "authentically antique" --or perhaps benign neglect is a better term.

So turn of the century would certainly be fun, but I don't feel a burning need to be limited to it! I have a few hundred yards to work with so I have room for several choices.

Great info about the Rosa multiflora! I'm certain I have a few in this fence line and I wasn't aware of what they are until now. We've committed ourselves to eradicating the invasive exotics on the property. "Committed" might be the right word as we may end up that way after a life time of working on it! I'll put its removal on my to do list.

Ah, the Craftsman era! That is my favorite period of American architecture, when the English Arts and Crafts style emigrated and evolved into our own home-grown version. (Although I do also like the Shingle style that preceded it.) That actually gives you a lot more leeway. Early hybrid teas, polyanthas, and climbers were all in existence at that time, giving you lots of scope for your choices. Rugosas were around by then, too. You mentioned that you grew one before. You can use the HelpMeFind (HMF) website to look up roses by year of introduction. HMF also suggests possible vendors for the roses and that could be very useful to you.

I can also recommend some books that will help give you the feel of an early 20th century garden. Your library may have them. I notice that a couple of them seem to have become collectible so unfortunately you probably won't be able to pick them up used at a reasonable price.

Outside the Bungalow: America's Arts and Crafts Garden by Paul Duchscherer and Douglas Keister

Gardens of the Arts and Crafts Movement: Reality and Imagination by Judith B. Tankard

In Harmony With Nature: Lessons from the Arts and Crafts Garden by Rick Darke

Period Gardens: New Life for Historic Landscapes by Patrick Taylor

This sounds like a really fun project. I hope you will share your progress with us.

Rosefolly

Here is a link that might be useful: Advanced search on HMF

Check out the thread on Early Yellows.

A lot of the repeat blooming roses will want more care than it sounds like you would like to provide. Large once bloomers in general would work well.

Cows love roses. Make sure you plant far enough away from the fence. My cows got out one day and stripped every leaf and bloom off a row of roses they could reach. They didn't mess with the canes.

It is not old, but Malverne hills is a lovely rose -- sort of a rambler, creamy whitish and very floriferous. And Mme Alfred Carriere and climbing Cecile Brunner, also climbers. Harrison's yellow is another historic rose, one of the first to bloom.

For a turn of the century house I also think the big, egg-shaped Hybrid Tea roses are appropriate, such as the spectacular Marchioness of Londonderry (1893). A writer quoted on Help me find has this to say:
Ida Sharp of Rose Hill Garden says: Huge cabbage blooms of purest pink begin as incredible buds. Long canes that don't bear many leaves could be tucked together with another rose or behind a bushy plant to camouflage its lack...

All of these mentioned are rather big plants.

Here is a link that might be useful: Malverne hills.

not austin roses or indeed, anything of that ilk. Try some of the wichurana ramblers (goof vigorous growth, flexible canes, good disease resistance) Species roses will co-exist in a hedgerow (sweet briars and their hybrids (the Penzance briars, Amy Robsart), R.glauca, villosa, canina and especially the ayreshire ramblers such as splendens). Some of the larger ramblers such as Bobbie James, the Garland and Seagull can be kept low on a wire fence - just keep them growing to the horizontal by tying in new canes. Even the musk roses such as nastaran will look more natural than the large flowered roses. Finally, there are many pimpinellifolia/spinosissimas such as double white, Falkland, Marbled pink and so on which will also do sterling work in a situation as you describe.

Our farmhouse was built in 1904 and I've been focusing on roses into the 1920s and 1930s. Since cold hardy is a bigger concern for me, that's been the most important factor, but I have a mixture of old fasioned roses, some Canadian roses (that look like old shrub roses) and hybrid musks with some polyanthas. I think the hybrid musks and polyanthas add a lot to the garden, since they often have smaller blooms, repeat and look beautiful mixed in with some of the perennials.

A big Cecile Brunner by your door, would be a nice touch, too :)

There are a great deal of roses in the time period you are talking about. Since your area is "out" away from the house, I would think you would want something you can see. Barrone Prevost is almost bullet prove. Cardnel Hume (SP) would work good out there. A couple of the David Austin's mixed in here and there would look great from the house.Check out some of the nurseries that carry a lot of OGR's. (Roses Unlimited, Chamble's, Heirloom Roses, Angel Gardens)

I need to know a bit more about where you are (what soils you are growing on) and then I'll give a long answer and possibly some contacts.

Are you near Lebanon, or on the rather shallow soils that go north and south from there?

Are there native cedar trees self seeding near you?

Are you in the center of the Nashville Basin with at least ten or twelve good inches of top soil?

There are lots of soils that are great for grasses and cattle, but are more of a challenge to grow the right (more care free roses) that can handle some summer droughts.

Ann P

Ann, here's everything I can think about on my soil:

I'm in the center of the Nashville basin--Williamson County just east of Franklin on the Harpeth River. The fence line I want to work with is actually in the 100+ year flood plain. It is 30 yards from and runs parallel to a creek that dumps into the Harpeth a few hundred yards away. (It was underwater breifly during the Great Flood, but not an area that I think it's going to be a problem.) I'm pretty sure there is 10-12" of top soil in most areas with the occassional surface rock. The rock is not at all the great big flat shelves of rock like found east toward Rutherford Co., but the occasional and random huge stalagmite type formations whose tops are a foot or so under the surface. We dug a full basement when constructing the house so I have a better idea than normal what's under there. :-)

However, the propery has been phosphate mined up to but not including the fence line. I would suspects this indicate that the undisturbed areas like the fence line would have viable amounts of soil. (Why mine if there isn't any soil?) Recent soil test on the pasture shows the soil now is very high for P, high for K, sufficient for Ca and Mg, pH 6.4. We only ammend the pastures with N. The garden beds are ammened with composted manure/stall leavings which I have by the tractor bucket load.

As far as cedar trees there are maybe two in several hundred yards of fence and no others I can think of on either my or my ajoining neighbors' properties. There are hardwood trees (including a huge sycamore) on the other side of the fence between the fenceline and the creek. These trees are to the northeast of the fence and don't provide shade.

You've told me so much and you know the things you need to know. Like ignore all the "fertilize with K and P annually".

In Knoxville, at the University, Ione planted a tea noisette, Duchesse de Auerstadt, in river loam about 100 yards from the Tennessee River. (I grow a clone of that, several hundred feet higher and in tight red clay. You'd think they were different roses, but they-from the same supplier- are in different microclimates and soils.) You are in the heat 'island' that is the Nashville Basin. Your soils are self fertilizing but for the N.

If I were you, I'd collect Tea Noisettes and make the most bodaceously beautiful rose fence in Tennessee. I might even be tempted to put a few Hybrid Perpetuals in for splashes of red-purple color.

Foget the once bloomers. With your water conditions, with the nutrients that are in your river soils, the only thing you need to do is work to keep your pH in the zone where the K and P aren't tied up as salts and stay available to your roses' roots.

That you don't have abundant cedar, BTW, tells me that you don't have a lot of limestone anywhere near the surface. In my fields I can almost tell you where there are subterranean limestone remnants under the soils. Even the cedar seeds don't sprout in my red clay.

As for trees to tolerate in your fenceline: yes to dogwoods and redbuds- they aren't that bad. No to almost everything else. In your soils with ground water, you may find ten to fifteen years of vertical growth each year. This year we are sufferening the ones we didn't cut back last fall and that loved the inch a week of rain we had all of last year.

Kill: all hackberries (they make good firewood). They are the host to wooly hackberry aphids and the aphid poop drops heavily and then gets a black fungus on it and the fungus doesn't wash off. Really ugly when it drops on roses, and everything else.

When you get to Knoxville, let me know. I've probably got some suckers you can use.

More later,

Ann

Thank you all so much, there seems to be much to learn! anntn6b, I really appreciate the input from a fellow Tennessean and z6er. I think you've given me some direction as it has quickly became apparent that this can get way out of hand. ;-) As I've started to research the plants that have been suggested it's finally dawned on me why and how people get so hooked and grow so many different varieties! I'm already thinking of ways to incorporate some old roses in my perennial beds that are starting to take shape around the house!

Oh, definitely put some roses, in your perennial beds! I've had wonderful luck with damasks, hybrid musks, gallicas, and rugosas. Anything spiky purple (we use salvias and Hidcote lavender) daisy like (we use daisies, coneflowers, cosmos) not to mention bee balm, stock, alyssum, etc. Not everything will work as well, in your climate (like the bee balm) but have fun with anything that doesn't get too invasive. So far, our zone 4 winters have kept the bee balm under control :)

Oh, don't forget some climbers, too. You could grow a variety of climbing roses in your nice climate. I grow a few, with honeysuckle and clematis.

This is such a fantastic thread! I will never have that sort of property, plus I live in California, but it's been wonderful reading all the posts. I'm going to look for a few of those books, too, just for the fun of it!