In general, I try to get thornless or mostly thornless roses for lots of reasons including my small children and my own very sensitive skin that has been scarring really badly the last few years.

Can you tell me what the thorniness is like on the following roses?

-Justitzrat Dr. Hessert
-Ellen Poulsen
-Lady Reading

Thanks,
KMama

If you plant in an acidic potting soil, there are lots of Austins listed as low in thorns, or just tiny prickles: James Galway, Golden Cel., Molineux, Wise Portia, Happy Child, Christopher Marlow (has tiny prickles here), Queen of Sweden, Heritage, A. Shropshire Lad, and Mortimer Sackler.

If you plant in alkaline heavy clay in the ground, there are Meilland roses from Southern France. According to Britannnica, Wikipedia, and the map of Europe - part of Southern France is limestone based, and the vineyards of south eastern France have chlorosis. In the alkaline clay rose park nearby here, Meilland roses have the most blooms versus Austin the least. For low-thorn Meilland roses: Firefighter (has Meilland as a parent), Frederic Mistral (long, thornless stem, long vase life).

Two more low-thorn roses: New Zealand and Charles de Gaulle, both have nice fragrances.

Burlington Roses in CA sell many thornless roses for $10.95 - I ordered many thornless from them: Annie Laurie MacDowell, Lynnie, Basyes Blueberry, Marie Pavie, Paul Neyron, Scentsational. They are out on Gruss an A., but have La Marne (low-thorn).

Many mauve roses are low-thorn: ebb tide, outta the blue, old port, and Love potion. These are best in a pot, since a few mauve has multiflora in their parentage and best in acidic soil. Heirloom Roses has a long list of thornless and low-thorn in their website.

I love working with Burling... I have several of her roses, too.

-k

It's LOVELY, and I really don't remember it being a terribly prickly thing ... But I caution you -- I don't pay much mind to prickles.

No, the reason it is no longer here is the reason I've given up on 'Sweet Chariot, after almost 30 years. It is multiflora at heart, and can't tolerate my miserably alkaline conditions.

If I gardened elsewhere, I'd grow it again in a heartbeat.

Now, LADY READING!!!! WOW! I really like this rose! And tho her foliage is a light-ish green here, she's less-troubled by alkalinity than most of her type. Pretty plant. Striking blooms. Can be troubled by blind growth in springs like this one -- so I know I need to go cut some of that off.

But she don't rust, and she don't mildew. I like her a lot!

Jeri

If you cut roses for the vase like me, almost thornless is nice. Last summer I had tons of prickles stuck in my fingers. It was annoying, I had to prick myself with needles to get them out. They poked holes through my thick rubber gloves, so I had to wear deer-skin gloves to cut roses for vase.

We have heavy alkaline clay, and alkaline tap water, pH of 8 like Jeri's. My neighbor told me that a few of her roses don't bloom at all. I have one, "Easy Elegance" Grandma's Blessings, developed in Minnesota for hardiness. However, Minnesota is mostly acidic soil, and that rose's parentage is heavy on multiflora. It gave me 3 blooms in 6 months!

In contrast, the Singing-in-the-Rain Floribunda, or Spek's Centennial, originated from McGredy, New Zealand (1991) is branded "repeats freely" by "Encyclopedia of Roses". This is a blooming wonder at the alkaline rose park. It beats Julia Child, Knock-outs, and Care-free series in blooming non-stop. It is fragrant and almost thornless.

McGredy, New Zealand also developed "New Zealand" rose, another low-thorn non-stop blooming - but it's more suited for dry & warm climate. The rain here beat up that one badly. New Zealand, like Southern France have alkaline soil.

Here's a list of thornless roses offered by BurlingtonRoses: Annie L. M, Lynnie, Basyes Bluebeery, Basyes Legacy, Commander Gillette, Hippolyte, Lady Banks Yellow, Marie Pavie, Gruss an Aachen, Pink Gruss AA, Super Jane, Renae (I throw out the ones that prefer acid soil).

And list of low-thorns from Burlington Roses: American Beauty, Anda, Belle of Portugal, Britannia, Cardinal Hume, Cardinal de Richelieu, China Doll Weeping, Clotide Soupert, Clytemnestra, Comtessa du Cayla, Comtessa Vandel, Crepuscule, Cuba, Edith Clark, Devoniensis, Gruss an Teplitz, Honorine de Brabant, La Rein, Joanne Hill, Kathleen, Madame Butterfly, Sutter's Gold, Magna Charta, Mrs. Aaron Ward, Shot silk, Night, Old Port (mauve), Opal Brunner, Orange Triumph, Paradise, Pasadena Tournament, Paul Neyron, Perle d'Or, Pookah, Remember Me, Rev. F. Page Roberts, Reve d' Or, Rita Sammons, Rose Marie, Roseville, Sally Holmes, Secret Garden, Sophie's Perpetual, Souv de La Malmaison, Souv de La Malmaison Rouge, Sunny South, Talisman, Tuscany Superb, White Cecile Brunner, William Allen Richardson, White Pet, and Zephirine Drouhin.

So you have tons of choice of low-thorns for warm weather. Here in cold zone I'm stuck with a few choices like Madame Plantier (the size of a car).