What roses grow well for you, even though they're really out of their official comfort zones? I'm especially interested in roses that are flourishing without extra care, but also in roses that need some mollycoddling to get along, but do well with a bit of help. There are definitely roses that we might really fall for, and think are worth a little extra effort.

Thanks,
Virginia

PS I'm interested in roses that scoff at temperatures they aren't supposed to able to handle (cold-hardy Noisettes or heat-loving Gallicas, if they exist), but also roses that are more drought-tolerant than you might expect...

Okay, slight overstatement, but it does surprise me when the roses go through another 104 degree day in my concrete-rich blast furnace of a garden and some (gasp!) are still blooming. La France always surprises me, parked as it is right next to the large concrete parking area (where we never park because it ruins the look of the garden!) and still manages to put out a few blooms which actually rarely scorch. Bishop's Castle is another one that doesn't stop in the heat and both of my bushes have buds and blooms. Considering that it was "made in England", that's pretty impressive. Souvenir de la Malmaison is another rose that one wouldn't necessarily consider to be ideal for hot and dry conditions, but after a short rest it's again blooming nicely. I don't really have any rose that's not suited to this area, having soon found out that even hybrid musks and noisettes would rather not live here, not to speak of anything as exotic as a gallica or moss rose.

Ingrid

However, when you describe your garden, I think of a desert interrupted with blobs of intrusive concrete stuff, but then your garden photos look so nice and green and leafy, and I'm so relieved that your garden doesn't look the way you describe it...

One of these days, a party of rosomanes wielding pickaxes (or bundles of ACME TNT like Wile E Coyote always carries around) is going to show up at your door, and ask for permission to demolish the unused parking area... You've been warned!

All three of those roses are very much what I like in a rose- not sure how much they'd like our humid/soggy summers, though, if they are thriving in your dry and sunny conditions...

Virginia

I would be also be quite interested in hearing about anyone growing Teas, Chinas, etc. Up Nawth...

Thanks,
Virginia

Sweet Chariot (miniature)
Felicia (hybrid musk)

I grow a couple of roses supposedly hardy to zone 5 with no problem, Rosemary Harkness (HT), and Ballerina :-)

As for the Pemberton HM's, the crush isn't so slight- it's pretty serious. 'Felicia' is definitely one I hope to grow one of these days...

Do you also grow any of the Canadian roses? Some of those are really attractive plants, but I don't know if any of them would be all that happy in my neck of the woods...?

Thanks,
Virginia

Sweet Chariot is planted "northern style". Bud union 6" below soil. It is still under assessment (I've got 3!). When in bloom the patio is imbued with their fragrance.

Felicia is a lovely rose, and grows in less than optimal light exposure. 3-4 hours max. It has slight black spot by the end of summer.

I grow John Davis and Quadra. John Davis has a 3 week flush and then a once in a while bloom, nothing spectacular. But when it is in bloom it is something to behold. It is thornless and scentless. Yet it has handsome foliage. New growth has a chartreuse tinge to it.

Quadra is still an infant (2 years). The rose is a sort of reddish pink. The flowers are quartered, scentless, and nod somewhat like Felicia and have an OGR feel to them. It's a rose to sit under and admire.

In retrospect growing "shouldn't roses" is a valuable experience for any gardener. I learned detachment patience, and admiration from them. I also realized that I prefer stalwart roses, not primadonnas.

And that They are more forgiving than many other plants regardless their reputation....

.

I agree with you about 'shouldn't' roses. I'm not testing any zone boundaries just yet, but I'm still pretty new to growing roses. Maybe once I have some success, I'll have the confidence to take a few calculated risks.

And I also agree that roses have a finicky reputation that is not (usually) deserved. When I told my mother I was growing some non-Knockout roses, she didn't actually tell me I was crazy, but she did give me That Look. Oh, well- if I continue to do well with what I have so far, she'll be getting some rooted cuttings of non-KO roses.

Virginia

The ones that really shouldn't survive zone 5 are my teas. Like you Seil, my Duchess de Brabant didn't survive this brutal winter, but she was never a very strong plant. My Georgetown tea also bit the dust, but I count that one as an alfalfa casualty since it leafed out initially in the spring. I still have 3 teas that are a good 5 or 6 years old - Maman Cochet, Mrs. BR Cant, and Mme. Antoine Mari - and all of them are blooming as normal, even after some low pruning this spring. Those might be better shots to try next time around, though I do protect those teas with big bags of leaves set around them after the ground freezes.

My hardiest Noisette is Mme. Alfred Carriere, and she's tip hardy in a normal winter, but hasn't bloomed at all this year because of needing to be cut to the ground. I have around 15 hybrid musks and they are reliably hardy for me, not even in the warm parts of my yard. The best are probably Wilhelm, Heavenly Pink, Petite de Terre Franche, and Cornelia. Clytemnestra did die on me this bitter winter, but none of the other hybrid musks had any troubles.

Here's to zone pushing!

Cynthia

Lady Hillingdon even though she was only a band last spring and died back to the ground over the winter has come back like a freight train. HMF rates her to 6a so it might be worth trying if you want to push zones again.

Lady Hillingdon is by a Bunker Hill peony, which is a very agressive grower. I am suspecting that Lady is struggling to fend itself against the peony. Might have to find the lady a better spot in the garden...

The teas you mention- Maman Cochet, Mrs B R Cant, and Mme Antoine Mari- seem to be remarkably adaptable ladies... as is Mme Alfred.

I'm not too surprised that 'Francis D/ Barcleona' does well for you- I've somehow gotten the impression that he's hardier and less heat-tolerant than most teas (or HT's). A lot of those gorgeous dark reds have a rep for not being heat-tolerant, but I'm gonna try some anyway- I love those dark reds, wines, purples...

And speaking of dark red roses, I've heard that 'Ingrid Bergman' is an unusually hardy HT- do you grow her/ can you confirm that?

Thanks for the good info,
Virginia

The shoots are too long and too viciously thorny for me to get to it in its supporting tree and force the shoots down so I can protect them. It has flowered only twice in seven years, the flowers are few and appear near the ground.

This rose grows too large to plant in what I think of as my warmest microclimate. So I planted it right next to my compost pit... I had recently read about the Victorians' method of using hot frames in the winter to grow stuff by digging a pit or trough underneath and filling it with "hot" compost or manure.

We too had a colder than normal winter but FDY came through beautifully. She did not bloom this year though. I don't know if it's simply part of being a young rose or if the cold temperatures affect the flowering.

As for 'Mrs Dudley', I seem to recall reading about some Teas in warm climates taking several years before deciding to grow, and then patience is rewarded when they finally take off after seemingly doing nothing in the meantime. And that's in warm climates...

'Mrs B R Cant' seems to be quite a phenomenon. I'm glad because I have some nicely rooted cuttings from a plant that I think is 'MBRC'. How large a plant has she been for you?

In my area, aggressive peonies are not a problem at all! Supposedly, there are a few varieties that will condescend to grow here, but I never saw a peony in real life until I was visiting DC some years ago in the Spring. An enchanting sight, but perhaps 'Lady H' doesn't agree? I hope you can resolve the territorial dispute equitably...

Virginia

Winters are generally mild to moderate here, but I understand from other gardeners that the 'freeze, then thaw, then freeze again' syndrome can do more damage than prolonged freezes at colder temps. Has that been a problem where you are?

I hope this winter won't be such a doozy...

Virginia

I'm glad it is sticking around for you, even if it only really blooms every so often. Do you winterize your roses or pretty much leave them alone?

Virginia

It sounds like the compost area suits it just fine, and it may just be recovering from the cold or working on its roots these days. Hopefully, you'll have some of those lovely flowers next spring- or maybe even this fall?

Fingers crossed,
Virginia

I grow few HT's, Elina, Sutter's Gold, Karen Blixen, Madame Caroline Testout, Princesse, Rose Gaujard, Gruss an Aachen (if it's a HT?), the climbing HT Swan Lake and an unusual lilac one, Salzaquelle, all in the ground. All have survived for years. Radiance is fairly new, it lives but not much more.

Salzaquelle is one I hadn't heard of, but I like the photos at HMF.

Thanks,
Virginia

But still I continue and am thinking of adding even more roses!

For Francis Dubreuil, most folks recommend this one for part shade locations regardless of zone to maintain the deep colors and the purple tones. Mine is in part shade and it doesn't seem to affect the winter hardiness.

As for Ingrid Bergman, I love the dark red of this one but I'm on 2 or 3 tries to overwinter this one, and I think it's going to be one of those "cold wimps" that are truly zone 7 rather than only reported as such.

Cynthia

I have a question about a rose that I've been contemplating, and that's our native R. carolina. Is it pretty well-behaved, or no? We have a small wilderness area behind our back fence, and I think it might be an attractive addition to that area as well as good for wildlife/ pollinators, etc. Also, did you buy yours, borrow it from the wild or grow it from seed?

Thanks,
Virginia