22,153 Garden Web Discussions | Roses


It could be shooting up like that because its trying to reach for the light...you tend to get long, leggy and rather sappy growth in low light conditions. Being inside in Nottingham in March, it probably wouldn't help much even if you put it on a windowsill. And that's apart from all the humidity lack of air circulation issues. Is there any where you have a back porch or a sheltered corner you can put it out on?


I think colour in roses also has to do with intensity/quality of light, as well as the heat ( and especially so for roses like Double Delight). during the month of heatwaves we had this summer, I moved a lot of potted roses under the carport; not the best as they didnt get any direct sunlight, but better than them frying. Just Joey went into summer colouration mode (pale delicate salmon), but Double Delight produced a few cool weather blooms (creamy white, with barely any red at all).

Subke,
I, too love the way you have woven New Dawn through your trellis. It is obviously a lot of work.
I have never grown New Dawn but recall she is a strong grower. I wonder if it is your intention that your rose grows over the roof? Would there be some advantage in removing more from the top in order to encourage new growth from the bottom? My climber tends to get top heavy if I don't shorten it considerably each spring..
Harry

Thanks for all the kind words. I love to hear what everybody else is up to. It's great to see beautiful pictures of roses, but those always seem like the "after" pictures to me and not the nitty gritty "before" and "during" pictures!
Just to clarify the trellises are/were scrap pieces recovered from a steel shop, trimmed to sized, then rails added that sink about 3' into the ground. True example of "trash to treasure"!
Harry, I would love for the New Dawn to grow over the stoop roofs, but so far any canes that have gotten above the galvanized aluminum roof has fried, so I'm not sure that's going to work. The rose is going in to it's fourth year and so far I have not had much issue with it getting good bloom down low, but this is the first year I've ended spring pruning with canes above the trellis so we shall see--this is very much a learning experience for me.
FYI: Anyone finding this thread after a search for "New Dawn": I would not--knowing what I know today--select this rose again! It is more thorny, less blackspot resistant and a poorer rebloomer than advertised, although it is glorious for about 3 weeks of the year.

I would prune off all the distorted leaves and see what happens. If the distorted leaves do not return, then I wouldn't worry about it.
I don't know about the weather in Vegas--especially during this weird polar winter we had this year, but in Kansas, if those distorted leaves appeared in early spring, I would assume they were suffering from a late night freeze--which is why I'd cut them off. As the weather warms up, no other leaves would be affected..
Kate

A few new things for me in this thread. I didn't know about the potential problems with plastic cover. Had not used it with my previous rose and see that I shouldn't. Also, had never heard of chlorosis. Yeah, this winter was brutal on just about all plants.

My first thought was cold damage too. I know when I've left cane that was marginal when pruning in the past. It almost always dies off anyway and I end up going back and repruning them. Now I just take off anything that looks iffy right from the start. It saves the plant from wasting energy on leaves that will not live and saves me from having to prune again.



Again thanks for all the comments. We (my wife) has decided to go with KO red and KO Sunny. The nurseryman will be here this morning to check the layout, test the soil etc. He informed us that a double Sunny is now available so we'll go with that and a double red. Sunny being pale to almost white should ease the appearance of 2 strong colors competing.

I misuunderstood about the KO Sunny. The nurseryman (Bill) said he inquired about double Sunny, not that they were available. Anyway he recommended 3 boxwoods in the corner with all red double KO at 5 foot intervals and 3 Sunny in front of the boxwoods. That's what we're going with. Again thanks, all the comments helped us to decide. I will post pix when the hedge is in full bloom

Native soil with top dressing. The more extensively you can loosen the soil (wide, not too deep) the better.
As amendments in the soil break down, that decomposition requires oxygen. Roots require oxygen, not just soil and water. If there is too much amendment decomposing, the roots are robbed of the oxygen they need. Loosening the soil creates tiny air pockets, and the roots can grow more easily (and have the oxygen they need).
Ideal soil has only 1-2% organic content!

I'm in 5B but I'll also vouch for Quietness. We had an exquisitely chilly winter and not one mm of die-back to show for it anywhere on my plant.
If I were shopping off your list I'd instantly grab Lambert Closse too...no experience, just one I like to dream about.
And have you thought about Morden Blush?
Cheers!
~Anika

It would help if you let us know which area of the country you're in. As MadGallica frequently reminds us, there's a difference between moist zone 5 areas like upstate New York and drier zone 5a like areas of southern Wisconsin, or here in Nebraska.
I've grown most of the roses you mention and I'll comment on each for my zone 5 winters. I do agree that in general the Rugosas are very hardy, and I've never ever lost an Easy Elegance rose - they're all tip hardy for me even in this miserable cold winter.
Lambert Closse
Austrian Copper
I haven't grown these two but they're a safe bet for hardiness in the zone 4/5 regions
J.P. Connell - little dieback over the winter so far, though it has taken a while to establish for me. I have it in my zone 4 pocket of the yard and it seems fine for hardiness, but I think it wants more sun than it has in that bed.
Hansa - in general, rugosas are a great bet and this one is highly scented, but I have to say it was a dog for me in my previous yard. A two cane wonder that only bloomed once then lost all its leaves to blackspot even in our dry climate with nothing else planted around it. I've had much better results from Therese Bugnet, or Linda Campbell among Rugosas.
Prairie Joy - grows big and hardy in my zone - droops over a 4' high fence surrounding it, but I don't think it has enough sun where I have it, and it doesn't bloom very often for me.
Quietness - lovely, reliable, hardy, saturated medium pink blooms. Not all Buck roses have been hardy for me, but this one laughs off my zone 4 pocket and reblooms pretty well.
Heaven on earth - you really want this rose. I'd put it among my top 10 favorites among 700 roses. It smells nice, with delicate apricot-pink blooms that are very double and profuse, laughs off the cold in my zone 4 pocket, and stays a nice well rounded 4-5' bush with blooms all down the sides
Pretty Jessica - this one grows fine in my yard and is perfectly hardy, but I haven't seen as much rebloom from this one as I hear reported elsewhere. Austins in general are terrifically hardy for me, and many of them get quite big, so this one is a good choice for a small Austin. Still, I'd pick Sharifa Asma or Tamora or Darcy Bussell or The Prince as a better small Austin that's nicely hardy.
Alchemist - haven't grown this one
Kashmir easy elegance - in general the Lim Easy Elegance line is absolutely the only rose breeder for whom I've never had any winter kill, with 15 varieties and counting. I haven't grown Kashmir among these yet, but its a sure bet. Another Lim to consider that I dearly love is Sweet Fragrance. Big fluffy true apricot/peach double blooms all up and down a 4-5' bush that bloom all summer. The only thing it doesn't have, oddly enough, is fragrance. Still, it's on the north side of my house, which is mostly zone 4 pocket too, and it does so well I put in three more of these (alternating with Music Box) and I almost never do duplicates of roses.
Freckles - I'm putting in a replacement of this one this spring, as I lost one of these over the summer. I wouldn't put this as the hardiest of the Buck roses- Mountain Music, Quietness, or Prairie Sunset/Sunrise have all done better for me.
Champlain - Champlain was my "gateway rose" at my old house that convinced me I could grow roses (had I only grown the Hansa I had on the other side of the house, I might never have planted another rose). It blooms pretty constantly all season, with dark crimson-pink blooms and nice glossy clean foliage. I did lose one once in my new house, with a weak cultivar from a local source, but my present one is strong and healthy. I had to cut it back a fair bit after last winter, but I had to do that for virtually everything but the Austins, Easy Elegance, Explorers, and rugosas (and even some of them), so that's nothing against Champlain. Individual blooms are not good for cutting, but the bush statement is very nice.
Hope this helps!
Cynthia

Here in Winston-Salem, I have a pink Aloha that I bought from Chamblee's last year and planted on a south wall next to my house. It was very small but gave me a few very pretty, sturdy blooms.
To my surprise, it has been one of the first to start leafing out this year with EXTREMELY glossy, healthy looking foliage. I can't wait to see what it does this year! I would recommend Aloha.






While an exhibitor might change her mind after reading my posts in the thread linked below, this gardener sticks with 28F as being the temperature of concern IF the roses are NOT dormant.
Southern California knows very little about such lows.
There are always MANY variables to consider.
Best wishes.
Here is a link that might be useful: weather conditions
This post was edited by sandandsun on Mon, Apr 7, 14 at 15:08
I got them all planted today! I had to relocate a number of narcissus & tulips that were just starting to come up - guess I wasn't thinking about the rose hole sizes last fall ð My neighbors all came over to help (watch me dig!) & we got to visit for a while. Isn't it great to just be outside again?
Thanks for being willing to share your experience & knowledge!