My reds that bloom in the hottest part of my summer (not anywhere near as hot as you but up to 100 degrees sometimes) are Veterans' Honor, Crimson Bouquet and Red Intuition. All have thick petals that stand up well in high heat.

Second Veteran's Honor. We got up to 109, and VH continuted to put out new growth and bloom all through August. The flowers held up really well to the heat.

Who is the best vendor to purchase Veteran's Honor from? I dont find too many that carry them. Thanks.....

Kardinal 85 takes the heat and is surprisingly fragrant. My summer temps are in the high 90s to low 100s daily for months. Kardinal holds up just fine. I wouldn't want a whole garden with that form, but I don't mind have an uncrisped rose that looks happy in the garden. Mine is budded to Dr. H. and is growing in poor soil, but it keeps on hanging in there.

Smiles,
Lyn

K&M roses carries Veterans Honor. They send nice plants on Fortuniana. I got mine from them and am very happy with it.

Black Magic, Opening Night and Ingrid Bergman all do well in sustained high temps. Veterans Honor is highly regarded in this area but I'm not crazy about the tendency to pink even in morning sun/afternoon shade. My own-root Red Intuition is phenomenal no matter what temp. This year I put in Firefighter and hope it can take the blazing heat.

I am looking for a pure red, though Veteran's Honor seems to get alot of praise. Crimson Glory has a wonderful scent - am tempted to try that one as well. Firefighter looks interesting too - hope someone in hot areas can comment on it.

Last summer, in our 100+ temps and a horrible drought (I didn't water much)-- Ingrid Bergman bloomed her head off and looked beautiful...

Rouge Royale has been phenomenal in my garden.

Veteran's Honor IS true carnation red, at least on the petal fronts. The reverse is just a little lighter red, but the overall effect is straight-ahead red. It has consistently big, full, shapely blooms no matter the weather. Plus a modest but definitely detectable raspberry fragrance. I'd still pick it first. Opening Night for me was just so-so in the heat of summer. It really excels in spring and late fall, here. It's best feature is its intensely saturated red coloring. Bloom size is good but I still think Vet's Honor's form is better. My prettiest red of all is Vino Rosso aka Vino Rossi, which is a blending of crimson and red. The shading adds interest but is still effectively blood red. A little smaller blooms of about 4 inches, but stunning form, even in heat. No scent at all though. It's available mailorder from Wisconsin Roses; you have to email Steve and get on a waiting list. Great price, and the rose is worth the wait.

Another trooper in the summer heat is Olympiad, and that is pure, unvaried red all over. Got mine from Chamblee's.

Crimson Glory is a dark crimson, super fragrant and healthy if you get a good one, but usually doesn't produce decent cutting stems, and the heads always nod. Chrysler Imperial is my most consistent super-fragrant red for the heat, but it is definitely one to fade to raspberry or light red. Mr. Lincoln, also super-fragrant, has the opposite problem of aging to a dark muddy purplish-red, not my favorite. In the mild climate of Washington State where I first grew it, it was my favorite red for sure.

Black Magic is pretty good, a bit more prone to blackspot, though all the ones we've discussed could use some spray protection.

My absolutely most disease-resistant red is Deep Secret, which is definitely NOT great for hot summers, but I have kept it because it has several great virtues going for it. It excells in the late fall and winter here when some others are resting, it is super-blackspot resistant, has outstanding deep deep red coloring, shaded black, and has nice straight cutting stems. It is a bit smaller than some others, mine usually just 3 and a half inches in diameter, but occasionally 4". The bush is also smaller, so it doesn't take up nearly the space that Veteran's Honor, for example, does.

I haven't grown Beloved, aka Cesar E. Chavez, but I've seen it around here, and it seems to do very well. It is a gorgeous red, very intense, a strong grower, slightly fragrant.

Very hot, dry summers here. My best and favorites that are true red are Ingrid Bergman, Crimson Bouquet, and Black Magic. But I must add that none of my roses can take heat much above 95. That's just life, nothing more I can say to that. Petals brown above 95.

I have 'Beloved' and I like it more than its sibling 'Veteran's Honor'. What VH has is some fragrance; 'Beloved' has just a little, but it has better form, and holds that form longer, with stronger straighter stems and a slightly clearer red color.

Extreme heat, nothing does that well here. Lavish watering and afternoon shade help, along with avoiding reflected light/heat as from light colored stucco or brick walls. And of course cutting them for the vase and bringing them into the house.

Hi I am from Brisbane, Australia and it is very hot and humid here at the moment.
I have Kardinal which has no scent, Veteran's Honor aka City of Newcastle in Australia, Firefighter and Black Magic. They are only young and so far they are holding up pretty good. Kardinal is doing very well and Veteran's Honor looks really promising. I really like Firefighter and it is more of a dusky red with a wonderful scent, can be slow to establish but I have been told it's worth the wait. I have also been told that Black magic doesn't do so well in my climate so will wait and see how it goes. But if your after a pure red then out of one's I do have, probably VH is your best bet. Blooms can have tendency to nod but potash will help fix that up.

I have seen Kardinal blooming on a garden tour in Houston and loved the pure red color and have always planned to get it one day. Same with Ingrid Bergman.

I have a question about the potash....I bought a bag of muriate of potash and I cant remember what in the world for. Can anyone tell me what use this has and how to apply it?

Also, has anyone had experience with Legends? I have seen it blooming and the blooms are huge. But I dont hear much about it. Opinions?
Thanks so much!
Judith

I realize it sounds like you are only looking for modern hybrid teas, but would you consider a section of the garden for the old china roses? Most of them are red, and they love love heat. Of course, their growing habits are completely different. If you want to check out pictures, look up "Cramoisi Superior" and see what you think. Mine blooms 11 months of the year. You might enjoy getting out of your comfort zone a bit!

Crimson Glory is my favorite HT red of all time - I have the climbing version, so the fact that the blooms "nod" is a benefit! Fabulous fragrance, as you noted.

jackie

Try Uncle Joe. It loves our heat here in Central Illinois. Also Let Freedom Ring and Black Magic

I love the chinas, they do well here and have Cramoisi Superior. I am in the mood for a few true red hybrid teas that can stand the heat. I have a Crimson Glory that I just adore....and want to try a few more.

I talked to a commercial rose grower today - and told him about the problems I had with heat last summer - I lost roses to the 2 months of 105 degrees we had along with the drought. He told me to wet the leaves during the day, it would cool the plant and help - just to make sure to do it a couple of hours before dark - he said even a mister on the plants would help. Mine were watered well, but succombed anyway. I felt it was being in the convection oven temperatures we had. My older established roses survived - the ones that were a couple of years old were the unfortunate ones, especially in a bed that gets full, all day sun and uninhibited HOT late afternoon sun. Made me sick to lose them....but will just give me an excuse to buy more....
Judith