Susan, we've grown Rosette Delizy for years and years. We had General Gallieni long ago, but it was a poor plant. Never any disease tho! And the blooms were so lovely ... so when Gean offered me cuttings from her vigorous plant, I was grateful. It's growing well here now, in a large pot, and should go into the ground next year. And G. Nabonnand, we've had for maybe 4-5 years, and it gets better all the time. I've never seen any disease on any of the three, and I love the blooms on all. =========== Now, if you want to talk about BALLING -- The Cochets do ball here for me. But they are also completely clean, and bloom generously. And even when they do ball, they open about halfway, and still look lovely. :-) Here they are. Jeri

Wow that G. Nabonnand is gorgeous, Jeri. This is so tough. I cannot find a formula to help me select Tea roses, or maybe I just need to understand more about this class of rose. Mme. Antoine Mari, and Baronne Henriette de Snoy were roses I was unsure about, but they are performing very well. Lady Hillingdon is going to be shovel pruned or re-homed if I can convince an in-law in Camarillo to accept her. The problem with LH is the color holding up in the heat. I expect blooms to be smaller; as they all are if they dare bloom during the heat of Summer, but LH blooms are pure white now, and it is next to Darlow's Enigma and Marie Pavie, so I do not need another white rose in that area. It is difficult for a novice relative to this class of rose to find consistencies that could be an indicator as to whether or not a rose will perform well or horribly, and the indicators I have used for closer to two decades for modern roses just doesn't seem to apply.

Roses arrived today! Paul's Early Blush was of saleable quality - I'm planting it tomorrow and I shall take a picture, because it's huge. And thorny! Very stout canes and big roots, I think they must have picked me a really good one to make up for the subbing. I already pulled out Alfred de Dalmas which was a charming once bloomer but naked from blackspot most of the year. No more mosses for me. My other roses, which make up almost the last that I'll get this year are: White Cecile Brunner (which is going into a pot and appears to be two small roses, which I'm a bit bemused about, and of course will need yet another large pot for ugh.) Duchesse de Brabant, which is replacing SDLM, which is already gone. (The potted Maman Cochet White took that spot last year but both Cochets have gone to their new home hooray! Molly Sharman Crawford, which is replacing KPV, which is possibly getting potted. I need to move my two Roundelays towards the centre from the front of the bed because they are too upright for where they are. Not sure what is going in their spots, I might leave them vacant for inspiration. Daybreak is also being moved due to drainage works and sprawling into the path. I have potted up and still to plant, a Comtesse du Cayla, my Beales Anna to replant elsewhere, a Sanguinea seedling, and Lamarque which is going to take Daybreak's spot and grow up an arch to a wall. Lamarque grew like it was on steroids last year in a pot, can't wait to see what it does in the ground. Then there is my Roseraie du Desert order consisting of Lady Anne Kidwell, (replacing Deuil De Paul Fontaine which I think is dead - first rose for me to die of blackspot!) Ibridio di Castillo, Darlow's Enigma which is not in the coldframe and is laughing at our coldsnap (it has new leaves already!) Charles de Legrady which I hope to replace Le Vesuve with and last but not least Noella Nabonnand purchase of which was I fully admit ridiculous but I really really wanted it and I allow myself ONE silly purchase per year. These roses will stay potted till they put on some size, although I think Ibridio and Darlow will rapidly outgrow their pots.

It reminds me of a Disney Princess' ballroom gown: fluffy, layered and soooo tasteful, lol. This rose is one of my all-time favorites, by my all-time favorite breeder (never met a Nabonnand rose I didn't like, lol). Thanks for the pic, Jeri. John