I love, love this rose! I will tell you why below, but meanwhile if I were you, I would:

1) Give her as much sun and warmth as you can - you may have to move her to where she gets more than "morning sun", if that is possible. HMF says she is only cold hardy to zone 7, so she likes to be on the warmer sunnier side.

2) Give her some time! This is a very old HT from 1890 - on its own roots it may take more time for it to establish itself (especially if it is not getting enough sun).

Mine is growing here in zone 9, in a very protected spot on a South facing wall, and climbing up a chimney (I have the climbing version). I adore the large globular blooms! I grew mine from a cutting from a neighbor - hers had been totally neglected for at least 40 years (and had been growing in the yard of a vacant house for 7 years), but it was climbing up a plum tree and blooming its head off every Spring, even in mostly shade. We thought it was a once bloomer - her original plant was growing inside of a blackberry thicket, on the North side of the house in almost total shade except for the parts that made it up the tree. However, when I planted mine in sun on the South side of my house it started re-blooming. I gave her back a cutting and we planted it in a sunny spot in her garden and now that one is re-blooming too.

It very well may have taken 3-4 years for mine to take off, I can't really remember, but now it is happy, and about 10 feet tall. I looked yesterday, and the first bloom is all the way open - just gorgeous. I never spray - mine is healthy. The only thing some folks don't like is the remarkably large amount & size of the thorns, but I don't mind that at all, as it is so gorgeous, and not in a spot where anyone needs to pass by it. Hope this is helpful -

Here's a pic of mine on the chimney:

{{gwi:244604}}

Jackie

It might not be her or you. It seems in my garden sometimes roses just don't take off. I have Caroline. It's own root. It grew swiftly into a big caned tall rose. It does get full sun where I've planted it. It must need whatever HTs need, but I can say it isn't growing because it doesn't do well own root, at least here, which might be a little warmer than there.

It's probably heat and sun that she needs. I have one spot that's warmer and in as much sun as I have. I'll move her there and give it a couple of years. I see too that she is very heavily tea, now that I look. I have another early ht, Madame Joseph Bonnaire, that has something of the same problem, though, and it is in a much warmer, sunnier spot. So moving CT may not help. But I'll try anyway.

Jackie, thanks so much for your picture and descriptions. Pam, thanks too for how she's doing for you. I am glad you love her, Jackie. I don't know that she'll ever perform here like that but we'll give it some more time.

Thanks very much, both of you. That helps a lot.

Jackie, thanks for the gorgeous picture. That's a perfect example of what a climbing rose should look like.

Ingrid

I had one in too much shade who did poorly, and then she was toast after the cold winter following that season! I'll probably try her again, because she is so gorgeous.

I was afraid she had no vigor as a variety, but she died before I got to move her to a really sunny spot, lol. I'm glad you posted this.

This creature needs three years minimum to develop a root system. Once it does, this is one of the most indestructible roses I have ever seen. Once established, it thrives on neglect. Honest!

Paul, I believe you. Honest! Thanks so much for the comments.

Meredith, I hope if you try again it works out better.

Ingrid, I agree. That is a beautiful climber.

Gean, you may remember that I had the climber. I thought she was quite vigorous. I had her a couple of years (maybe a little more) and she became very large in that time. She didn't complain a bit about her full-blowtorch-hot-sun, southern exposure. She must love heat. Her blooms were gorgeous. Her black spot was not. Her prickles were large, lethal and abundant. We garden in different universes, and I guess yours is the bush form. If you've got the room and the patience, you'll love those flowers.

Interestingly, I also have Mme Jos Bonnaire. No flowers ever in over a year, hardly any leaves, just 3 yardstick-straight canes with a tuft of leaves at the top. All up and down the canes the budeyes look fairly swollen, but they never do anything - even when one was caught on a nearby rose and horizontal for some months. I really thought that would do the trick but it did not. She's out of the ground now and in a 4-5 gallon pot, moving toward the yard waste pile, I'm afraid. Maybe this one will prefer your universe.

Sherry

Here is a link that might be useful: If only sweat were irrigation...

hi, Sherry,
I remember your talking about CT and that you'd removed her. You're right, I do have the bush form. I dug her up yesterday; she reminds me of that song, "long tall woman in a black(spot) dress," and unshaved legs, lol. I'm going to put her in some sun and grit my teeth for awhile and wait to see if she does better.

I think it is aimeekitty that has had good success with Mme. Joseph Bonnaire. I guess that means she likes dry heat. I'm cold and wet; you're hot and wet - she's getting another year or two and mine may go the same way as yours.

Thanks for commenting, Sherry. I sometimes think that if a rose does well for you, it's going to have problems here. Probably vice versa, too. We've gone from being rose friends, to opposite-rose friends, I'm afraid ... but still friends. :)

Absolutely!! And I would add that our rose lists should be marked DO NOT GROW LIST when shared with each other. But photos and conversations are always appreciated regardless.

Sherry

Here is a link that might be useful: If only sweat were irrigation...

Jackie, if you're still checking this thread, did you have to train her up the chimney, or did she throw herself up there?

floridarose - in my experience, roses do not throw themselves up vertical walls without some sort of support, although they do sometimes up trees. We trained her - my DH drilled 1 inch long 1/4 inch holes in the mortar (he says you can also do it in the bricks, but the hole can be erased from the mortar later if you want, not so any holes in the bricks). Then he put plastic anchors in the holes, and then just used screw eyes - the normal type with circles of metal attached to a screw. Then we used these to tie her to.

Since this picture was taken, Belle Portugaise, which is growing up the porch next to the chimney, has decided to send some canes sideways - they actually got over to the chimney above MCT, because BP is so very tall. My DH had put in the screw eyes way up the chimney, so we were able to use some to tie the BP canes to. Right now they both are blooming, and it is quite a sight.

Jackie

I've very happy this post was done! I added her last year and she hasn't done much for me either. I guess we're just not being patient enough with her :) I have her potted, but I think after reading this post, I may move her into the ground on the hottest side of my house..it sounds like her preference!

Tammy

Thanks, Jackie. I have an unidentified rambler that put itself up an oak tree, so I just wondered.

Jackie, I caught my breath when I saw that picture. Simply stunning.

Rosefolly

Harborrose: I'm curious to know what became of your MCT. Did it begin to do better over the summer? What is it doing this year?

Tammy, I picked up cl. Mme. Caroline this year from a local nursery. It's a 2 gallon ARE plant & has just been beautiful. It's really premature to comment much as I've only had her in the ground about a month, but she's never stopped blooming. I've had her on a wish list a long time. I love how she keeps the inner petals folded over the center to form a pink cabbage ball. So far she looks real good. It was a real luxury to be able to pick up a plant so much farther along.

Gosh, that is beautiful climbing up the chimney. But I don't know anyone young enough to drill anchors & screw eyebolts up ours!

I dug my CT and put it into a large pot and kept it in a sunny spot last year. This year the bush really grew out and looked great.

But I gave it to my teacher (botanical drawing) who is interested in starting a garden with old roses, along with a few others I'd propagated. I think it does fine up here and wouldn't hesitate to plant it again. It does seem to take time to get started, so a long time in a pot might be a good idea. It was in a 3 gallon when I gave it away.

Gean -- Did you see the lovely one in the Sacramento Cemetery?

I had this rose, and lost it during a period when a lot of roses died around the area (not just in my garden) of something I thought of as "The Plague." But while it was here, it had good vigor, and terrific disease-resistance. I'll try it again, one day.

Jeri

Jeri, I don't remember seeing CT. Funny, looking over my pictures find that many of them are of singles. I guess that's what I mostly looked for. I like the laminated tags the cemetery uses; very practical and easy to find.

Here's one I had never seen before, Castro Breen Musk -

{{gwi:244605}}

{{gwi:244606}}

Isn't the Castro-Breen rose something? Did anyone list it on the Cemetery wish list? It should be there, if not.

Good to hear about your treatment of CT, Gean. I found myself doing exactly the same thing with mine this year (2nd year, out of the ground, back into a pot) and she is already looking better. I'm not in a hurry, now, to put her in the ground.

Debbie

I got overload at the cemetery trying to see so much at one time. I'm sorry I didn't see the CT; next time I'm going to make sure I have a lot more time there!

I saw two bushes of MCT, and one of them was quite close to the Castro-Green Musk. I was so impressed by it's size and those gorgeous pink cabbage-flowers- I've never seen a MCT that large before. On a bush that large, with that many flowers, the nodding stems looked so elegant. So...on the way home, I couldn't help it: I had to stop at Rogue Valley Roses and buy a 5-gallon Mme Caroline Testout. She is HUGE- can you imagine what it was like trying to get her in and out of the car (which was already over-packed anyway)? Not to mention driving 4 hours with those long thorny branches lurking behind me. Gean, you and I live in the same climate, which is why I was curious to see what happened with yours. Hopefully she'll like it here.

Zach, I knew that's why you asked, since we live in similar climates. I don't remember seeing it there but it probably just didn't register. I bet yours will be spectacular; good idea to buy a 5 gallon. Gean

Gean-

I thought of you yesterday, when I was at Heirloom Roses. I saw 'White Cap' being grown as a climber. I hadn't noticed it there before. I'm excited to go back in a few weeks when it starts to bloom.

I hope it's spectacular and opens well there. I am giving mine another year (I say that every year). Maybe it's just my yard and where it is. Let me know how it is, if you see it again.