I get very little scent from Sombreuil (the large-flowered climber). Occasionally its scent wafts down the side yard where it's planted, but that's it. SDLM is only faintly fragrant to me, too. Blush Noisette is said to be one of the most fragrant, and I barely get anything from it. My allergies diminish my sense of smell, I know. Visitors come to the cemetery rose garden declaring that the scent bowls them over as soon as they get out of the car, and I barely notice it. I had a few days of sinus clarity this spring, and was astonished at the fragrance. The damask scent, fortunately, penetrates my congestion, as do musks and a few of the teas. Anita

Ahh, so it's the myrrh scented ones, not the musk ( my bad memory)that smell like Noxema. Would anyone happen to know which chemical(s) it is in the rose that smells like phenol + camphor + menthol + clove oil + eucalyptus (i.e., the volatiles in Noxema)? Just curious - I'm sure that the scent of a rose is mixture of chems, and probably in the same rose from varies from garden to garden. The scent of that vase full of Tiffany has calmed down a bit - it doesn't seem so irritating anymore. I'm glad that I'm enjoying now -I really like the rose. I just ordered SDLM from Vintage - I can't wait to sniff it now! The Damask rose scent sounds intriguing.

Pinching off the buds seems to matter more for those of us in cold zones, since we need more than anything to have a strong root system established before winter. Second to that is a strong cane or two, and blooms are not necessary in the first year except to establish that you have the right rose. People in warmer zones don't necessarily have to pinch off buds since they have a much longer growing season and a less harsh winter, unless they want to pinch buds to build strength to survive the hot periods. In zone 6, it will help your roses build strong roots if you pinch off the buds, but for stronger cultivars well suited to your zone it may not matter as much. Basically my philosophy has become to pinch off buds of anything that looks weak or is less than knee high with several branches, even if it's a year or two old. I can stand to do that because I have a lot of roses. Once the rose wants to bloom faster than I can pinch off the blooms (like Southern Peach or most of the Easy Elegance roses this year), I don't bother pinching and figure it's already strong enough. Bottom line is it's not necessary but it can make a difference in relatively marginal or small roses in your climate. Cynthia

I once had a rose that was sold at a big box store as Color Magic. It grew almost as tall as Octoberfest — over five feet tall — but with relatively few leaves and puny pale pink flowers perched on top. It was all cane and no virtually no rose. (Maybe I got a bad specimen?) I have also had very limited success with miniatures. I only ever bought one that made it longer than three years. Another one I dislike is Perfect Moment. The colors will knock your socks off — it should have been named something along the lines of "Fiery Sunset" or "Burning Embers", IMHO — but the leaves were thick and almost leather-like. As the blooms aged, they had a tendency to remain in place vs. drop off for an almost petrified appearance. I also had one called Voodoo. It was the thorniest rose bush I had ever seen — more thorns than flowers and leaves combined.