I think it depends upon the Tea.

Lady Hillingdon, maybe. Mons. Tillier. Rosette Delizy?

NOT the Cochets.

Better off with the Nabonnands. Gen. Gallieni, G. Nabonnand, Rosette Delizy -- they seem less-fussy to me, and their blooms open more easily. Maybe, I might start with G. Nabonnand.

None of the Nabonnands mildew for me, Diane -- and we, too, have cool coastal air and fog.

But keep in mind that you will get less bloom, than if they were in the sun.

OH, and don't get discouraged if they mildew when they're immature. We DO see that, and most outgrow it.

Le Vesuve mildewed its way through 5 years or so, and left for the landfill. Mme. Antoine Rebe is on her way to the landfill, after 5-6 mildewy years.

BUT, FWIW, let me tell you that we have a massive "Grandmother's Hat" under the canopy of a huge (and I do mean 3-story) seedling avocado tree. It is completely healthy, and blooms just fine.

Jeri

Thanks Jeri,

I was lusting after Lady Roberts after seeing the photos recently posted on GW.

Alas, I seem to be cursed vis a vis Grandmothers Hat and Larry Daniels although the Larry Daniels' plants were budded by he who shall not be named. Maybe I should try GH one more time and get one from the Cemetery sale. You are always singing GH's praises.

Diane

Does naming he who shall not be named still get you banned or a trip to Disneyland?

And call me crazy. I also ordered Florence Bower's Pink Tea because of the GW photos and descriptions.

Gilbert Nabonnand is looking good also. Thanks again for the tip Jeri.

Diane

I think it's pretty silly . Spike's long-gone. He Who Must Not Be Named is gone. I think it hapPEns automatically. You don't go to Dizzy land on a first offense. Just a nasssty note.

Diane, our Larry Daniels, from the same source, was Dreck. Our two Tina Marie's are 9-ft tall.

Jeri

paying attention here - looking for one which will grow on a south facing stream edge and look suitably informal amongst the willowherb and umbellifers.

Oddly, my experience with G. Nabonnand (from Vintage) was entirely the opposite of Jeri's. It mildewed here to an astounding degree: heavily, as if covered with frost, from beginning of season to end. Even so, it was almost constantly in bloom, which was amazing given how badly the plant looked. After 6 years of waiting and hoping, the mildew was as bad as ever, so I regretfully removed it.

Le Vesuve was a mildew magnet and did not stay. General Gallieni was also very susceptible to mildew here.

To be fair, they were all on the "mildew" side of the garden, where the sun does not hit until later in the morning. But the other teas in the same bed (Mrs. B.R. Cant, Rhodologue Jules Gravereaux, Mme. Bravy, and Arcadia Louisiana Tea) manage to be affected by PM only early on, if at all, and never to the extent of being totally disfigured, and soon get over it.

Debbie

This post was edited by catspa on Sat, Apr 6, 13 at 9:22

Debbie, how many hours of sun did G. Nabonnand get in your garden? Your report is making me cautious.

Diane

Diane, 7 - 8 hours + (depending on time of year). Niles Cochet is now in that spot and looking very good, beginning its third year in the ground. Location here can sometimes make all the difference. I once had a bush Devoniensis that was a mildew disaster (on the same side of the yard as G. Nabonnand was on) and "solved" its mildew problem by moving it to the other side of the yard. I have also been much happier with some of my Chinas since I put them in spots where the morning light first shines. ~ Debbie

Diane,
up here in western coastal Washington, I grow some teas, Madame Berkley, Lady Hillingdon, Le Vesuve and Devoniensis. Oh, and Melanie Willermoz.

Compared to growing them in the south, it is excruciatingly slow, but I am cautiously encouraged.

I tried Madame Berkley because of Cass Bernstein's comment that it does better in cooler weather. Lady Hillingdon because it is rated 6b and so I thought maybe more accepting of cooler conditions. The others because I had them with me.

Of all of them, Le Vesuve has done the best, I think. I put it next to Tuscany (what an odd pairing) but I really though LV would stay very small. But it is growing pretty well so will soon be fighting for space with Tuscany. Devoniensis is the slowest but I think it is just slow anyway.

None have mildewed, despite the wet and cool temps, in the two to three years they've been in the ground. Not much bloom, either, but as I said, I am cautiously encouraged. One very cold winter, Dev and MWillermoz froze to the ground, but they both came back. We're rated 8a or 8b but the weather is wild sometimes. Like everywhere, I guess.

My casualties have been G. Nabonnand and Enchantress. The Enchantress bush did fine but the blooms always balled so I sp'd it.

I have put mine in as warm and sunny a spot as I have; I didn't expect much but it's okay so far. My mom has lived in Daly City and Half Moon Bay so I am kind of familiar with where you are. Foggy. I am curious as to what happens with your tea roses if you decide to plant some, so please update! Gean

This post was edited by harborrose on Sun, Apr 7, 13 at 17:04

Hi Gean,

Right now I have Duchesse de Brabant in a pot for observation before planting and am sorry to say that she's balling and her leaves don't look happy either. Will hopefully outgrow that?

I do think I will try Lady Hillingdon in the future.

Diane

I don't know, Diane. Of all the teas I'm familiar with, I think DdB has the most problems with wet weather. But I love that rose - when I lived in Alabama my moniker was taken from that rose's name.

I think LH is a good one to try. :)

Duchesse de Brabant did not work out here (mildew), but Lady Hillingdon is wonderful. LH is also always among the best-looking teas, foliage- and bloom-wise, at the SJHRG (30 miles south), which is much damper and foggier than here. SJHRG is my mildew reference: if it's relatively clean there, it will certainly be so here.

~ Debbie

Diane do you have a spot to grow teas into 5 gallon size that is in the sun? My experience with teas is that they are slow to start. If i were in your situation I'd try to grow them up a bit besides growing the "right" variety. It seems like you'll only know for sure if you try. I remember seeing some old teas growing in the village of Mendocino. One was Duchess de Brabant. I can't remember the others. They were in full sun there.

Thanks Debbie and Gean. Wish I had posted about DdeB before purchasing from ARE.

Lady Hillingdon will be my next purchase from ARE when she's back in stock.

Any thoughts on Lady Roberts if I can grab one at the Sacramento Cemetery sale???

Diane

Pamela, I grow most of my roses into 5 gal plants before planting so they have a better chance of making it in my harsh conditions.

All areas of my garden only get 4-5 hours of sun or less : Diane

I live in zone 7, and it depends on the year and the rose - we get a lot of rain (Willamette Valley in Oregon) but I do grow many teas and noisettes with pretty good success. On occasion I will lose a plant due to weather conditions- but have found they often rebound from their roots even if I think they are gonners. Rosette Delizy dies back every year, but shows itself when the weather warms up- I had Crepuscle die 2 years ago, but I swear at the end of the summer last year the roots sent up some foliage. It is missing this year so far, but I will be keeping my eyes peeled for it.

I also find the roses planted up against my house do great- due to the heat that radiates from the house during the fall and winter. Juane Desprez is growing up the roofline (I will have to remedy this), and Reve d'Or is very happy in it's spot, along with Marchael Neil (spelling on this is incorrect- but I for the life of me cannot spell it correctly right now)

Experiment and grow a few this year and see how they do- you may be suprised and in turn very rewarded for years to come with gorgeous flowers :)

Marleah

Mme Joseph Schwartz, offspring (or sport) of DbB, grows in full shade under an arborvitae in the cemetery and blooms surprisingly well. The plant is a bit spindly but its blooms are good. I don't know about LR. Jackie says that its sport parent, Schmidt's Buff Giant/Anna Olivier, is in too much shade in the cemetery and that's why it's declining. It gets about four hours of sun a day - planted right next to Bengal Fire and Westside Road Cream Tea, both of which are doing great (we are really thrilled with both of these plants, by the way - truly huge fragrant flowers on Westside Cream - we need to propagate it soon).

Many of the teas in the cemetery get quite a bit of shade now that the oak trees are getting big. It's a real problem, but it does give visitors and volunteers a chance to evaluate how different varieties fare in less than full sun. Of course, shade varies too - we have a couple of Magnolia grandiflora that are dense, evergreen trees and cast very deep shade, while the oaks are at least deciduous and let some light through even in summer.
Anita