Hey John! Where did you hear that the mauve one was going to be rose of the yr next yr? I only got a couple of blooms on mine, but they were nice. Actually all 4 of them only gave me a few blooms each. The yellow one, SOUTHERN BELLE was the best for me. I wasn't all that impressed with APRIL IN PARIS, but really, it's hard to judge any of them or any rose in one season. That's why the test panel, to me, seems almost ludicrous. It's just kinda nice to get the roses cheaper is all. LOL But I have to admit, that new batch looks wonderful. Mine are already potted up and starting to sprout! You know of course, that I would be most interested in the striped one! And that orange... wow! I can't wait to see them bloom, and to compare notes with you! Come on spring!

Thanks for everyone's comments. Just wanted to provide an update: JP shipped the tree roses within two weeks. They were in great health! I was relieved. They are leafing out. I have plastic clear garbage bags over them, with a few holes poked through and I will poke more as I see more growth. I used wet sphagnum (sp?) moss and put them in the middle of the canes. Rosenut (Karl) recommended a sponge in the middle of the bush if I didn't have any moss. I had purchased a package of four from Target JUST for that purpose, but of course I couldn't locate them in my frenzy when I was potting up the roses. I looked everywhere! So I used leftover moss from a previous orchid purchase. I'll probably find those elusive sponges after the roses get established, of course.

J&P doesn't have everything available on their website, which is why I was wondering if they are just getting rid of what they have left before shutting the site down. And if that's the case, of course they wouldn't say that to customers, because they want to sell out their stock. But the company has already folded, so apparently nurseries who have been buying wholesale roses from them (at least in my area), are having a shortage on J&P raised roses for this coming spring. And until they find another wholesaler to get them from, it will be an issue. As far as Cool Roses is concerned, they don't seem to be interested in selling anything to me, since every time I've contacted them about buying something they haven't responded. Because of this experience, I don't really feel motivated to ask them about Black Magic, but if any of you have had good experiences with them, I'd be open to your advice on how to get a hold of them. To answer the question of how cold it gets here, it can get down into the teens, below freezing. The thing about it, is that the extreme cold usually doesn't last more than a couple weeks, then it gets a little warmer. We might have two or three of these extreme cold increments during the winter. So it's not as bad as like Minnesota or something, not at all, but it does get cold enough that the roses stay dormant about five months. But I never have to bury established plants or anything like that, I just mulch them and let them be until the spring.

I actually purchased an own-root one from Roses Unlimited a few yrs ago. I planted it in one of my beds, and I don't believe it's ever bloomed yet! For some reason own-roots take forever to get going for me. Generally I try to plant them in 1gal containers for a few yrs before putting them in the ground. But for some reason I planted it in the ground right away. My soil is pretty crappy and I may not have amended it enough in that area. Roses Unlimited still lists it as available, if you're interested in trying it. You may not have any problem with it. You just never know. Everyone's experiences are different with every rose.