Request: Expert recommendations for roses from RU Sale

11 years ago

Dear Rose folks,

Please pardon this double post in the General and Antique Rose sections. I want to procure as much information as I can 'coz I love roses! It's that "Christmas for Ardent Fans of Roses" time again! My favorite Rose Nursery (besides EuroDesert which closed), Roses Unlimited, has a sale.

I live in Seattle, WA. My zone is 8a. I would really appreciate recommendations from folks in this forum for roses that suit the climate conditions in the Pacific Northwest. My criteria for roses is:

1. Hardiness (with unexpected snow spells over the last few winters, I lost many of my roses. :( )

2. Long Lasting

3. Good-excellent disease resistance (I understand that no rose plant is completely immune to disease, but some fare better than others)

4. Bold and Beautiful Aura

I eagerly look forward to your recommendations. Thank you!

Sincerely,

Reem

Here is a link that might be useful: Roses Unlimited (RU) Sale

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Comments (5)

barbarag_happy
11 years ago
My climate's quite different from yours, but here goes--
Peach Drift
South Africa
Sunshine Daydream
Rita Levi Montalcini

All of these are QUITE out of the ordinary.
harborrose_pnw
11 years ago
Looking at the list, Reem, if I were going to purchase from RU this late in the year, I'd probably take a look at the Kordes Fairy Tale roses. The ones I have are pretty black spot resistant and bloom a lot. Pomponella is one of that series and is worth having, I think. Any of the roses with the European ADR designation also should do well, probably. I think Kordes' 'Innocencia Vigorosa' is one of those and is on that list; I think i saw it, anyway. I grew it in the southern US and liked it a lot.

I grow 'Cream Veranda' also by Kordes and like it; very clean shrub and blooms a lot.

I think I did see one gallica, 'Belle de Crecy' on the RU list; that is a beautiful thing and well worth having. Mine is blooming for the first time. Yowza!

I guess my hesitation about ordering from them is the long shipping distance and the heat the rose has to travel through to get here. Also, shipping cost from there to here is pretty high, but it sounds like you have ordered many times from them and know all about this!

btw, I'm across the Sound from Seattle.

Good luck! Gean
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Hello fellow rose friends, Thank you for your recommendations. I had about 80+ roses in 2010. Unfortunately, I lost about 1/2 of them due to a winter freeze. At that time, I was overseas, and my DH did not realize that the roses needed to be sheltered. I was heartbroken. I am disabled due to fibromyalgia, chronic fatigue syndrome, and a myriad of health issues. Although roses do not alleviate chronic pain, they give me immense joy and peace. I know this may sound a bit strange, but roses instill hope in me to combat my health problems. charleney: I agree that shipping charges are astronomical for West Coast buyers. USPS/UPS keep raising the prices each year which negatively affects small businesses and their customers. Sigh! I live in Redmond. Puyallup is quite a distance from here. With soaring gas prices, the commute to and fro to Puyallup may even out the shipping charges (a bit of an exaggeration, but you know what I mean). Perhaps, I'll wait a bit longer for RU to drop the sale prices; although the downside of waiting is that most of prized roses are sold out and the selection is limited. Please continue to provide your recommendations, folks. I'll compile a list. Thank you. Reem Here is a link that might be useful: Roses Unlimited
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Roses Unlimited (RU) does not have Rosa rubrifolia (R. glauca). I googled the R. Glauca rose to procure more information...and wow...it is beautiful! I will need to find this rose from a different vendor (maybe next year). I am ordering the following roses. Are these roses are well suited for our WA climate zone (esp. for disease resistance, hardiness, and adaptability). 1. Climbers: Alister's Gift 2. Hybrid Musk: Bubble Bath 3. Polyanthas: La Marne 4. Hybrid Tea: Sweet Promise 5. Floribunda: Easter Basket (will this work in WA?) I am also considering Evangeline, Echo, and Lorenzo Pahissa but am undecided at this time. Kindly let me know if there are other roses on the sale page that may work better for our climate. Thank you very much in advance for your kind help! - Reem Here is a link that might be useful: RU Summer Sale
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reemcook
Original Author
11 years ago
Hi Gean,

Thank you for the rose recommendations. Yes, I've ordered from RU before and their roses are fantastic. Unfortunately, nearly 1/2 of my 80+ roses died in the winter freeze in 2010. I was overseas at the time, and my DH was unaware that the roses needed to be sheltered. I was very sad and upset about the loss of so many wonderful roses.

I hope to purchase a few roses this year. With EuroDesert (my favorite rose nursery) and Ashdown Roses closed, RU is the only one left on my list of trusted Rose vendors. Are there any other online rose vendors that you recommend?

Please continue to recommend roses. I will compile a list.

Thank you.

Reem

Here is a link that might be useful: Roses Unlimited
harborrose_pnw
11 years ago
Reem,
I'll think about what to say but something else to consider is that the climate in SC where RU is located is vastly different than ours. What grows well there, hardiness wise, is not necessarily what will do well here. I often order in the fall from Pickering in Canada as well.

Vendors you might consider are Northland Rosarium in Spokane, Rogue Valley in Oregon and High Country in Colorado. It depends, too, on what kind of roses you want. You posted here in the Antique Forum, but do you prefer the moderns?

Gean
harborrose_pnw
11 years ago
hi, Reem,

I've thought about roses that give me a great deal of joy but are not necessarily on the RU listing. Ones I'd say are good in this area that bloom a lot and are trouble free for me would include

'Aptos'
'Heritage'
'Rose de Rescht'

any of the albas or gallicas
I usually get them from Pickering grafted onto multiflora

'Golden Wings' - I bought this as a three gallon, mature rose. It's done well so far, so I'm including it. I love singles, anyway
'Sally Holmes'
'Darlow's Enigma
r. glauca
'Felicia' and probably any hybrid musk
'Ghislaine de Feligonde' or any multiflora climber

'Marchessa Boccella'
'Lauren'
'Blue Mist'
'Lyda Rose'
'Lion's Fairy Tale' - or 'Lion's Rose'
'Caramel Fairy Tale'
'Pomponella'
'Excellenz von Schubert'

I have 'Louisa Stone' as a first year rose; it is just beautiful. You might like this one.

'Little Butterfly'

I have others that I am very hopeful will do well, but it's too early for me to say anything about them. The ones listed above are roses that are in their 2nd or 3rd year that have done well for me. I almost didn't answer because of your heading 'Expert recommendations' - I've been here only 3 summers this year and am still learning what does well and what I can grow no spray. I think these will do okay for you, based on my limited experience.

I wish Paproseman, Lucretia and Seattlesuze would post as well - they know tons more than me.

I remember a time probably in the early 90's where I was dealing with a great deal of stress. My roses really helped me through that hard time with sickness, etc. I read your posting on the Roses forum; I do understand.

Best wishes, Gean

Request: Expert recommendations for roses from RU Sale

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Request: Expert recommendations for roses from RU Sale

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