I started out rather dismayed by how large some of the trees are that should really be cut down or severely limbed up, and by how far the Yellow Archangel had spread... but now that the season has advanced a little and I have found how many things survived the winter, I am more at peace. The sunny corner at the back of my property, which was such a source of dismay when the electric company came through, cutting down many old trees and vines, is now my favorite spot in the garden. It has given me a second opportunity to grow roses and tomatoes, and to observe the adaptability of nature. There are shrubs or small trees of some variety growing under the wires, apparently seeded there by the birds, and at first I thought they were seedlings from the old plum that was cut down--but they are not; and I find myself helping they are a native small fruit tree or shrub of some sort that the birds enjoy. One of my favorite garden experiences in past summers has been walking under an old garden arch that I trained an overly-tall serviceberry tree to and seeing, at close range, a bird enjoying the berries. I was dismayed a few years ago when I discovered the Motherwort I had planted growing wildly about the garden; but it has not become quite the menace I had feared, and I have kept interesting groupings of it here and there. The Yellow Archangel, despite its ferocious overtaking of smaller plants, has assisted me in keeping the wild mustard at bay, and is so beautiful a friend asked me for some again this summer to put in one of her hanging pots. The tiny-white-flowering clematis I planted and then forgot years ago has resurrected itself in the sunny corner and has been competing with the grape and entirely too vigorous gooseberry bushes that have been spreading but not producing gooseberries. The Angelica Archangelica planted at the back of my little tomato patch returned and are already large enough to discourage the vines from overtaking my tomatoes. The wild cats have been patrolling my garden assiduously, and there has been little rabbit damage this year--the catnip plants they made off with are small recompense for that. I feel frightened and happy at the same time by the increase in my Japanese honeysuckle patch; despite the many warnings about it, it is one of my favorite plants, producing a fragrance I love even better than that of roses; and it is one of my guiltiest pleasures to have allowed it to survive. The birds are singing loudly and much more melodically each dawn than in former years; I can't help but think they appreciate my efforts and may even realize that, without me, they would not have elderberries to look forward to later this summer. The horrible twining mess produced by the Russian lace vine I ignorantly thought would die back each winter has now been graced by fresh foliage, and again this year I am too late to cut it out without disturbing nesting birds. I find myself more than content, despite my garden's many and obvious failings...I find myself humbled by the beauty and power of nature, and of my place in it.

Niels, your comments about Lady Hillingdon are most encouraging. I grew one before in another garden and loved it but it was in full sun so I had no idea how well it would respond to a shaded position. This is valuable information for me and I really appreciate it. Luxrosa, because of the color of the wall I don't think a white rose would look well but I'm glad to know that Renae is considered to be good in the shade. I'll have to look up Katharine Harrop since I've forgotten what she looks like, although I'm pretty certain she's pinkish or peach. Thanks so much for your suggestions. Mudbird, having grown Buff Beauty, I know she's a sprawler and would look good draped over a retaining wall but she's out of the question for the allocated space I have. I didn't realize it took so long for her to bloom consistently. Ingrid

Yes, it's been one of my favorites to sniff, even if I've gotten the chance only a few times. As with the few other HTs I got, it's a bit slow to get growing, and I can count on one hand the number of flowers it gave me in its first year. This was its first: Talking about rose fragrances will turn this into another thread, but I'll have to say that I'm very happy with the variety of scents I've gotten to sniff already this year. A few of the once-blooming OGRs each shared a flower or two with me, and some of those scents just don't seem to exist among the moderns -- sweet face-powder on 'Nouveau Monde', the herbal Gallicas, the sharp and spicy Damasks (the Damask scent found in some of my HTs is a little different, with a sweet-lemon undertone). And if you've never experienced the strong clove scent of 'Rosa moschata' or related roses, I highly recommend you find a way to do so. I greatly look forward to experiencing them next Spring. :-) ~Christopher

Hi Bryony,... I should like to know what colour is the wall now? is this not your property but you are planting it for someone else? How far up that wall do you want these roses to grow, to the top windows? to the eaves, or just around the lower windows and porch? if lower levels then there are many more you could consider, that are not strictly listed as climbing roses, but will climb if put against a support... Let me be brutally honest here, I think you're making this far too complicated, unnecessarily so.... why go to the trouble of importing from Europe 'Cyrano de Bergerac', 'Florence Ducher', or 'Billiard et Barre'.. because as far as I can see none are readily available in this country, for what is a fairly modest sized terraced cottage. There are plenty - loads - of yellow and pink roses you can choose from, so I can't see the need to complicate things with roses from abroad... if you're a collector then yes, import a few as I have done, but for this purpose it's really not worth the trouble and expense, and I would also forget about 'Marechal Niel'... leave that to warmer climates... it grows beautifully in Crete for instance... I grow 2 pink and yellow climbers together, one is 'Zepherine Drouhin' and the other is climbing Lady Hillingdon, I quite like the combination. However I don't recommend 'ZD' there are better to choose from... I would choose roses with better disease resistance and keep it simple... Let us know what you think, and what kind of height you're looking for...