Kate,
I don't know diddle about Kansas conditions - just wanted to mention that there is a darker color sport of the Fairy that is called "Lovely Fairy." I grew it for awhile in Alabama and it was not very happy in my yard. I liked the deep pink color, though.

hth, Gean

Hi, Kate -

The only Polyantha I have is Mlle. Cecile Brunner, and it is only a few years old, AND its blooms fade to white in the summer heat here in Sacramento. I love it, although it's been struggling a bit lately - aphids adore it, and the beneficial insects that helped this rose through the Spring onslaught seem to have gone missing lately, just when the late summer onslaught began.

I've been looking through the Vintage Gardens online catalog (Polyantha section), and I think you might like to do that, too. Sometimes, if I've been reading about a rose, I look it up there, and then I look it up on HelpMeFind as well. The VG site gives me a good take on the growth style, as well as lots of other info. HelpMeFind often has one or two photos of the whole bush (you probably know all this already, this is just in case). Anyway, I saw one - Lady Anne Kidwell - which looked wonderful! Gorgeous flower, deep pink. Another one is Rita Sammons, a darker pink sport of Mlle. Cecile Brunner, which keeps its color in the heat. Both of these are under the "Custom Root" category, but if you like them, you could email VG and ask if they will be available in the Spring (they are having some special sales right now, so it would be worth looking at that, too). I think that Jeri Jennings has one or both of these roses (though I could be wrong), and, if so, she could tell you how they at least do in Southern California. She could probably help you even if she doesn't have them!

White Pet stays ~3' tall, and it is 2' wide at the moment (minimal pruning this year). It is in the backyard, and does not get treated with a fungicide, and it retains its leaves very well.

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Oh, yes, I've only had White Pet since February. One is in a big pot, one in the ground. Their both putting on new growth now, and it is beautiful. Burgundy and dark green. Large spays of small white flowers that start out pink in the bud. I really, really like it. And did I say it's VERY healthy?? Well, it is.

Borderer is very nice, too, but it hugs the ground so far. Pics on HMF show it bigger but not big. Luscious peachy/salmon fat flowers almost 2" across in clusters. And healthy no-spray.

Softee is a mini but I think it should get about the size you want. Amazingly healthy, soft yellow flowers that last a long time in sprays that almost clean themselves or you can softly pull the spray through your hand and the spent flowers come right off (at the right moment). It's also in a pot. Very impressed.

Sweet Chariot is also a mini but a larger one. Good foliage, purple flowers in clusters. Supposed to have good fragrance, but I don't know.

Sherry

Two of my best performers are perle d'or and marie pavie. Both are disease free, constant bloomers. I have poor alkaline soil and hot, dry summers- both of these have flourished and even bloomed during +100* temps while most of my other roses were scorched and hibernating.

My zone 6 is probably very different from yours, and having said that, Marie Pavie is a wonderful rose. Shade tolerant and very healthy.

Polyanthas are such great roses. I can't think of a bad one. I was so fortunate to see Cliff Orent's collection last March. For him they bloomed even in the extreme heat.I think Verdun is my favorite. Mine grew wonderfully from a small cutting.

I second the suggestion about Verdun ... a wonderful rose in a lovely shade of dark pink. It was my first Polyantha, and it's still one of my favorites.

I recommend Polyanthas to most customers who ask me about Knock Outs and the like. They bloom in the heat, bloom from spring until fall. I have been known to put my arm around a customer and say, "Let me introduce you to Marie Pavie."

As of now, I have:

Anne-Marie de Montravel, white
Baby Alberic, pale yellow
Bashful, pink
Belmont Yellow, pale yellow
Caldwell Pink, aka Pink Pet, med. pink
Cecile Brunner, lt. pinkish peach
Doc, pink
Dopey, medium reddish pink
Echo, light pink fading to white
Ellen Poulsen, medium pink (a possibility for you)
Etoile de Mai, tiny pale yellow flowers
Gartendirektor Otto Linne, medium pink draping clusters
Grumpy, medium pink
Happy, reddish pink
La Marne, medium pink fading to papery pale pinkish white
Leonie Lamesch, orange
Lindee, white
Lullaby, white
Marie Daly, medium pink
Marie Pavie, light pink
Mary Guthrie, dark pink single
Mrs. R. M Finch, medium pink, fades
Perle d'Or, peachy pink (wonderful!!)
Sleepy, medium pink
Sneezy, dark pink
Snow White (Sneeprincesse), white
Sunshine, golden yellow
Tip-top, pink/white bicolor
Verdun, dark pink
White Pet, pink buds opening to white flowers (bulletproof)

Based on the size of my collection, I guess you can tell that I have yet to meet a Polyantha that I don't like. :)

Connie

My three favorite Polyantha roses are:

"Mlle. Cecille Brunner" a light pink rose with the shapliest and most fragrant roses of the class.
"Perle d'Or" an apricot hued rose. Both have a Tea class parent from which they inherited Old Garden Tea shaped blooms.
"Leonie Lamesch" has roses the color of a tropical punch, orange edged with cerise-red. Foliage is quite interesting in its' appearance, and reminds me of a fictional tropical plant.

followed closely by
"La Marne" warm rich pink hues edged with rose-red, but not overly saturated.
"Little White Pet" fastest re-bloom of any Poly I've grown.
"Katherine Zeimet" white, and upright, in a colder climate this could make a good border plant.

I love Polyantha roses because their growth habit shows much of the grace of a China class rosebush, both have twiggy growth habits and attractive foliage.
Because there are fewer yellow roses among Polyanthas, I thought I'd mention a FLorabunda from the 1940's that has the graceful twiggy growth habit of a Polyantha, nice foliage and is a slender willowy plant. It's
"Poulsens Yellow" and vintagegardens.com sells it.
Its' floral style is artless and natural and the color is light to medium yellow. Petals are large for the size of bloom and have a rather silky texture. It is altogether a lovely plant.

Luxrosa

Thanks, everyone, for your input. Got lots of good suggestions to work with.

Kate

Kate, while looking at roses this morning I found a picture of a weeping china doll which may be what you're looking for as a larger polyantha. It's a picture of the rose grown in Arkansas by kaye kettrey - here's the link.

I once thought about growing this rose as Lisa at Countryside recommended it for a spot I had in Alabama. Lisa's recs are usually pretty bs resistant for the south - again, I don't know about Kansas, but maybe it's worth a look-see for you. Good luck!

Here is a link that might be useful: weeping china doll, hmf

I don't personally grow The Faun/Fawn, but I've always been tempted to order it. HMF says it was classified as a polyantha when it was 1st released, but later changed to a floribunda. Be sure and check out some of the pictures of the whole shrub. Would love to know if anyone has it.

Laurie

Here is a link that might be useful: The Faun/Fawn

I have The Fawn and at the moment it's "resting" in the heat, and it's also a young plant. It tends to sprawl and has salmon pink blooms, which I wish were a little more pink, but that's just me. It's a fairly good bloomer in the cooler months but of course a lot of roses don't thrive at this time of the year. I'm also going to reserve final judgment until the plant is older.

One rose I really like, although it's not a polyantha per se, is Mr. Bluebird, which has almost single flowers of a rich purple, and I understand it doesn't grow large. It starts to bloom well at an early age and doesn't seem to mind the heat. How it would do in your different climate I have no idea, but for me it's a winner. It actually has China origins but is usually put in the polyantha or miniature class.

Ingrid

I also have The Faun and it's a gem--healthy, floriferous and very pretty. In my yard the color is pure pink. Does sprawl a bit.

Colleen

I LOVE my Lullaby. It looks kind of like a miniature Mme Hardy. Usually white, but sometimes a pale pink or even peachy. It's only 2 years old and gone through a couple of horribly dry summers and a sudden freeze down to 10 degrees for a few days last winter, and is looking really good in spite of neglect. One of the few roses that I have 2 of.

Kate,

I think that you should consider Clothilde Soupert, a polyantha with exceptionally large flowers for its class. It stays short and has a spreading habit. The flowers approach 3 inches apart and are very full. It is also available as a climber. I grew the bush form when I lived in TX and just planted 2 of the climbing form to cover an arbor in my new home in CA.

Good luck in your choice,

John

steelrose - How tall does The Fawn get? I have a raised flower bed that's about 3 feet off the ground. I'm thinking that might be a good place for her. Also, I don't spray my roses, so do you think she would do okay without it?

Laurie

I have Marie Pavie at my house too, and she is very healthy and not too big--3ft-ish. I have acid, sandy soil. Blooms all the time--even without much care. Little or no disease. Very easy to propagate. :)