Stan, Don't believe everything you see on television, especially with regard to average winter temps in Capetown and the Cape of Good Hope. They can and do get some frost there occasionally, as they have varied microclimates due to elevation and topography. wind is also much more a factor there, and weather is very inconsistent on a day to day basis as they do get cold fronts off the Antarctic as well as the Atlantic. From my observations of what is growing well in Capetown, I would say the climate is most similar to San Diego in general, but with more winter rains, and 80F is not a typical long term average daily high in winter there. I visited over a 6 week period in the Western Cape in August/September, and the weather was very much like what we get here in the SF Bay Area in mid to late spring. You needed a jacket on many days, there was typically driving windy days alternating with warmer ones, and there was snow on the mountains in back of Capetown above 5000 foot elevation, although it didn't last for more than a week at a time. Even the subtropical parts of coastal eastern South Africa can also get the occasional frost, and has, so don't believe that it never gets down to freezing along the coast from perhaps Port Elizabeth west to Capetown. As you get to Durban and points east/north, it is distinctly subtropical with no frost, unless you get inland and up into the mountains. Not really safe to generalize about South Africa unless you live there or look up the climate records... And Capetown does get their local equivalent of Santa Ana winds which result from compressed, heated air descending from the interior mountainous plateau when they get offshore wind conditions. The hot drying winds or the cold onshore winds can be really hard on gardens in Capetown, and large leafed tropicals that need lots of water fair poorly there in such events, and water is costly to provide.

Mark4321 -- You are located right at the doorstep of fig guru Jon of Encanto Farms. You have the best advise, variety choices & probably the best buys. Price should be your least consideration for a variety that would be yummmy, especially for mom. From my experience, it pays big time to have a yummy fig & my wife can never get enough of good figs. So now, even my dinners are better tasting & the flip side is the waistline challenge.

Thanks, everyone! I ordered from ARE last week: Cornelia, Madame Berkeley, Mutabilis, Sally Holmes, and Marie Van Houtte. These last three didn't come up on this thread, so hope I chose well. Mutabilis and Sally were on my want list, but I had forgotten about them. I've seen both around here looking really stunning. Marie Van Houtte was more of an impulse buy. I wanted Mrs Dudley Cross, but read MVH is less prone to mildew. Rosette Delizy was also a contender, but her color not as good with my existing plants. I really wanted to order the Cochets, but restrained myself due to the balling. Sigh... Marie VH and Mme Berkeley will have lots of sun; Mutabilis, mostly sun; Sally H will have morning sun. Not sure yet about where to plant Cornelia. I've read conflicting reports about how much sun she likes. I'll probably get one more shade tolerant rose- maybe Pax, Buff Beauty, or Reve D'or. My clay soil is waterlogged, so I'll probably need to wait awhile to plant. No complaints about the rain, though!

I wish I was nearby. I've pondered over ordering Polka quite often. I love the Romantica roses. Bolero is one of my favorites. It seems like the Romanticas do well in clay based soil.