It will be fine. It just won't bloom.

That is my experience, anyway.

What is the lineage of SGCM - it always looks utterly familiar to me, not unlike Cedric Morris or even Wedding Day and the like. There are numerous incarnations of this type of rose to be seen in old gardens across the UK - I always wonder if it arose as some accidental hybrid of brunonii or even one of the moschata ramblers such as The Garland....and even traces of Thalia and such. It is an interesting rose which is unavailable in this iteration, here in the UK.

I'm not sure, and I haven't had mine long enough to really study it, but I think it is something along the lines of a repeat-blooming dwarf 'Montecito' -- or something of similar lineage. The scent points to something related to 'R. brunonii' (which is also the likely parent species of 'R. moschata', but what we call that species is probably a dwarf repeat-blooming mutant of some form of 'R. brunonii'), while the large single flowers point to something related to 'R. gigantea'. That can also explain why it doesn't seem to do well below zone 7a or 6b.

:-)

~Christopher

Kippy -- Our experience would likely be most-relevant for you, since our conditions are so similar -- and we have grown SGMC for a number of years.

We have her growing with her face to the sun, and no sun at all to her back. Here, this is a really really BIG climber, and no -- I do not believe it can be grown long-term in our conditions, in a container of, really ANY size.

I think HoovB is correct. In a marked amount of shade, SGMC will probably grow OK. But it won't bloom much. We have one growing under the eaves, at the corner of our house. Its bloom is all on canes that reach out into the sun.

Probably not what you wanted to hear, but . . .

Anyhow, here she is this past spring. She repeats like this through the year. At present, she is still blooming, to a lesser-degree, while responding to our recent cold spell by beginning to drop old foliage (which I am glad to see).

Jeri

The largest one I deal with is over an arch (and WELL into the next door neighbor's trees) in Stevenson Ranch in the Santa Clarita Valley. I planted it quite a few years ago to cover the arched gate to the children's play yard at the side of their house, the children's "secret garden". It is on the north side of the house and competes with several VERY large crepe myrtles and a HUGE Chinese Elm. It responds by throwing longer canes up into the trees and flowering mostly up in the canopy. There is increased die back in the shadier areas and, of course, no foliage nor flowers down below due to virtually no real sun, just "light". The plant is definitely happy, even in engineered soil being watered by automatic sprinklers.

I would think, if it won't receive any direct sun light to speak of, it would likely develop mildew and would elongate greatly to push itself out into the sun, so you probably won't have any flowers, but it should live until you get it planted. Not a great situation for it to be in, but one which I think would enable you to maintain it until it can be planted. I've never had one be really pleased to be canned, though my dwarfed one in a seven gallon nursery can, receiving a few hours of late afternoon sun does flower and is setting hips. I keep it for breeding and have absolutely no place to put it into the ground. Kim

Mine grows in almost full shade and blooms very sparsely. No wonder as I am in zone 5b (approximately, as Swedish zones don't really correspond to USDA zones). But I'm glad it has lived since 2007 anyway.

So if it doesn't like shade....how heat tolerant?

Or would a few hours of sun (guessing average 11-2) be enough?

Does it start well from cuttings in case I move it to a spot I think I might like wayyyy to much and I will have a hard time removing?

I know I really should go dig out the massive mess of a wonderful pomegranate tree and root, but boy am I not looking forward to that!

You'll probably get some flowers with three or so hours of sun, but not as many as you will with more. It can be "miffy" to start from cuttings from what I hear, but not "impossible". The plant itself ADORES hot weather. It grows like a weed in HOT weather. The flowers will fry more quickly and that wonderfully "wafting scent" is imperceptable in real heat, but "real heat" isn't something your area is known for so I wouldn't worry about it. By "heat", I'm talking about San Fernando and Santa Clarita Valleys type temps, easily nineties to low hundreds.

This thing can get quite large with time, resources and if it's "happy". Of course, the larger, older and happier it is, the harder it's going to be to move. Why would you have to remove the pomegranate? Perhaps there is a way to have both? SG might enjoy the support. Kim

Kim, what about reflected heat from a west facing wall?

The pomegranate is in a spot that it gets only afternoon sun-simplicity is happy there though, we have trouble with bad fruit (more rotten than good), when I let it grow big, we get raccoon on the garage roof and I am trying to move the fruit bearing trees away from the house. I would like to see if I can root some cuttings from it, I hear they root easily. But my neighbor has tons of the same kind of pomes from her large tree. (between the 3 of us we have 5 different kinds of pomes so we can have a nice trading session once mine grow a bit)

Again, you're talking about relative heat. If your day temps were in the nineties and above, I'd worry about it. That's been quite an issue in the Santa Clarita Valley this year with the non existant ground water. But, I don't think you experience much of thost heat levels, do you? Kim

We got a week or two of 90's over the summer.

I am going to have to think about this some more