The only tea on your list I have is Susan Louise. I got it because it is supposed to be a sport or an offspring of Belle of Portugaise, a once blooming hybrid gigantica. SL has flowers that are very similar to the huge gorgeous elegant blooms of BP. If you get Susan Louise, you might think about also getting BP - it is a climber, and blooms really early here - with the banksies. Anyway, what I did was to plant SL in the front of BP, so that the naked legs of BP would be covered with a shorter rose that has the same flowers. My SL is still a baby, but the blooms are as advertised.

A tea that is not on your list that I would recommend is Anna Olivier - it is a gorgeous buff color, with a dark brick color reverse. Of course, being a tea the color can be variable, and in some weathers it puts out solid pale yellow flowers, and sometimes solid pale pink ones.

Jackie

I had McClinton Tea, as did another member on the forum, and both of us were very disappointed. I got rid of mine and I believe she did too. She described the flowers as looking like "scrambled eggs" and I had to agree. A tea I would highly, highly recommend is Le Vesuve, which is truly wonderful. It blooms always, the foliage and flowers are wonderful and I in fact already have four, and Sherry, another forum member, has three. General Tartas to me is also underwhelming, and I no longer have it. Mine was a somewhat gawky bush and the flowers underwhelmed me. Cels Multiflora is an adorable tea rose, which just puts out so many buds and blooms. I just ordered my second one at Vintage. Devoniensis is a lovely rose but I understand is a very slow grower. If you like Marie van Houtte may I suggest Mrs. Dudley Cross, a smaller, very similar rose which is beautiful and thornless to boot. I have Miss Atwood on order so can't comment yet but it looks lovely.

Good luck and I hope you'll let us know what you finally ended up ordering.

Ingrid

I have LaSylphide in the ground since 9/08. She's a nodder but her backside is lovely. I thought I had a photo of it, but I guess not. Here's her bloom after a few days. She seems to have a fairly large flower but not a huge number of petals so I would indelicately describe them as floppy. My bush is only about 3x3 and not very full yet.

{{gwi:329353}}

I don't have any others on your list. :(( Have fun!!!

Sherry

I'd second the suggestion of Anna Olivier.
I don't know if it would blackspot, but it sure doesn't rust or mildew.

Sawyer Plot appears to be 'Mme. Lombard,' one of the great survivors from old California days. She can mildew, near the coast, but is otherwise pretty bullet proof.

And Devoniensis -- If you are in a fairly warm part of TX, I wouldn't hesitate on Devoniensis.
We tried twice here, near the coast. Once with the bush, once with the climber. Neither would grow.
Now, though, we're growing a collected clone of it from NoCal, which seems to be both vigorous and disease-free. I don't know but what it might prove to be the climber, but I'll take whatever it wants to do.

Jeri

Thanks for all the responses.

Jacqueline and Jeri, Anna Olivier sounds interesting,
I will review, I haven't heard much about her.

Ingrid, I am disappointed that McClinton Tea hasn't been so great, where did you get yours? The glowing report in the Vintage description was winning me over, but I may have to think again. General Tartas doesn't sound so hot either. I was reading on Vintage that Cels Multiflora might be Smith's Parrish, which I have. Mrs. Dudley Cross gets great reviews, may have to settle for her while waiting for an available Marie van Houtte.

Sherry, thanks for the heads-up on La Sylphide, I don't think she is what I'm looking for.

Jeri, if Sawyer Plot is Mme. Lombard, I'm sure glad I didn't spring for it since I just got a Lombard. I guess the only one surviving in the top four is Devoniesis.

Please keep the comments coming, very helpful.

You didn't mention any in the Cochet family. Vintage doesn't have Maman Cochet, but they do have Niles and White MC as well as Alexander Hill Gray aka Yellow Maman Cochet but heritage is unknown. (Too bad they don't have the climbers either.) If you like big fat flowers, these are the ones to pick. In my humidity I have no problem with them balling. Niles is VERY slow to get established, but I'll wait for him. Another to consider is General Schablikine. He's a great bold combination of pink and brick red. I even think I like him better than Mons Tillier.

Just so it's official, I urge you to get LeVesuve. This rose will NOT disappoint.

Sherry

I'm puzzled that Vintage says Cels Multiflora may be Smith's Parish since the two are so unlike each other, and in my humble opinion Cels is much prettier. It's an even blush pink, very full, and looks nothing like Smith's Parish either at Vintage or HMFR. Mine is a young plant but was lovely from the moment I received it as a band, and has never stopped blooming.

I'm not sure where I obtained McClinton's rose but it looked the same as all the pictures I've seen in books and on the Vintage site, and I'm surprised at the praise.

Another rose that I forgot Vintage had is the beautiful Mme. Charles. I don't really care for apricot roses but this is a more muted, elegant version and as soon as I planted this band in the ground, with only morning sun, it grew and flowered immediately. I really like it. Angels Camp Tea was a wonderful rose but it turned white in the heat and as a whole didn't care for my hot, dry garden. I put Le Vesuve in its place and it loves the heat, is still blooming now and never gave me a moment's trouble.

Ingrid

Allow me to second Ingrid's recommendation for Niles and White Maman.
Both delicious.

Here at the coast, they don't open well, but I grow them anyway, and love them.

Ingrid -- VINTAGE says that Cel's Multiflora is like "Smith's Parish"???
Oh, for a coastal garden with some space, "Smith's Parish" is a beauty. Never out of bloom, quite unique, and completely disease-free. (VERY big!)
Cels? Lovely, but it can mildew.
Not at all alike, based on Cels as I have seen it in Sacramento.

Jeri

I've often thought of Le Vesuve to be just another pink, and it has never made the cut when it came down to ordering time. But when I hear two people from the opposite ends of the continent sing such high praise of a rose, it has to be an all around winner; La Vesuve is going on the keeper list with Devoniesis. And I reckon SoCal and Florida to be a different as can be.
Also, I'm currently looking into the Cochet clan, but am kinda of leery of most sports, at least until the original wins me over. Though, Cochets should do well in this hot, dry climate.
Now that my list seems to be changing, I hope I can get together 8 + 4 alternates to make the most of the winter sale.
Please keep up with suggestions, etc.

Those on your list that I have are mostly still too young for me to say much about them, but I think 'Susan Louise' is a good bet. My plant arrived barely rooted and was planted in poor ground, so she's taken her time getting going, but finally is beginning to move. What a beauty! I hope she's going to become the magnificent plant I hear others write about, and I think will do so in time. Unlike any of my other Teas.
Melissa

Susan Louise isn't a typical tea. Grows tall and a bit awkward, with bare legs and big prickles - I've always thought it would be great at the back of a bed - and I've thought, too, that it is more like a grandiflora or large HT than a tea. The flowers are fabulous, very like Belle of Portugal, but it's not the usual well-shaped, well-clothed, weak-stemmed tea.

The Cochets are all winners in Sacramento. My personal favorite is White Maman Cochet - the red guard petals and lemony-white interior simply stunned me when I first visited the cemetery rose garden a dozen years ago, and I'm still in love. Niles Cochet is still young in the cemetery, and I am not yet equally enamored with it - I've seen a gorgeous one in the Stagecoach Inn garden in Ventura.

Le Vesuve is indeed a winner. Blooms rather constantly. We have a young plant but it's almost always covered in flower.

No way is Cels Multiflora the same as Smith's Parish. CM blooms the earliest, the latest, and the most often of any roses in my home garden, and does much the same in the cemetery. It doesn't self-clean, so you have to snap off old flowers, and it is prone to mildew. I don't get much scent from the flowers, and it doesn't have the bud and flower form of many of the teas - seems to be as much a China as a Tea. I love it, however, for its generosity of bloom.

I've seen Vintage's La Sylphide in a friend's garden and it is large and lovely.

Mrs. Dudley Cross is indeed a winner, and an Earthkind Texas rose to boot. So is Mrs. B. R. Cant, lovelier yet. I'm a little concerned that Mrs. B. R. C. is apparently a huge rose - we didn't plant it with room to become a monster.

I haven't checked Vintage's availability, but other Earthkind teas include Georgetown Tea, Duchesse de Brabant and Mme Antone Mari (one of my favorites).

I've heard very good things about Mme Charles but don't know it. We just planted Devoniensis, so don't know it, either.

Looking forward to hearing what you get, and how they grow for you!
Anita

I'm the "scrambled eggs" person to which Ingrid referred.
Although McClinton tea is one of the most fragrant teas
I've ever grown, the blooms do look like scrambled eggs.
If you can accept this fact, then get the rose. If you're
looking for a tea that has excellent bloom structure,
then I would recommend Beauty Inconstante. You might also
consider Beauty of Rosemawr, and Madame Antoine Mari.

Oh Sherry, what a beauty, I love the different bloom forms, simple but elegant, a must have. I think I like the slightly muddled form as much or more than the refined. Dang it, Vintage is out and so is everybody else.

Cochets and more Cochets, what are all the known sports?

Susan Louise does sound a bit like an older Hybrid Tea, and maybe too big and gawky for what I had planned.

I didn't know Mme. Dudley Cross was Earthkind, will look even closer.

I have and love Georgetown Tea and Mme Antoine Mari, new but are going to be favorites. I am having a not too good relationship with the Duchesse and she is scheduled to be moved from her primo spot. She doesn't appeal to me for some reason I can't put my finger on.

I wish someone would comment on Trinity, she has jumped on and off my keeper list several times.

What about Mme. Caroline Küster and Isabella Sprunt, I love that soft ivory/yellow.

'Isabella Sprunt' is just like 'Safrano', its sport parent, except for the lovely pale lemon color. I like IS a lot and think it's one of the very most beautiful yellow Teas, partly because I rarely, if ever, see any pink in the color. Like 'Safrano' it will get mildew, but isn't slowed down by it. When it's flowering well the pale blooms and deep red young growth are a wonderful contrast.

Are you getting the Devoniensis bush or climber? I had the bush form up north (I grew teas in containers) and would like to get it again here. I just don't have room for climbers (sigh).

Isabella sounds yum. I like the pale, clear yellow.

I want the Devoniesis bush. Luanne has posted some of the most beautiful photos of this rose in the past. I have to have this one.

I checked, Anna Oliver is unavailable.

I really would prefer no apricot, unless it is just an outstanding, must-have, with other desirable traits, such as superior growth habit/health/fragrance/foliage.

rayrose, do you have any pics of the McClinton scrambled eggs?

Current keepers list:

Devonieses
LeVesuve
Mrs. Dudley Cross
White Maman Cochet
Isabella Sprunt

Niles Cochet??

How about Safrano?
Lovely soft yellow color.

{{gwi:224708}}
(Safrano in the Sacramento City Cemetery)

Jeri

Jeri, I was just browsing the Chamblees site and they have Safrano, Isabella Sprunt and Mr. Dudley Cross. I thought of adding a Marechal Niel, but would likely meet a cold demise here. But the bonus of shopping Chamblees is that you don't have to baby the slow-growing tea bands for a year before ground planting. and Great price for a good sized plant.

And I am not going to get off track, yeah right. Need to stick to the Vintage track.

Not to be miserably distracting, but you GOTTA see this lovely 'Safrano' in an old NoCal Cemetery.

Jeri

Here is a link that might be useful:

Glad to hear you're getting Devonieses. I have the bush version. I had wanted it for a long time--tried to climber but lost her (not her fault, I don't think). I love the color and the fragrance. She is one of my favorite teas.

I would also recommend Safrano. I have one in my garden that was planted in the 1970s. It is now in partial shade under some large trees. Nonetheless, it starts its Spring bloom in Feb, and almost never stops (it has some bloom on it today). It is right next to a Cramoisie Superior, and the pale yellow flowers are intermingled with the pinkish red ones - it is so beautiful.

Niles Cochet is just like Maman Cochet, except that the flowers are a dark raspberry color on the outer petals, with the light pink of its parent in the center - stunning. I got mine from a very old neglected garden in our neighborhood - the 100 year old house was empty for 4 years, and I know no one was taking care of anything. When the new owners bought it (to tear it down and build condos) I got their permission to go into the back garden. So, the first Spring I did, and there, knee deep in weeds, was this large bush of Niles Cochet, blooming madly away, foliage healthy as could be. So, I took a cutting and it is now in my garden. You will like it if you get one for yours!

Jackie

Jackie! You smart lady to rescue that beauty!

For California gardens, I'm always inclined to look first at roses which have managed to survive here for a long, long time, without care.
Your Niles Cochet (like your 'Le Vesuve') is a great example of that.

Jeri

Another vote for Le Vesuve. I live in Central Texas and this is a favorite of mine. Lovely bush and constant bloom. Another I love is Madame Antoine Rebe. Perle d' Or is a polyantha I think but it also blooms all the time and smells heavenly. Very disease free, too.

Jeri- OMG, I love,love that Safrano, just what I'm looking for, thanks a lot for helping me stay on track. Sounds like an old-timey tried and true. No room for pampered pets in this garden.

Thinking of springing for a Cramoisi Superior, but the climber I had gave me maybe one sorry-looking bloom in 5 years, is the bush any better?

I am seeing clearly now. Here it is:

Vintage: Devoniesis, White Maman Cochet, LeVesuve, Niles Cochet; maybe Trinity, Souvenir de Pierre Notting

Chamblees: Isabella Sprunt, Safrano, Mrs. Dudley Cross

Rogue Valley: Marie van Houtte, Papa Gontier, McClinton Tea (free split stem), Mme. Berard, Mme. Berkley

It is such an overwhelming task to try to decide on all these teas, like I need all of them today, I have no restraint.

greybird, this may not be what you want and they may not do well in your area, but have you at all considered Bourbons? I found to my delight that they do very well for me and are beautiful. Mme. Cornelissen, Leveson-Gower, Souvenir de la Malmaison, Kronprinzessin Viktoria and Mme. Dore are all gorgeous. To me Mme. Dore has the most lovely blooms of all. I'm just throwing this out for your consideration in case you can't find all the teas you want. It was such a revelation to me that these roses had no disease at all for me and bloom so much.

Ingrid

If you plant Mme. Berkeley, STAND BACK AND GIVE HER SPACE!
I'll go down tomorrow, and try to get a photo that will give an idea of her size.
She's never had a hint of disease here, and she's never out of bloom. It's late December, and she's still pumping 'em out.

Jeri

The forum must be having problems, I can't get a follow-up to go through. Keeps saying message rejected. I'm gonna try again.
Ingrid, You are totally right-on when you suggested Bourbons. They love this dry heat,esp. the SdlM clan. Mme. Dore is to die for, I just moved mine out of the shadow thrown by Ducher(an awesome Earthkind tea/china), with high hopes she will put on some growth. You mentioned the Sdlm sports, have you tried Mystic Beauty?
I would be interested in a list of teas that do well in your garden.

greybird, I'm glad you've already tried the Bourbons. I haven't tried Mystic Beauty because I try to order solely from Vintage now because I'm so afraid they'll go under, and of course they don't have that rose.

Here's my list of teas that are doing well. There aren't that many yet because so many of them are too young to evaluate. Speaking of other groups first, if you like singles or almost-singles, Lavender Dream and Bermuda's Kathleen have been great in the heat, and are both lovely and ever-blooming.

My teas: Le Vesuve, Souvenir d'un Ami, Mme. Charles, Westside Road Cream Tea, Rosette Delizy, Mme. Joseph Schwartz, Cels Multiflora, Mme. Melanie Willermoz, Blumenschmidt, Mrs. Dudley Cross, Souvenir de Pierre de St. Germain, Enchantress, Madame Lambard. Duke of York, William R. Smith, Second Street Tea and Alexander Hill Gray are young bands but I've researched them and they should all be very satisfactory and beautiful. Monsieur Tillier and Clementina Carbonieri fried in the sun and Lady Hillingdon just didn't thrive.

In case you're interested in Austins, Cottage Rose, Glamis Castle and Wife of Bath (the last own-root from Vintage) also do very well in the heat here.

The system will reject a message sometimes if you post more than once in the same thread within a short period of time and don't change the title. When you changed the title to "Teas for me" it accepted it.

Ingrid

Ingrid, thanks for the list, there are several there that I know nothing of and must research. How does Alexander Hill Gray grow? I too was attempting to go exclusively Vintage, but they just don't have some I want.

I went ahead and ordered Safrano, Isabella Sprunt, Mrs. Dudley Cross and Alister Stella Gray from Chamblees last evening. Will get in Feb, they will be large enough to plant in the garden upon receipt.

Jeri, please don't forget the picture if Mme. Berkeley?

I am still wrangling with the Vintage order...

ACH! Greybird!
I got distracted. DH hauled us off to a Public Health Clinic for H1N1 vaccinations -- an adventure which used up the entire afternoon.
(If I get Swine Flu, I got it there.)

So Pictures will be tomorrow's adventure.
:-)

Jeri

greybird, my Alexander Hill Gray is less than a foot tall so I'm afraid I can't comment about eventual size but I believe it's not one of the smaller teas. Very pretty in photographs, though.

Ingrid

There's at least one mature AHG at the Stagecoach Inn Heritage Rose Garden.
When we're over there next month, I'll check them out, but in Newbury Park, they've never been spectacular.

Jeri

Ingrid, I was checking out some from your list and Westside Road Cream Tea is gorgeous, love that creamy yellow (unavailable, double dang it!). Also, have been reading some good things on Second Street Tea. I really like AHG, but is noted to be marginally tender in z7.
Austins swelter here, just how hot does it get in your neck of the woods?

'Susan Louise' is one heck of a rose. Can be grown as a climber or as a self supporting bush, very attractive when the lower laterals are removed and the bush is tree shaped and sized. I am madly in love with this rose for its huge pink and cream blossoms that bloom in all 4 seasons here, when most Tea roses reduce bloom production, or stop blooming, in winter.
'Devoniensis' traditionally called the Magnolia Rose, shows the most exaggerated style of bloom I've ever seen in a rose that is cup shaped, and filled with petals inside that are arranged in scalloped rows. It makes me want to dive into the rose blossom, like Alice going down the rabbit hole.
'Anna Olivier' is the most deeply fragrant Tea I've ever smelled, I would guess that might come from Bourbon influence. A wonderful rose.
Of all white Tea roses I love our white 'Maman Cochet' the best. In winter the pink guard petals turn white too, making this starry Tea rose a snow beauty of a rose.
'General Tartas' I like him fine.
If Tea roses were the only roses I could grow, I would remain content.
Luxrosa

greybird, the actual temperature in the shade here isn't terrible, it can reach to 100, and for a few days it might be as high as 104 or 106. However, I live at a higher elevation in an area that has huge boulders and dry hillsides, and the solar radiation is therefore really intense. Carding Mill has done really well but I didn't mention it since it seemed you weren't interested in apricot-colored roses. I'm not really either and will be giving mine away in spite of its great performance. I think also that it's the shape of the bloom I don't really care for. Westside Road Cream Tea had at least 50 buds about a month ago and it's a very dense, rounded bush. Surely it's available somewhere.

Ingrid

I am still wrangling with the Vintage list. Lux, you're making SL hard to resist. I'm leaning heavy towards it for those irresistable blooms. Being sort of a "modern", do you see any sunburning of canes or winter damage? (but your climate may be more moderate than mine).
All this twitter about Anna Olivier makes me want her bad, but unavailable now, I'll put her on the later list.
Lux, please tell about General Tartas.

Ingrid, I hadn't thought of all the reflected heat you must experience. It is likely hotter there in the summer than here. Those Austins you mentioned must be some tough customers.

Some years ago, when we were part of a group that surveyed Mare Island, CA for forgotten roses, we ran across a magnificent Susan Louise.
It was growing in the sideyard of a nice little 19th-Century house in Officers Quarters.
EVERYTHING in the area had been sprayed with Roundup early in the year, and while there was knee-high grass-and-weeds, it was all brown and dead.
In the middle of all that, a tall, urn-shaped Susan Louise stood out like a beacon.
In full bloom, with no care, and on no water since the winter rains, it was covered with perfect foliage.

I don't know how it would do in TX, but I can't imagine anything finer for the NoCal Bay Area.
It was one of Kernel Mel Hulse's favorite roses, and that one experience told us why he loved it so.

Jeri

After much deliberation, here is what I ended up ordering:

Chamblees: SAFRANO, ISABELLA SPRUNT, MRS. DUDLEY CROSS, ALISTER STELLA GRAY

Roses Unlimited: DEVONIESIS, THE BRIDE, WILLIAM R. SMITH, WHITE MAMAN COCHET, MAMAN COCHET, BOUQUET d'OR

Has anyone had experience with The Bride, had great reviews on the Peter Beales site.

I haven't grown 'The Bride', but I've had its sport parent 'Catherine Mermet' for a couple of years and haven't been impressed. The plant is scraggly and upright and gets more blackspot than I like to see. I don't spray, but blackspot for the most part shows up only in autumn when it becomes humid and cool. Very likely it would do better with some spoiling, but I have roses that are splendid without my coddling them.
Melissa

Melissa, we've had 'Catherine Mermet' for close to 20 years, and it STILL doesn't impress me.
Oh, the blooms are lovely, but the plant isn't, and even after all this time, it mildews.
I think it's about to get the old heave-ho.

It's not worth the water.
And we have better roses, waiting for spots in the ground.

Jeri

I went with the Bride on the PB review and the gorgeous pics on HMF. If CM is a dog, then TB, being a sport, is likely to be doggy as well...

Jeri, is the Anna Olivier you have the original or Bermuda?