I have a mature Bubble Bath and I grow it as a climber. It sends out very long canes. I suppose it could be grown as a shrub, but I think it would take a lot of room. Denise

Mine which is growing in fairly deep shade has always been shrubby 5x5.

There are a couple 'Bubble Bath's at the Berkeley Public Rose Garden, on Euclid.
-walk beneath the long rose arbor, and stop when you're c. 10 feet from the end, and there will be 2 Bubble Baths on your right hand side. They're grown as bushes that cover a 5'x5' area, each.
I grow mine as a climber, on the side of a gardening shed.
I do love its' fragrance, but I wish I'd grown Spray 'Mlle Cecille Brunner' for its' more shapely blooms, and faster repeat bloom.

Lux.

hemlady,

I'm interested in this rose too. When you say it sends out very long canes...do you mean around 25-30 ft each or longer than that?

Robert

I've been growing mine about 6-7 years, It is about 6 feet across and 4 feet high, easily pruned into a shapely bush. No canes were allowed to reach beyond7 or 7 feet so I don't know how big they could have become. I think you get to decide how big you want it.
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That is it in the far right corner of the first shot and in the upper left, the cream colored rose. I'm sorry there isn't a better shot, these were basically panorama shots trying to show as many roses as possible. It looks tall in the second shot because I was kneeling to get the shot.
la

Thank you all - these are very helpful. especially the photos. It sounds generally like it can be maintained as a low wide shrub. But, I'm wondering about the tendency to send out very long canes - are these canes low and wide? Is BB a low arching shrub that can be coaxed into a short climber? Is it suitable more for growing as a sprawly climber against a fence, or does it have long canes like Cornelia that can actually be easily trained upward and over an archway?

I have Bubble Bath also. I grow mine as a free-standing shrub. I have the canes propped up and loosely tied together so that it doesn't flop. The bush reminds me of a weeping tree like a weeping cherry when it is in flower. The branch ends are quite pendant and have small, almost cherry-like flowers. It blooms nicely in the spring, but it does not repeat well here. It has some occasional flowers later on, but not very many. Last growing season it bloomed in the spring and flowered again some in late August, and that was it. This is also true of the other hybrid musks that I have like Lavender Lassie and Dancin' in the Wind. They don't repeat well either. My Bubble Bath runs about 7 to 9 ft in overall maximum cane length.

I think better against the fence. The hybrid musk in the lower right hand corner is Lyda Rose who repeats well all season and if you want one that climbs and is never without a bud or bloom, you want Pax. She just cannot restrain herself and can be trained any way you like.
la
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That low wide plant on the left, about 3 roses in and white is Pax. What superb rose, healthy, vigorous,blooming even now, fragrant and beautiful.f

Luanne, that's great to hear about Pax. I've always wondered about that HM. I had it once and it grew very well - didn't mind the coastal conditions (fog, wind, clouds)unlike many roses. It was just a baby ownroot - probably perished during some construction project or plumbing emergency (typical old house problems). I read about Pax in the old Roses of Yesterday & Today catalog when I first learned about old roses, maybe 1993. A San Francisco gardener said it was magnificent in the foggy Bay area. BTW - I like your big hedge in the photo.

Me too. Thank you.
la

I will be happy when I have Bubble Bath all trained on the trellis. She has very long, thin SHARP thorns and working with her is very painful!

Here, BB and most HMusks seem to rebloom except Lavender Lassie and Buff Beauty. Those may need longer than 3 years here to rebloom. I'm hoping.

Bubble Bath is a horror to work with! She does have wicked thorns. Somehow the soft pink frothy blooms don’t “go” with those thorns. Her sweet blooms are deceiving!

While I love my Bubble Bath, she’s turned out to be more unruly than I anticipated. I’m having some trouble getting all of her canes up on the trellis. She’s about 2 years old. Does anyone know if it would be alright to cut the long canes that I can’t get onto the trellis? I’m considering cutting them short, so they are about 3F long and just fill out the bottom of the plant. Would that be a huge mistake? BB is out front and I was thinking it would “tidy things up a bit”. Thanks, Lisa

Couldn't you just let her be Lisa? I guess I am not a disciplinarian. I leave mine alone and we're both happy. Maybe something more upright could go up your trellis.

I have let her be so far, Sheila. I’m pretty easy going about such things in general, but my HOA is not. They’re a real pain in the you know what! They haven’t said anything yet, but I’m thinking it won’t be very long. They even send me a letter every year, asking me to remove the “weeds” between my roses out front. I never respond, because they are annual seeds, and before long they are blooming beautifully. Nevertheless, they still send it ever year. To make matters worse, the house is in my family’s name. This means not only do I get a nasty letter, but so do they:( I really hate that! They do understand and visit often, so they know I keep the front yard presentable. I just detest seeing that letter in my mailbox and knowing there are two more just like it in my family’s mailboxes. I don’t mind the wild look at all. I just don’t have a spot to move B.B. to the back, and Antique Rose Emporium’s listing her as a “mannerly climber”, threw me off. I should have known, CA growth syndrome. Lol Lisa

Oh, Lisa, I had no idea a HOA was an issue. I do experience my BB as a weeping tree shape too, here. I would find it hard to wrestle onto a trellis too. I feel for you having the HOA.

My HOA does not even allow roses planted in the front yard. So I put them in containers. ;)

That is crazy totoro! I don't have an HOA, but I do have very particular neighbors that don't mind spouting their opinions while walking their dogs. :((

Wow! No roses planted at all? I thought my HOA was bad! Lisa

I think I need to show a picture of my Bubble Bath before I do anything to it, and before my pesky HOA gets after me. I don’t want to block my arches. I had thought that B.B. would remain rather short as a climber, but it’s throwing out long canes in every direction. Should I just tie as many as possible to the trellis and shorten a few of the forward facing canes? She blooms well here, and I don’t have another spot for her. Our recent cold weather has turned BB and Felicia’s leaves golden colors. Thanks, Lisa

That’s actually Felicia starting to block the arch in the second photo. Bubble Bath is to the left. I’ve gathered up most of BB’s canes so that they are headed towards the left side of the house. Now, they aren’t encroaching on the grass so much. I haven’t cut them back, just tried to guide them to the trellis and then to the left. It’s not quite the look I had in mind, but it’s better than it was. Now, Felicia is left looking more sprawling:) I need to do some more work here, I’m sure this isn’t up to the HOA’s standards. I’m sure it will only be a matter of time before a letter arrives, if not about the “rogue roses”, then about my grass not being green enough. We have had very little rain, and I’ve been “spending” my water on my plants, instead of the grass. Does anyone have any suggestions for training these two hybrid musks, in the position they’re currently in? Thanks much, Lisa

That will be lovely Lisa. I might tie/gather the canes together and have them fountain out to the left in BB's case and up above the arch in Felicia's case. Where do they find HOA people who object to roses? I guess the same place they find city government employees who want to clear Sacramento cemeteries of antique roses.