An under-planting of chives is supposed to deter blackspot (presumably because of the sulphur content) - but it didn't work for me, nor did it look attractive, except when the chives were in flower. If possible, I'd choose something that thrives in the same soil conditions as roses (i.e. something that likes a rich, even heavy, soil) and also something that can handle the overhead shading from the rose itself (yes to parsley, then!) I'd agree with the Heuchera suggestion, but I think that instead of plain green, bronze leaves could work really well. It could enhance the green of the rose foliage while picking up the apricot/pinky tones of the flowers. Also, using a foliage plant would mean that you wouldn't be distracted from the rose blooms. Low-growing Geraniums also come to mind, but I can't think of any flower colours that would look particularly good with those rose colours. I don't think blue or purple would work, and pinks might just clash... There's a brilliant book by Tony Lord called "Designing with Roses" (see reviews on Amazon), in which he talks about underplanting... Unfortunately I can't remember any of his suggestions, but will look it up when I next get a chance. http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0711217149/qid=1149763246/sr=1-2/ref=sr_1_2/102-6002517-5100128?s=books&v=glance&n=283155

There is no telling how many floor 'covering' events the kitchen has seen since it was built. I have ripped up many floor coverings to get to a stable 'base' (subfloor) over which to install the new covering. And these old coverings were installed over many different underlayment materials, from glued down asphalt-saturated flooring felt to nailed down panel products, such as masonite and plywood. It is unlikely that you will find 'oilcloth' under it all, but I have found it during some demolitions. If the original owners did not remove previous coverings when installing new, you could find oilcloth or even early jute-backed linoleum as the first layer. You won't know what you have until you start digging.

Absolutely could be either of those, but the blush of apricot on the petal edges make me think of Morden Sunrise, or it's cousin, Bill Reid, which is all yellow without the blush, both Canadian roses hardy to zone 3. They're perfect against the brick.

Interesting - both links I shared show clusters and one is a .edu site. Art Shapiro, professor of entymology has the most reliable butterfly site - he notes gulf fritillary lay eggs in clusters .. looking for monarchs there .. a few butterflies he notes as laying eggs in masses. http://butterfly.ucdavis.edu/search/node/butterfly+eggs - most DO say monarch usually lay singly but that other butterflies may lay in clusters (2 more sites Kentucky.edu and UC Davis. I have a link to a page that will show who else feeds on milkweed - gotta go find it.