Catspa, I'm so glad you went to visit the rose today and got better pictures than I did. I think that the yellow color was more intense in my pictures because I took them right after the last storm passed through, so the blooms had not faded in the sun. That, and the Google image hosting software automatically cranks up the color saturation on the photos I post -- I'm going to have to figure out how to change that setting. The historical images of Livermore that you linked to are really interesting too. My house, built in 1964, would be just below and to the right of the 1963 image that you posted. In fact you should have stopped by when you went to visit the rose today. You could have helped me rip out a sidewalk and build a stacked concrete wall -- just kidding-- but seriously, I would love your input on the garden that I am overhauling right now. Thanks to everyone for indulging my curiosity and putting a name to this rose. I'm just so glad that I finally pulled over and took a closer look after eyeing it from the road for more than a year. It is truly an impressive specimen of a rose.

Ohh- I see.. then you'll have alliums soon enough!!! plant them late in fall- nearly winter if you have to!! In NJ- we always seem to skimp on by everyone's trouble.. we had the heat wave but i got night time storms each night of it.. no drought. and I'm not flooded either.. I like to think i live in a little tiny microcosm that is much like things are supposed to be and were a long time ago. I live in the middle of a wildlife management area.. about 4,000 acres of woods all around us! just this one street juts into it.. so i really feel like our ONE street gets weather like no one else.. we seem to be protected frm drought and such.. knock on wood. Been here 6 years and nothing horrible yet. can living in a heavily wooded area do that- change the weather? I'm no scientist. Just bears and mountain lions to worry about..and BUGS.. ugh the bugs.( come on- you cant get off scott free right?) haha

I am located in the Kansas City, MO area, not exactly California. I have grown Kordes' Brilliant in the Pacific Northwest and here in the midwest. It gets about 4 - 5 feet tall, has reasonably good disease resistance, but does benefit from a regular spray program. It is one of my first to flower and last to quit. Its growth habit is straight up, almost cylindrical, but spreading a bit. Its flowering habit is what you would expect as a grandiflora which would be a good class for this rose, but that class is not used in Europe. It blooms singly and in trusses as shown. The color in the photograph is quite close to real and is quite stable from beginning to end and through cool and heat. It does not have much of a problem with our winters here either with the multiple freeze-thaw cycles. It is fairly sturdy. It is one of the few that I have more than one of in the garden. It is available from Hortico and Vintage Gardens. I would put it as one of my better oranges.

To start with, 'conventional' methods of rose growing are geared almost exclusively towards growing hybrid teas. If you aren't growing hybrid teas, then it is like someone going on and on about the merits of crate training and regular exercise, and missing the fact that the pets under discussion are fish. Roses that are climate appropriate are actually very easy plants. The trickiest part is usually pruning. Roses that bloom once, in spring, are pruned very differently than roses that bloom on and off during the summer. If you haven't been around long enough to know which ones you have, then the first thing is to get some idea of what types you are dealing with. This time of year, unless you live in a dry climate, where plants need water over the winter, the best thing is to just walk away. Don't fertilize, don't cover them with anything, and definitely don't prune them. In the spring, after they start to leaf out, obviously dead wood can be pruned out, and they can get a dose of whatever fertilizer you prefer. When they bloom in the spring, take pictures, and post them on the Antique Forum for identification. They will want to see photos of leaves, canes, thorns, as well as flowers. After you get some idea of what they are, you can start to fine tune what they may want for care. At this point, I think it is fair to assume they aren't fussy types and go from there.