Hi le Jardin, we moved here for several reasons.. my partner is English and had a career opportunity, I wanted the chance to go back to school, and we have family here. I've always loved England anyway, so I was actually more excited than my partner! I love it here. Hi Diane, thanks for looking at the photos, I'm really glad you enjoyed them. Hi albertine, Yay! Another corgi fan. I've had two as well and they really spoil you for other dogs (although, there are many others that I love as well). We see a lot of Jack Russells, Greyhounds, Westies, occasionally an English Bulldog or a Bull Terrier. There are also some type of herders that I'm not familiar with that remind me of skinny versions of Australian Shepherds. If I ever see Lilac Rose looking lonely at a garden centre, I'll probably go ahead a pick her up anyway, but she's not something that I'm going to seek out, there are far to many recommended roses to get first! Andrea! We really have to meet up, I think you might be my soul sister! :) I picked up Mr. Fairchild and Alan Titchmarsh together last autumn, the first to roses that I purchased here. I have mixed feelings about A.T., like your', mine tends to have such heavy flowers that they go right to the ground. On the other hand, there are so many of them! For a first year rose mine must have produced 30 or so roses so far this year. I noticed that if I let the branches hang, like pegging I'm getting new shoots popping up and already there are buds on them too, so I'm just going to let him do his thing and see how it goes. Mr. Fairchild, by comparison, has been less vigourous; but I much prefer the flowers, scent, and bush shape. I really like this rose. Wow... going through your wonderful list: I grew Gertrude in California and didn't really like her. I smell some scent, but my nose doesn't register the scent that everyone else raves about. I had the same problem with Comte de Chambord, so I guess I'm just not wired for that group. Shirifa is in a nice pot, I am hopeful. Jude I adore, I'll have him again soon. Lady Emma Hamilton really surprised me at Austin's, not my colour, but I loved the scent. Summer Song is totally out of my colour range, I wish I had smelled it though.. bananas!?! I really liked Young Lycidas, it is one that needs to be seen in person to really get the subtlety of the colours, and yes.. WOW, what a scent! Love WM2k, so so about Golden, but love the Prince. This is one of my favourite photos of him from my California garden: I saw Dark Lady and Prospero for the first time this trip, both nice but undewhelming. I really liked Munstead Wood. Also saw Radio Times for the first time, it was nice but didn't bowl me over. Now, I had the Alnwick Rose high on my list, but was disappointed in the scent! I chose Sceptre'd Isle over it this year during my small bareroot purchase, and had been wondering if I had made the wrong choice. The way you describe it though, I really out to love it, so maybe it was just the wrong time of day, or I had been overwhelmed by other scents. I grew Evelyn in California and I liked her delicacy very much. I've yet to meet Ab Darby, isn't that strange!? Princess Alexandra and Jubilee are the two top on my list right now, I'll keep my eye out for Rosemoor. Gentle Hermione is the other bareroot I ordered this spring, and she just had her first flowers this week. I like her, and true to Austin's word, she held up beautifully in the rain this morning, and even held water in her cup through the whole day without falling over or apart. I used to grow Tamora as well, but in California it was a rust magnet, I swear it was nearly copper coloured by the end of the season. Thanks for sharing your list, it's helped reassure me about several choices that I'm interested in. Here's a shot of Tamora and Evelyn: Carla, it's so kind of you, thanks for the good wishes. Here's a hug for you... (((Carla))). Hi Joanne, it's nice to see you! Apparently they have redone the "Lion garden" and will grow roses with perennials, thank goodness, as much as I like roses I much prefer them mixed with other roses. Mottesfont is still the gold standard for me. Megan thanks you, and sends best wishes to Maggie. Hi Aliska 12000, thanks for looking, and good luck with your Wisley, ultimately, it really comes down to each of our gardens, what does poorly for David Austin might be a gem for someone else. That's a lovely photo! Hi Sue, thanks for your good thoughts, they are much appreciated. Thanks Beth! Cheers everyone! I'm delighted that you have enjoyed these photos.

I have found the English Roses to be a disappointment as cut flowers. It isn't just the short vase life, a lot of them have weak stems too that can't hold the large blooms upright for flower arranging. I'm moving away from them because of these faults. There are a few exceptions. Of the David Austin roses that I've grown FAIR BIANCA (white) and EVELYN (apricot pink) did the best as cut flowers, but good luck finding them in commerce. The hybrid tea ROUGE ROYALE (red) looks like an Austin rose but does extremely well as a cut flower. I can get blooms that last a week in a vase. GOLDEN CELEBRATION (yellow) is great if you live in an area not plagued by black spot. To condition the vase water add a pinch of sugar and one or two drops of bleach. Don't forget to recut the stems under water in the sink and then immediately plunk the roses into the vase. If air gets into the stem then it will form a bubble, travel up the stem, and collapse the bloom. Not a big deal if you only want one or two days of vase life, but I grow roses as much for cut flowers as garden specimens.

It IS an impressive sight, but I have to agree with Ingrid. It looks pretty much the same as years past, nothing new in terms of design. As a tribute to David Austin, it makes sense, in that it is a reflection of the years past, but not anything innovative. I also can't help thinking that if you have huge heated greenhouses, wouldn't it be relatively easy to produce a display of roses? I mean as compared to say, blooming cherry trees? As a gold medal winner, I'd think that the display should be a combination of innovative design and horticultural prowess. The best of the best, after all. Thanks for sharing, Malorena, it is still thoroughly enjoyable to see. I was at Chelsea a few years back, a dream trip, and Chelsea didn't disappoint. Every display was more jaw-dropping than the last. Looking at my past photos, it's hard to believe it was 2012. David Austin Roses Display 2012.

Thanks so much, jc. I hope your Evelyns continue to grow and bloom and please you in your garden. I have four, three of which are almost 18 years old and one that is almost 10 years old. They are all grafted on Dr Huey. Three came straight from Austin, and one was an Austin purchased locally. Evelyn can be a prima donna at times. One shoots up, no matter how hard I prune her, and has long gangly canes that are a challenge in our wind. None of my plants rebloom as much as I'd like (shade is a problem for three of them). I probably need to up the fertilizer. But E likes her sun and lots of water, too. I've seen the date stamps on my photos from last year, and some were blooming at this time in May. This year they all have quite a way to go. I think it will be early June before the big show begins. But then, we had a freak snow storm just one week ago which caused some damage. Yesterday, it was 85F and we had a BBQ. What a spring. Diane