Thank you Maryl and Debra for looking and commenting.. I was quite surprised with the roses, Maryl. They are beautiful but don't have the intense fragrance of the OGR. Debra, the fans on Firecracker Parade are short and the blooms so far are a bit in the foliage but it appears to be growing pretty well. There are five fans and five scapes. I did keep it in the greenhouse that first year so this is the second in-ground year. I have several first year plants from Ladybug daylilies that have put up scapes and another couple of other newbies that have scapes. We are having a short blessed cool spell which mayslow blooming down a bit. I have a couple of plants that are two or three years old (one of each) that have their first scapes this year, kay

Merrill, and the saddest part about the return of jobs and having little time at home is that a full half or more of those lovely gardens will die. People swear they will keep them up, but many won't. They didn't before. Perhaps many will keep a small veg garden, but most of them will discover that working, taking care of their house and being with friends again is more important, and just let them go or not plant them again aside from a couple of tomato plants. We'll see, but I know it's what would happen to me if I didn't have time on my hands. When I once moved out to the country, I planted a huge veggie garden. I was a SAHM at the time, and had plenty of time to spare on it. Then I had to go back to work, and my garden tractor broke down, and it was just too much to take care of, so I didn't plant another garden for the next 3 years I was there, nor did I care for the flowers I had planted. A 90 minute commute to town and back every day, activities with my son, helping out my mother on weekends, and my garden went to hell. I finally just sold my place and moved to Florida. Then the same thing happened there with my house and 1/4 acre yard. Sometimes life is just too much to fit everything in. It has to be a passion to prioritize it, and many people don't have a passion for gardening, it was just something everyone else was doing, so they did it too. Some will have discovered it's a passion, and most won't. The more things change, the more they stay the same.

It grows all over our town, in the oldest districts in old gardens. It must have been a very popular garden plant at one time. I have even seen old, well maintained hedges of it! I did not realize it was so cold intolerant - we are zone 9/10 here now, depending on local conditions. We had trouble finding a spot for this bush that was just enough but not too much sun. Ended up building it a place to live in a corner sheltered and shaded by our house, with a South Eastern exposure. Likes it there. Now I have to move it away from the house, so the plan is to put it in our new garden on the side which still has shade from a huge bush nearby. We shall see. Jackie

I like Woodside Amethyst, a great purple. Is it a bitone, looks possible in your photo. I like the Indian Giver cross. Bali Watercolor looks really nice today Sherry