Morning Glories will often shed the lower older leaves as the days start to get shorter and the nutrients are absorbed from the older leaves and relocated to the newer growth and in preparation for flowering... The yellowed leaves near the base of a MG plant may be the simple result of the relatively harmless maturation of the vine or the yellowed leaves may represent a more significant pathological process...and determining the difference is not always extremely easy...especially by 'remote'... Checking the underside of any sickly looking leaves for any signs of aphids or spidermites should automatically be the 1st troubleshooting step...and if there are no pathological organisms present,then proceed to consider the metabolic status of the plant in question... Water stress can make plants more susceptible to sun burn and to other pathological processes... I recommend keeping the plants well hydrated... Bloom Booster (which is phosphorus based) may also be of some help... TTY,... Ron

Orfeo stays rather clean for me in NJ without fungicides, if you're looking for a relatively healthy red climber. But it will need time to mature. I have mine growing into a severely cut-back Callery pear, and let it pretty much do as it pleases. As it grows, I just tuck the canes where I want them to go. I got mine from Rogue Valley Roses in 2013. Given a boost by being potted up in a nutrient-rich mix in Spring, it will start putting out substantial canes by the end of Summer. But for me, I didn't see its first blooms until the following year. :-) ~Christopher

Hi runerat: Thank you for the info about the fragrance being lemony sweet. The best yellow rose that match the scent is Golden Gate by Kordes, described in HMF as "Golden-yellow. Moderate, citrus, fruity, spice fragrance. 55 to 60 petals. Average diameter 3.25". Medium to large, very full (41+ petals), cluster-flowered, in small clusters, cupped-to-flat, ruffled bloom form. Tall, climbing, upright. Large, semi-glossy, medium green, leathery foliage. 5 to 7 leaflets. Height of up to 8' 2" (up to 250 cm). Width of 39" (100 cm). http://www.helpmefind.com/rose/l.php?l=2.39721 There's also Lemon Meringue climbing rose, but the scent is fruity and spice. which doesn't match your lemony sweet scent. I lean toward Golden Gate due to matching citrus scent and the dark green & glossy foliage. As to leaves in holes, there are 2 culprits: rose slug or leaf-cutter bees. But leaf-cutter bees leave a clean circular cut, and less damage than rose slug. Rose slug leaves brownish/grayish discoloration, and messy holes. I stopped using molasses to fertilize since it attracted rose-slug. Your pics. look more like rose slug damage than leaf-cutter bees. Agree with Neem oil. See below link: http://www.marinrose.org/fastfacts-roseslugs.html " Elimination: Hand pick and spray off with a strong spray of water Use neem oil or insecticidal soaps being sure to spray both the top and undersides of the leaf Use horticultural oil when they are first attacking - will work and is a very safe alternative Any contact or systemic insecticide labeled for use on roses will kill the roseslugs, particularly those that contain cyfluethrin."

That's funny! "Deer resistant roses"! LOL! Like "dog resistant organic plant food". Banksiae is the most "deer resistant" I've encountered. I believe it's because it isn't succulent and they don't recognize it. But, they WILL browse it if nothing else is around. Perhaps that is why someone thought Roxburghii might also be resistant? Mermaid was successful in Pacific Palisades, but I think that was primarily due to it growing fast enough and being sufficiently prickled to outrun the deer. And, it's yellow and repeat blooming. If deer are a problem around that ailing cherry tree, you're either going to have to enclose it in chicken wire or some other barrier or use chemical means to protect it. You might check out the Repellex Systemic Animal Repellent to see if something like it might help. If possible, you could also plant a field of lavender, rosemary, santolina or some other offensively smelly plant surrounding the rose to help prevent the deer from devouring it. Their sense of smell is their primary defense mechanism. A large area of stinky planting jams their radar, preventing them from smelling nearby predators and often helps protect the plants they surround. But, seriously, roses ARE "deer food" and WILL require protection if there are deer around and they feel safe browsing the area. Good luck.