Roses that have performed well in my hot dry climate
I can only comment on fragrant varieties as I choose roses with my nose, but these roses have done very well even with our scorching summer heat 100-120 F, low humidity (<20%), virtually no rainfall in summer months, and water restrictions twice a week only. I love cutting my roses and bring them indoors so that helps to prolong their lives in the heat. By cutting the blooms it also reduces the plants' need for water on very hot days, so it's a win-win. My soil is alkaline sand and I amend before I plant. The soil is dramatically improved with organic matters, Bentonite clay, soil wetting agent, iron sulfate, and neutralised with sulfuric acid. My water is pH 9 so I need to continue to acidify the soil by mulching with fresh garden trimmings. Organic acids are produced when these materials break down. The mulch also conserves a lot of moisture and keeps the roots relatively cool. I only buy roses on fortuniana rootstock as these cope best in dry sandy soils.
The winners for me are:
The dark red Firefighter, peach HT New Zealand, white PJP II, bright red Kardinal.
The old fashioned looking Addictive Lure is a young plant so too early to comment, and it is not available in the US market.
The pink one here is Yves Piaget, it is not the happiest in high heat. But once the weather cools down a bit it performs very well and the flowers are extremely slow to unfurl on the bush - taking two weeks to go from tight bud to the one in the photo. Wonderful to look at in the garden and in the vase alike.
Other HTs that have done well are:
Double Delight
Perfume Delight - this one shrugs off the heat
Frederic mistral
Barbra Streisand
Memorial Day
Granada
and Papa Meilland
Many Austins have thin petals and would fry in no time in the heat, but a few good ones are:
Evelyn
Happy Child
and Jude the Obscure, but my Jude is still young so I need more time to assess.
The shrubs that do very well are:
Sonia Rykiel and Augusta Luise.
Looks like I have included too many photos in this post already and it would not allow me to attach photos of JtO, SR and AL, but you can find them on other posts if you are interested.
I hope that was helpful, Mustbnuts. :)
Comments (28)
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Comments (6)I have Bees Knees, too. The blooms are very good, I'd say excellent for a yellow rose. Heat doesn't phase it either. Mine's not fully mature yet, though, so I haven't really gotten a lot of blooms yet. Y2K is a great little rose that stands up to heat well. Has a pronounced red edge, but if you're not committed to only pure yellow, it's a good candidate. Very compact, only growing perhaps 16-18 inches tall. Unfortunately, mine was a victim to Hurricane Katrina, when I was forced to evacuate New Orleans for 6 weeks and couldn't water the roses. Y2K was in a pot on concrete, in a very exposed position and it just dried out too much. :( I just got the mini-flora Butter Cream a couple of months ago, and it is a STUNNER! Exquisitely shaped blooms that hold their exhibition stage for a long time. The baby bush has taken off quickly and has already rebloomed twice in the short time I've had it. It's pale, creamy yellow, but definitely more yellow than ivory. Got mine from Almost Heaven. My only disclaimer is that I have yet to see how it handles our summers, but I've read favorable reviews. Rise 'n' Shine was blackspot prone for me, but otherwise a very good garden rose. If blackspot's not a problem where you are, I'd say it's a good choice for a prolific rose. I think the bloom form is only OK, but then I'm biased toward florist rose shape. My favorate older yellow is a larger mini called Good Day Sunshine, from Pete and Kay Taylor of Fairhope, AL. Great garden rose with wonderful hybrid tea form blooms of about 1 and a half to just under 2 inches diameter. Solid, unfading canary yellow, on a 30 inch bush (may get as large as 36in.) Early to bloom in spring and one of the last to stop in the late fall (winter, here). It blooms nearly continuously, rather than in distinct flushes. It takes the heat well, although it appreciates some respite from blazing sun. Mine was crisping in the mid-day sun last june after several months of hot drought. But I moved it to my back patio, where the sunlight is dappled, and it did great, blooming much better than many other roses would in partial shade. The biggest problem with this rose is that I don't think its available anywhere anymore. :( But Peter Rabbit, tell us why you're not impressed with Double Gold. I've been eying it from Nor'East or John's Miniature Roses, because I'm looking for more minis with fragrance. It's supposed to be prolific, compact, with big fragrent deep gold blooms. Are the catalog's over-advertising again? ;) What's the problem? ...blooms blow too quick, or can't take rain, or really isn't fragrant? I wanna know. Thanks. Mike...See MoreRoses for hot & dry, hot & wet, shady & dry, shady & wet locations
Comments (52)Very happy to find "Ace Hardware pine bark mulch", which are well-composted this Oct, and have plenty of pine-fines inside. I make my rooting-area in advance for next spring .. by that time the pine-mulch/pine-fines will be more decomposed & less acidic. The rooting powder that Bluegirl mentioned helped TREMENDOUSLY. Things take roots much faster. Do you make a slit at the side of the lower cane like Connie of Hartwood? Or do you slice a piece of outer-layer off like Kitty of California? I'm too lazy, so I do it California way, scrape a vertical piece off from the end, with my paring knife. For indoor & winter: I still don't like covering the plant with a plastic dome, it goes against my logic: cover anything up, and it will surely rot & get moldy !! My kid sprouted some mung-bean in a plastic cup, she covered it, and within a few days white mold grew on it, so gross !! This winter I plan NOT to cover with plastic, and simply squirt the soil lightly with a hand-mister. My neighbor kept a geranium through the entire winter. In freezing March I visited her: she kept the geranium on the window-sill (morning sun), and squirt it twice a day. And it was blooming tons !! I kept house-plants indoor in the winter and was foolish to water it, that was messy: water dripped on carpet, then whiteflies, then rotted stem (too wet). Hand-mist lightly is so much better, since leaves do take up water & nutrients .. same with stem I also put hydrogen peroxide inside my hand-mister to prevent rot. Bluegirl shared how Josh in TX put a paper towel on top of the rooting area to hold in moisture, great idea !! I'm convinced that hard-wood and thick cuttings NEEDS MUCH LESS MOISTURE. Versus the "greener & thinner" stems which dry out faster, thus need more moisture. The "alfalfa sprouts" type of root need constant moisture ... folks do keep alfalfa sprouts in a plastic pouch at grocery store. But the woody & chunky Dr.Huey-rootstock rots easily in poor-drainage clay. As own-root matures from "alfalfa sprouts" to hard and woody roots, they become more sensitive to standing-water and acidity....See Morebest rose around hot patio ?
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8 years agoInterestingly the Early Kind roses are not necessarily the most heat tolerant. I find Marie Pavie at her best in Winter. She continues to flower in low temp. The flowers blow fast in the heat and it is not a rose that can be used as cut flower. In Winter she smells great and the flowers last on the plant.
Duchess de Brabant on the other hand is very happy in summer heat but will also continue to flower into late winter:
Lynn-in-TX-Z8b- Austin Area/Hill Country
8 years agolast modified: 8 years agofragrancenutter thanked Lynn-in-TX-Z8b- Austin Area/Hill CountryLynn-in-TX-Z8b- Austin Area/Hill Country
8 years agofragrancenutter
8 years ago
rosecanadian
8 years agofragrancenutter
8 years agoOh Carol you always make me laugh! You are so enthusiastic like a child on Xmas day!
I can see that you've got a thing for high centered HT shape.
Yes Papa M has one of the best rose fragrance to my nose. Complex blend of damask and citrus. Simply delightful. He can be near black and very velvety. His growth habit is not the best but given the quality of the blooms he is definitely staying.
Speaking of fragrance if you get a chance visiting a warmer zone you must dive your nose into one of these babies - Hedychium coronarium (White Butterfly Ginger). One of the most refreshing and deliciously fragrant flowers in the world:
One of the things to do on my bucket list is to visit north America in Spring and smell the once flowering Alba, Gallica and Damask roses. These won't do well in our heat.rosecanadian
8 years agonanadollZ7 SWIdaho
8 years agoI have been admiring your beautiful roses and marvel at how clean and perfect your Frederic Mistral's petals are. My Fred always "has issues" like brown petal edges from thrips or spotting pink on the rare times it rains around here. Now that is a sight, and he's the only rose of mine that does that. I still like the rose very much, but he can be a trial. I think Sonia Rykiel is the rose I must have next year after seeing those eye popping blooms your rose produces, not to mention their quantity. And, of course, your Papa Meilland is a stunner. Must investigate that one. Your Memorial Day is so lovely, and that's a rose that has been a problem child for me. Mine is much lighter in color than yours, and I've noticed other darker colors on your roses. Do you think this is because of the fortuniana rootstock? My roses are on Huey and multiflora. Soil here is alkaline desert, but with some clay, rocks, and who knows what, but no sand. I was surprised at the dark color of your gorgeous Augusta Luise, a favorite of mine. My rose has variable coloring in pinks and apricots. Right now her blooms are very light. Anyway, your roses are truly outstanding, and I'm considering emigrating to Australia! Diane
a paler Augusta Luise
a little more apricot
Dianefragrancenutter
8 years agonoseometer...(7A, SZ10, Albuquerque)
8 years agonanadollZ7 SWIdaho
8 years agofragrancenutter
8 years agoLynn-in-TX-Z8b- Austin Area/Hill Country
8 years agolast modified: 8 years agoHere's Gemini from my previous yard.
Lynn
fragrancenutter
8 years agoThis bouquet from today showcases some of my fragrant favourites:
Top row: dark red Firefighter and pink Tiffany
Second top row: pink Beverly, purple Big Purple, lavender Stainless Steel
Third row: Evelyn, Fragrant Cloud, Memorial Day, Barbra Streisand, Honey Bouquet from left to right
Bottom row: Honey Bouquet in the middle and Dolly Parton on the right
It is winter now for me and I am just happy that the blooms have kept coming. :) Sooooo Fragrant!
Lynn-in-TX-Z8b- Austin Area/Hill Country
8 years agolast modified: 8 years agofragrancenutter, beautiful bouquet!! I especially like your Memorial Day and Barbara Streisand.
If you, and others who grow roses where summers are hot like lavender roses, here's Love Song. I wouldn't care if my roses stopped blooming during the summer; who could blame them, but some just keep blooming when it is really hot. This bloom of Lovesong opened Friday. Yesterday it was 111 degrees F ( the hottest day of the year thus far). This photo was taken this morning. It is not the best bloom for this rose, but under the circumstances..... This is a grafted rose that was in a pot, then planted about a month ago...
Love Song ( same plant) when it was not so hot, and established in its pot.
Neptune is new for me this year... its blooms are looking gray right now....
Angel Face has about two dozen blooms right now that are smaller, but hold their color. ( I would take a photo, but most of the roses on the plant should have been deadheaded 5 days ago).
Lynn
fragrancenutter thanked Lynn-in-TX-Z8b- Austin Area/Hill Countryfragrancenutter
8 years agofragrancenutter
8 years agoI am adding good performers in my garden to this post as I go. Today Fragrant Cloud is looking beautiful. She has a very strong fragrance but not my favourite note - a bit too much aniseed. she is a reliable bloomer. Flowers have a lovely form. In Winter the petals show some veining:
mustbnuts zone 9 sunset 9
8 years agofragrancenutter
8 years agonanadollZ7 SWIdaho
8 years agofragrancenutter
8 years agoAnother heat lover is Tipsy Imperial Concubine. Her flowers don't fry very easily in th heat and they last well on the plant as well. Fragrance is better when the weather cools down though.
tklusa1
5 years ago
nanadollZ7 SWIdaho