Ken: If you want a red raspberry that will continue to produce through very hot periods, look for Baba, aka Bababerry. This berry was originally found near Los Angeles, and is better adapted to heat than any other that I know of, except perhaps for some of the Australian cultivars that I have not tried. I have been growing Baba here for years, and it has been an excellent producer with no disease problems. Heritage was a complete bust for me, with low to negligible production. I don't know how difficult it would be to find Baba for sale (I seldom see it), but the west coast would probably be the best place to look. You have to make sure you find a source reliable enough that you can depend on obtaining the real article, not some other variety labeled as Baba. Personally, I wouldn't even bother trying to grow any variety other than Baba in very hot conditions. Quality of the berries themselves is as good or better than any other variety I have seen; good for fresh use and wonderful for the classic Jellyman raspberry jam. If you want a real treat, make a pie. Don Yellman, Great Falls, VA

I live in the Jacaranda area of Broward and they are planted all over the place. The definitely blend in with the other trees unless they're in bloom. I think the ones around here are mimosfolia? I think either the nursery in Punta Gorda or Gardinos offer both species. I think it would be spectacular to have a street lined alternating jacarandas & Royal poiciannas. Imagine that show if they all bloomed at once!

Years ago when I first got on this forum there were posts from a woman who lived in downtown Nashville who had an extensive old rose collection. Old fashion teas seem to dominate her garden. She created a list of disease free roses which I copied and saved and for my first few years of rose growing I used it extensively to select roses since I am just south of Nashville. Unfortunately for me, I underestimated the advantage she was getting from the urban heat island effect giving her an extra zone I didn't have.. Old fashion teas did spectacularly well here for me in terms of blackspot--even better than the modern Kordes. But they just could not withstand the freeze/thaw cycle of early spring. (I'm in an open rural area with no wind protections and am functionally z6 even though I'm officially z7a.) I finally got rid of the last surviving, pitiful teas a couple years ago. I think it is extremely likely that Mlle Franziska Kruger will be clean for you. All though she is not on Jean's list, I'd guess it's just because she didn't grow it. I'd also bet that North Alabama is going to warm enough--especially if you can find a spot with a little wind protection. I can't imagine that 100+ mile south wouldn't give you the same advantage she was getting for urban heat. I say go for it! Here's Jean Harrison's resistant to blackspot list for mostly Antique Roses with teas being the biggest catagory in her Nashville garden. She defined resistance as a rose that didn't lose more than 30% of its leaves. Maybe it can be helpful to someone. Polyanthas: The Fairy Cl. Clotilde Soupert Cl. Cecile Brunner Clotilde Soupert La Marne Gourmet Popcorn Mrs. R.M. Finch Perle dOr Phyllis Bide Hybrid Musks: Excellenz von Schubert Darlow's Enigma Gardindirektor Otto von Linne Shrubs: Carefree Delight Earth Song Pearl Meidiland Carefree Sunshine Belindas Dream Carefree beauty a/k/a/ Katy Road Pink Winter Sunset Prairie Sunrise Knock Out Ramblers: Alberic Barbier Francois Juranville Aviateur Bleuriot Alexander Girault Ayrshire Queen Paul Transon Emily Gray Francois Guillot Chinas: Pink Pet/Caldwell Pink Arethusa Le Vesuve Comtesse du Cayla Bermudas Kathleen Ducher Napoleon Cramoisi Superieur Little White Pet Noisettes: Crepuscule Blush Noisette Souv de Mme. LAdvocat Narrow Water Nastarana Jaune Desprez Reve dOr Duchesse dAuerstadt Alister Stella Gray Lamarque Champneys Pink Cluster William Allen Richardson Secret Garden Musk Teas: Lady Hillingdon Maman Cochet Duchesse de Brabant Baronne Henriette de Snoy Georgetown Lemon White Tea William R. Smith Rosette Delizy Comtesse Festestics Souv. de Pierre Notting Rock Hill Peach Tea La Sylphide Le Pactole Jean Bach Sisley Clementina Carbonieri Etoile de Lyon Mme. Maurin Alliance Franco-Russe Mrs. Dudley Cross Monsieur Tillier Mme. Joseph Schwartz Georgetown Tea Hermosa Isabella Sprunt Mrs. B.R. Cant Lorraine Lee Enchantresse J.E. Murphy's Pink Tea Angel Camp Tea Puerto Rico Safrano Mme. Antoine Rebe Mme. Berkeley Marie van Houtte Triomphe de Luxembourg Rhodologue Jules Graveraux Smiths Parish Cels Multiflora Humes Blush Souv. dun Ami Miss Caroline Thomasville Old Gold Duke of York Niles Cochet Mme. Antoine Marie Mme. Lombard Rubens Irene Bonnet Mme. Camille Paul Nabonnand Mme. de la Sombreuil Isabelle Nabonnand Devoniensis Hybrid Teas: Eva de Grossouvre Radiance Red Radiance Careless Love Maman Lyly Lady Ursula Climbers: Awakening Clair Matin Cl. Lady Waterlow Westerland Autumn Sunset New Dawn Floribundas: Strawberry Ice a/k/a Bordure Rose Bourbons: Souv. de la Malmaison Mystic Beauty Kronprincessin Viktoria Souv. de St. Anne a/k/a Miss Abbot

Kim, the big quake plus the fire—recovery from those makes for an absolutely life-changing experience! Your emotional survival, resilience and fresh perspective on the value of things are truly hard won pieces of an enlightened life after literal trial by fire. I hear in your words what I call full body knowledge, a kind of deep and pure understanding of life involving sharp edges, practical focus, expanded compassion and both joyful and wry humor. Looking back after crossing mountains like those, it becomes clear that the capacity for transformation is built into our genes and souls. Sometimes the only way through is just to go through it. Every day that my feet are standing on the PNW, I think about the precariousness of the ground below me. I am regularly stacking emergency water, juggling current supplies of medications, shuffling boxes of batteries, flashlights, canned food and blankets. I wonder how I’ll manage, our household organizer and family caretaker, to keep it all together when the supports of everyday life drop out from under me in one fell swoop. I’ll think of you and remember your Phoenix Ralph Moore rose and your own recovery and hold out hope that I will survive and get to that side of enlightenment with my family on my back. What you say about THINGS is 100% heart of the matter! They can for moments in time hold value, but only because living beings are associated with them. It is life itself that is inherently valuable—the ones we love, those in our communities and world, the planet itself which shelters and sustains all life as we know it. The day may come when I’ll need to leave anything or everything behind and experience the leanness that is just me with no frills or extras or immediate security. For the record, your roses bring great joy to this living being! For the time that Purple Buttons and Annie Laurie McDowell grow in my garden, they will give me immense pleasure and a boost when I need one even if the mountains I am currently climbing are less arduous than a quake or fire. I think I love pass along plants so much because they embrace both the temporal nature and continuity of all that is beautiful and gifted from one to another across a long chain of generations. The plants that you and other breeders create are inherently passalongs because you brought something wonderful and original into this world, and since it can be propagated, countless gardeners like me can share in the gift for years to come. Your roses are incredibly beautiful to my eyes and my nose. It is a delight to go outside during PB’s loooong bloom period and stop to smell the roses! Someday, I‘ll do the same with ALMcD, but right now I am conscientiously disbudding my young, own root plant so that she doesn’t exhaust herself before she is mature enough to support her own virtues. Thank you for your roses! Carol