Nahema is NOT hardy in my zone 5 .. died after 2 winters as own-root from Roses Unlimited. I successfully rooted Nahema, but it died recently in my unheated garage with temp. at upper 20's. Annie L. McDowell survives 2 winters for me since I planted it right below the rain spout so it gets constant moisture. Winter here is -30 below zero with wind-chill factor, and Annie dies to the crown every year. For its 3rd winter, this year, I plan on watering Annie during the winter in case we don't get any snow. Zero winter-protection except for a thin layer of leaves, it's on a steep hill so I can't pile up winter-protection. I planted Annie in a deep hole with MG-potting soil and topped with dense clay to seal in the moisture. Let's see if Annie survives its 3rd winter.

Galgal if I ever do you'll be the first to know. Virginia, they haven't got to her yet or anyone else in that area, that I know of. It's hard clay over there, which could account for slow growth, but since she's growing inch by inch and everyone says she's a slow grower, I think that could be another reason. I've noticed That roses over there do tend to take a little longer to take off and I think it's the clay and because I'm still, adding to that area trying to make it better with mulch, rabbit manure, chicken manure, ect. The ones they have gotten have always been in soil that I've worked for years, and now is over shaded to much from the trees. Did you see the post where I told you they tried to get SDDJ? I'm glad I caught it in time, and that might be why he didn't root. I noticed after that through this year he was losing a few canes and I was wondering why, but was either so busy, or feeling bad I almost didn't catch it. I dug him up and planted him really deep. I read in Susan Verrier's gallica book that deep planting discouraged voles, and I was out of my main go to to get rid of them. I don't think my colder weather in the winter has anything to do with it, or atleast I don't recall her losing any cane during winter. I'll pay extra close attention this year.

I got one several years ago from Burlington Roses. Have you tried emailing Burling?

I know the area well, flowers! You might want to investigate if there is any kind of azalea/camellia mix you can easily obtain to help acidify the alkaline clay where you'll plant ALmD. Oak leaf mold, peat, that kind of good stuff, things you'd use to plant blueberries, too. If that kind of material can be incorporated in the top few inches so it breaks down and flushes through the alkaline soil, it will help make multiflora happier. You can keep mulching with whatever acidic material available to maintain those conditions. You wouldn't need as much as if you were trying to grow camellias, but just enough to help mellow out the alkaline clay. This area is mainly sand. The whole valley is pretty much sand. After the quakes and all the damage, the State instituted engineered soil to mimic bed rock. When we added the patio cover, Santa Barbara County required 25" cube concrete footers on each post to secure the thing against the constant winds. I warned the installers about the engineered soil, but they still sent two, young men with pick axes and shovels. There are three posts, each with a 25" cube of concrete and those three holes took those two young men nearly EIGHT HOURS to manually dig. Literally. Oddly, water began collecting in the bottoms of the holes almost as quickly as they finished digging them, but roots don't penetrate into the soil. I used to deal with the Santa Clarita Urban Forest for street trees. They would purchase 24" boxed trees, excavate matching holes in the engineered soil and plug the holes with the root balls. Often, the trees are replaced after three or four years because the holes filled with water and the trees drowned. The soil is manually, physically compacted to be bed rock. Anything built in the state after about 1980 is on some sort of engineered soil, unless it was built on bed rock. The older builds which didn't suffer extreme damage were all due to being built on sold surfaces. The Encino house suffered nearly no damage because the ridge was stone and it was seated squarely on that stone. The newer things around it lost chimneys, walls, garages but not that old house. Other than being seismically stable, the other main advantage to not being able to dig holes is gophers HATE it. They are everywhere there is loose soil, but not in engineered areas. The city uses its parks as rainwater collection and percolation pools so more rainfall is recaptured than runs off into the ocean nine miles away. Those areas aren't engineered so the water absorbs quickly. The gophers LOVE them.