I grow Charlotte in zone 7, and I love it. She gets pretty tall and reblooms often, but I also have some black spot. Kathy

I've seen Windrush before in public gardens. Austin's early semi doubles are more field roses than garden appropriate, because they form big spreading shrubs with sparse small flowers. It's similar to Moonbeam, Moth, Redcoat, Scintillation, The Prioress, The Nun, etc. Of all these early attempts Shropshire Lass is probably the most charming. If you want Windrush because it is pollen parent to Jude The Obscure or just because it's a rare early Austin, by all means go for it, just don't put it in a prominent position, you will be underwhelmed by the display.

John Clare might need to be left to his fate. The trouble with needing several years to build up canes is that the canes freeze every winter.

I was interested in Windrush because of Golden Wings being one of the parents and because I liked the look of the flowers. I do grow The Nun, and in my yard it does not form anything like a big sprawling bush. Maybe Windrush should be thought of as once blooming.

Charlotte has many pages of photos on HMF and a good many favorable comments. I had rather have a yellow rose fade than turn pink, which Charlotte does not seem to do, and where I live, we have some cloudiness almost every day, and whole days of cloud cover every week, so I doubt fading would be as drastic as in places with brighter sun.

I have both Charlotte and Windrush. This will be Charlotte's 3d year now, I think, and I hope it will look better. It was doing somewhat better last year. It has some nice yellow flowers and has more of them than Happy Child. My plant has stayed on the small size. That may change with age.

I have had Windrush for a long time now. It makes a spreading bush about 5 ft tall and about 5 ft across. The stems are thin and nodding. I can get usually at least 3 flowerings out of it during the season. It usually has quite a few flowers, and they do have a mild fragrance. The soft yellow does fade over time to a creamy white. The big secret for this rose is to keep it deadheaded if you want rebloom. Every single flower must be cut off or it will not rebloom. It sets hips quite easily. At least that is how it is for me. This rose is actually one of the better ones in my Austin collection, and I really do like it.

With the exception of a very few (such as Grey Pearl), I think most roses will perform well somewhere, just not necessarily in my garden or yours. Even though I wasn't impressed by Windrush, I'm glad it has done well for the_bustopher, and since his zone is more similar to yours, that bodes well. That's why I find it irritating that David Austin Ltd. is discontinuing his old roses, some of his "obsolete" roses have done very well for me and I wouldn't hesitate recommending them to someone else who has a similar climate.

If you like Windrush's flowers, may I also recommend the non-Austins "Fruhlingsgold" or "Wildenfels Gelb."

I just ordered Charlotte and John Clare from DAUSA. I wanted them grafted so as to get a good start, and I do have a south facing spot in front of a concrete slab (I refuse to dignify that slab with the name 'patio') where JC can live. I plan to move Benny Lopez there also where it won't get eaten by the Portland Gang, Mme. Knorr, Duchess de Rohan, and Panachee de Orleans, who don't tolerate interlopers. I shall plant some sort of tough herb, maybe sage, where Benny is now.

Kordes roses in general have done very well here, romogen, so I will look at the two you mentioned. thank you for the recommendation.

'

Any particular reason why you want John Clare? I grew it a number of years ago and was not impressed, although I can't remember why now--I think the blooms were very short-lived, among other reasons. Anyway I dug it up and put in a totally different rose.

If you are looking for a shorter med. pink Austin, he has several newer ones that fit that category and are good disease-resistant and floriferous bloomers. You might want to check them out.

Kate

I have John Clare and Charlotte, both grafted. Charlotte is well established, JC is one yr old.

My Charlottes are reliably hardy. They are close to 4' tall, tidy growth with good foliage. I lose only a few inches of cane per winter. They have no protection, live near the edge of the road so are subjected to snow plow abuse and road salt. So for a rose that can stand up to that, they deserve a place, otoh, they are kind of boring - average and well behaved, no drama. First flush is perfectly adequate, color is a nice light yellow that doesn't turn pink and fades only slightly. the blooms have nice form and keep their shape for a reasonable time. Rain and sun tolerance is good. Repeat is about average, scattered flushes.

I got John Clare because it's often praised as Austin's best bloomer. I can't argue with that. Constant color, but not my favorite color, and a bit of a plain looking bloom. I think I'm going to move them and contrast them with white. I was pleasantly surprised by the growth, which was vigorous. Mine hit almost 5', with long upright branches, bushy and even, not the well known unbalanced octopus growth. This winter was mild, and they have very little damage.

I saw JC some time ago, at either a public garden or at Heirloom, I can't remember which. I liked the flowers and the color, and I also like the poet after whom it is named. If he is growing well in NH, it may be that he likes colder climates and more acid soils, which is what I have.

I am in Zone 6 (CT) and planted John Clare three years ago. It was my first rose. I wanted a rose with few thorns. I am very happy with it. I have it under my picture window. I wanted something that was not too big. Lots of flowers and good re-blooming. The one negative for me is that it has little to no fragrance.