I just take what blooms I get and try not to worry about the amount of buds/blooms because each year will be different for one reason or another... But hope you get a great Spring flush to lessen your worry!

I'm with Jim. My first flush can be full as early as the first week in May or as late as mid June. No matter. As long as it comes, I'm happy! :-)

Usually late May is peak spring rose blooming period for me here in Kansas Zone 6 (about 30 miles from OK). Roses Unlimited won't even mail container roses to me until about May 10-15--they worry about late freezes here even though I try to reassure them that April 20 is the last hard freeze date and even that is a conservative estimate since often the last hard freeze is in early April.

As warm and early as this year's spring season has been, I keep thinking that should probably move up the blooming cycle by a couple weeks, but even it that is true, for me that would make peak rose blooming at about the 1st or 2nd week in May.

But do let me warn you. More than once I have been snookered by a "false spring" followed by several days of really cold weather from out of nowhere. You don't want that to happen--it will freeze all the buds and tips of your roses that were bursting with spring energy! That can be heart-breaking!

But here's hoping for a smooth glide into rose-blooming season. : )

Kate

Thank you everyone. Kate, you are so right, I wouldn't want my bushes to be full of buds, then have a late freeze, that happened several years ago. Last year, I had my first bloom on April 17 and was getting quite a few blooms about a week later, and I think they were pretty much in full bloom by the first week in May. But, I do know every year is different Generally, my roses are in full bloom by Mother's Day. A couple of my older roses are loaded with buds, Mme Ernest Calvat and Reine des Violettes. I've been thinking that I need to keep a journal from year to year of what my roses do, and the different conditions related to that, then I would have a better idea of what to expect.

Journals can help you remember for sure...

This past winter has been mild so hardly any winter-kill and our roses started leafing out much earlier but our Spring seems colder than usual so when its all said and done who knows. We can get frosts up until late May. Last year I planted 50+ Marigold plants in mid May and frost wiped them all out... Most of the rose buds were not effected and roses still bloomed good near June.

We have 2 more frost free nights then forecast is saying we will get frosts nightly for the next 7 days or longer some nights in the low-mid 20's... So who knows what this Spring brings...???

Even though my roses are usually covered in buds in the spring flush, they can be completely ruined by thrips. So more buds don't necessarily mean more perfect flowers. And I would rather have 10 perfect ones than 100 ugly ones ruined by thrips. Just a thought.

I keep a spreadsheet/journal on my roses: date, when and what I planted, when I prune them, feed them, spray them and what I used. Otherwise I can't remember! Maybe twice I week I add a weather line (temp, humidity, wind, etc. I just copy a line from Weather Underground or Weatherbug for my neighborhood.

I see last Spring was a lot warmer than this one. I also take photos on the first of the month and save them in my computer. Last year the leaves came out a lot earlier.

We have a short blooming season. They start blooming in May. And by the beginning of August I'm tired of doing it and don't update!

I haven't had a spring flush to speak of in the last three years because of the drought, early punishing heat and drying winds, all of which played havoc with the normal bloom cycle. We've already this year had heat in the high 80's and almost no rain, so I too can't predict what will happen this spring. I'm a lot more humble now and no longer expect a glorious spring flush as was expected in the past. The winds that you've had and scarcity of the usual winter rains will have affected the roses somewhat, but the fact that you had and will be getting more rain this spring bodes well for a good showing of roses, although perhaps not as much as normal or later than usual. It was really difficult for me to accept the first two bad springs but now I've finally internalized the knowledge that nothing in the world will ever be what it was, and our gardens will also be a part of that change.

Thanks everyone. I think this has been a confusing spring for my roses. February was so mild, spring came early. Even though March was relatively mild, I know we had several mornings during the month when temps were below freezing, I know they'll be fine, I do have a tendency to get over anxious.

There are several that give me reason to be pleased. My established Julia Child is looking good, Our Lady of Guadalupe and Beverly both look awesome, Orchid Romance is looking great, and there are others too., I know my roses will bloom, and while they may not be as spectacular as I was hoping, that's okay.

I really do appreciate you all helping me put things in their proper perspective!

Hope you do not mind,

But if I were you I'd only keep the roses that please you time & time again and replace your Non - Performing roses with better roses...Less stress in the long run for you... I can tell you have a real passion for roses, want them to be there best and you worry a lot about your roses... Fill your garden with what you love! And remember life throws us curve balls so things sometimes just do not go as planned... It's that not knowing what's going to happen that kills us...lol

I worry too...lol... So I try to turn my negative feelings into positive feelings by making changes or whatever needs done to make me feel better...

Yes waiting each year to see how well our roses will perform is a challange for me also...lol...With this up & down weather I've been biting my nails...lol

I get it... My roses look a little stressed. This spring has given them really wide temperature swings between 30-40 degrees of daytime to nighttime temps. Ex: 70 degree warm sunny days to 34 degrees for an early morning low. Some of the rose bush growth looks sort of stunted. And, the wind? Holy cow - we had gusts to 40 mph a few days ago. Mama Nature will have her way, won't she? About 3 weeks ago, my Peace rose was budding out so much and I was so excited. Now about half of the buds have fallen off and as I mentioned the growth looks stunted. I think a fourth of buds are still on the plant. Same with Geoff Hamilton - the buds look really weird and they may all just fall off. :-( I have to say I was a little depressed about it but, life goes on and I'll keep up the good work. The roses close to the house have fared better and I've babied the new roses by covering them or bringing them inside at night. My second year Eden that's close to the house looks great and has over 60 buds on it. I've gone to great lengths to protect it just so I can see the display. I've also compensated for the current situation by purchasing a few blooming roses from local sources just to have some blooms around. Keep your chin up Sara Ann and enjoy the beauties you mentioned!

I'm wondering if this cold weather will ever end Sara Ann... Sadly a lot of our rose leaves have been injured badly by 40+ mph winds, nightly frosts, snow... And with temps near 20 degrees coming I've realized these roses will probably be starting over again... So I need to step back and take deep breaths...lol

Hope it improves soon, Jim! I've got it good, compared to some!