I have Sunny Sky and Sweet Jane, but I don't have any photos of Sunny Sky. It has settled in very well in a tough spot though, and it is going to be a good rose I think. Sweet Jane put on some very nice growth in her first year last year and I have a few bloom pictures. Here she is in light yellow mode - she doesn't fade to cream like a lot of yellows, and this is about as light as she gets:

Here she is in a more golden mood, and it was still in the heat of September so the color stays a nice vibrant yellow most of the time:

I can't tell you about fragrance since my nose is unreliable at such things, but she's a rock solid rose for me and I love the little "crossed arms" petals at her center. For a Lowe's buy, this is a find!

Cynthia

Sunny Sky is a tough rose. Just won an ADR in Germany last September. Trials show it to be a reliable bloomer in the south. For us it is about 3.5-4' tall and about 2.5' to 3' wide. Classic bloom style good repeat. France is moderate. here is an image

Sunny Sky

Thanks to you Cynthia and to you Chris. This helps a lot.

Ken, those pictures have convinced me that I should give Sunny Sky a chance. Looks like my kind of rose, pastel and pretty. Thanks.

Went back to Lowe's and they had Sunny Sky, Dark Desire, Wedding Bells, Summer Romance and First Crush. Another Lowe's had Lemon Fizz and Winter Sun.

Do any of you have thoughts on Summer Romance or First Crush?

Suebelle

I have "First Crush" own root. She wintered over beautifully, has beautiful softest pink into cream flowers, smells heavenly and has little to no blackspot. Close to perfection.

I have First Crush and it's a beautiful rose, smells divine and it's even nice looking when not in bloom. Bikes got at mine, so it's in ICU for now. We'll see if it survives my attention. If it does you'll know it's especially hardy

Dave- your First Crush is gorgeous. I have Summer Romance but she hasn't bloomed yet and is still kind of small. Hoping she'll do some major growing this year as soon as it warms up. It was warmer in March ;-)

Sharon

I have all three, with Sweet Jane and Sunny Sky coming from Palatine, and Summer Romance from Chamblees. All planted in Spring 2015. Out of these three, I have actually paid only closer attention to Sweet Jane. It has very upright growth, leathery leaves, and at this stage at least, is stingy with bloom (although it it could be that it is still too young). Unlike Cynthia, mine fades quickly to a very pale yellow/beige. The plant is completely BS resistant (I don't spray).

In terms of BS resistant, all three have been extremely good in my garden.

Can anyone tell me about new growth on Summer Romance? I have a lot of new growth that is bright red and I am wondering if I need to worry or if this is normal for Summer Romance.

Mine is also red and changes to green. Chris posted pics and this looks normal. I'd love to see a bush shot of someone's SR. Anyone?

Thanks vaporvac. I did not see Chris' pictures. Do you know what thread they are on?

I have 'Summer Romance' and 'Sunny Sky', own root from RU and Chamblee's in 2015. 'Sunny Sky' has one bud and more narrow growth. It hasn't bloomed yet. 'Summer Romance' has 6 buds, upright but more bushy growth and burgundy new growth. Of the two 'Summer Romance' is more robust so far. Neither have any black spot in my no spray garden and handled our New England winter with little damage.

the new growth on all of my roses is red

New foliage with distinctive red to purple tones is completely normal in roses. The botanical term is anthrocyanin. It also shows up on buds and stems. There can even be some twisted leaves in very new growth. This is not RRD.

A note on own root Sunny Sky - HT roses tend to grow quite upright and often need soft pinches of the most vigorous canes while very young plants to encourage basal breaks. Many of you buy very young plants from the various own root plant producers who sell plants in quarts and one gallon containers. I think it is good to plan to spend the first growing season shaping the plant by pinching an encouraging more branching. Yes you will lose some flowers that first year but the plant will give you years of pleasure if you build the shape the first year. If you have an older plant that has not made enough breaks early then a hard spring pruning will encourage more breaks, but it may take several years of hard prunes to get the bush shape corrected. I think Sunny Sky needs more care on shaping the plant than some of our other HTs.

I do know some red on new growth is normal, but of the 30 odd roses I grow, including a tea, Summer Romance has the reddest new growth I have ever seen. I do think the bottom leaves are greening up though. Whew.

Chris- what do you mean by pinching? How far back should a cane be pruned? My Summer Romance roses are between new this year and some bought last year. All are own root from Chamblees' or RU. Should I do this with all of my Kordes or just the hybrid tea ones? I have some Verandas and some floribundas.

Thanks for any more detailed instruction.

Sharon

Suebelle, did you decide to pick up any of these Kordes' roses?

Summer Romance & Savannah arrived from Chamblee's a year ago. Potted on several times & pinched for shaping, they've bloomed once this season & are budding up again. (Unusually cool, cloudy & wet weather delayed the Spring flush in general.) With great fragrance, charming blooms & spotless foliage in this hot & humid no spray garden, both are throwing new basals & giving a good showing for such young roses here in the Upper South.

Savannah is one of the Sunbelt Collection. http://newflora.com/kordes-roses/sunbelt-rose-collection/ Another of that group here a year from Chamblee's is Polar Express. Treated like the other two, it managed to slip several flushes by me last year in its eagerness to bloom. Haven't nipped any buds this year & it's swelling new buds as others are opening without pause. Good solid fragrance. Another I can highly recommend.

Parfumas Summer Romance & First Crush in bud & bloom arrived at the local Lowe's in 2-gallon pots the 1st of April. Jam packed onto a long table, could only inspect some along the edges to find them grafted. After own roots, admired the enticing perfume of their generous bloom, but left them be, hoping own root examples would follow. Flowers of First Crush were not as pale as I'd thought from photos, a very appealing clear blush pink. A week later during a heat spike sans rain, visited again to find the half remaining in depressingly pitiful condition - dry & wilting from lack of watering, canes snapped & dying, likely from attempts to separate each from its neighbors for purchase in that overcrowded display. Found an own root First Crush in salvageable condition & put it in my cart, remarking to my husband I needed to speak to the manager. To hurry me along (lol), he took the rose, found & spoke to the manager & came back followed by an employee armed with a watering wand. Showing me the manager discounted the rose by half & he'd already paid for it, we left. First Crush cleaned up nicely. Watered well & left to soak overnight in a filled plant saucer, it drank every bit & looked gratefully relieved by morning. Parked in high shade & given simple care, managed to replace lost leaves & began to bud again. Nipped the first set of buds, but allowed it to bloom a few weeks later as it appeared fully recovered. In the meantime, I'd "rescued" another First Crush & a pair of Summer Romances, all own root 2-gallons, from a sale table at Lowe's that at least was exposed to plentiful rain. All rebounded with the same treatment.

More Kordes own roots arrived at Lowe's a month ago, this time as 1-gallons in Forever & Ever branded pots. Very well grown, in bud & bloom priced @ $13, picked up trios of Eleganza hybrid teas Sunny Sky & Heart Song. Not actively searching for these two (unlike some others), found them very appealing in person & their fragrance nose-to-rose sealed the deal. Both repeat bloom rapidly so far even as youngsters. Sunny Sky shows apricot buds that open to a pastel yellow heart backed in apricot with buttercream edges. Heart Song is a lovely clear red without orange or blue tints. Both hold their color without fading till petal drop in temps of low 90's.

(Kolorscape Lemon Fizz as the same brand & price merritted another trio, thanks to you, Patty, for your reports & photos! Lemon Fizz closes its petals in the evening, like some of the early singles & semidoubles, another charming aspect of its personality.)

Greatly enjoying each of these unique personalities & finding them all "happy" roses - eager to grow & flower, humming right along. Very easy to grow, healthy, reliable roses.

vasue - what a great report - lucky you to find all of these at Lowes. I am tempted to form the SPCP (The Society for Prevention of Cruelty to Plants) when I visit these nurseries at big boxes. I always wonder at the lost profits which are charged back to the growers when the merchandise is poorly handled.

I am in love with Sunny Sky after growing it for many years. I saw it at the Portland International Rose Garden last week planted in a bed of 20. It was spectacular. Below is an image of it in British Columbia this spring. It is grown no spray in the public gardens in Canada.

Sharon - I will take some images for you later today about what I mean about pinching. I have some young Hts in need and perhaps photos are easier to see. No some roses especially shrubs break well and needs only about 2 or 3 early pinches which are usually done by the plant producer long before shipping. I find that own root HTs may need a bit more to form a really good, well balanced shrub.

Thanks Chris, I'll be watching for your post.

Sharon

I just saw the post from Chris 2486. I too am in love with Sunny Sky but need help understanding your pinching process since I want it to look more shrubby. Enchantedroseez6a did you get any pictures? Or, if not, what are you doing with yours? I am ordering from Northland Rosarium soon. Thank you for any info.!

Pinching is sadly not an option without surviving cane at the end of winter. I'm thinking it is an advantage for myself, to stick with naturally shrubby roses. It is possible that for zone 5 some of the most vigorous ht types may never reach their bloom potential.

Caroline, you can google pruning roses for structure or shape. There are many articles on this. Some are easier to follow than others. I have always found those written by Paul Zimmerman particularly helpful.

Here's one thread where Chris describes shaping a rose in several posts. Sue

http://forums2.gardenweb.com/discussions/3984748/how-wide-does-poseidon-get-and-can-i-control-the-height-of-a-rose?n=45