Randy, your picture makes me long to see mine in bloom next spring. It hasn't had any for some time but it's still a young rose, and seems to be slow to mature.

Hi Ingrid, Thank you for the post. I am so gun shy with this rose, as I ordered it from Heirloom and/or Rogue last summer only to have the orders canceled. Also, from Heirloom, PJ would be the one thing I have certainly sworn off, "a band". Unless I view the rose as SPECIAL, which to me, Pretty Jessica is not , I am done babying those little things. I have three that remain from the summer that I am likely to gift. Again, thank you for supplying this information for those of us who have been frantically searching for this rose. Lynn

MARY ROSE is pretty but the fragrance is disappointing. The scent is highly variable and even at its best doesn't come close to comparing to Pretty Jessica's powerful Damask perfume. Fragrance-wise SHARIFA ASMA is just as good but the color is completely different and the flower form isn't as tight. PRETTY JESSICA is a cool pink along the same lines as the ancient Gallicas, while Sharifa Asma's light warm pink is more modern in tone. Something to keep in mind if your garden design calls for specific color tones (i.e cool vs. warm). All that said, of the three choices MARY ROSE is the most disease resistant, but I still can't recommend it for a no spray garden. Although I haven't grown it, I've heard good things about THE MAYFLOWER. You might want to try that cultivar instead.

I purchased Pretty Jessica as a bare root plant from Pickering Nurseries (in Ontario, Canada) in Fall 2011. They are stocking it presently, but cannot ship roses to the US because of a new interpretation of the law regarding the root stock they are using. I suspect that they will correct this problem in 2013. Another nursery, Hortico (also in Ontario, Canada) also stocks this rose and has it available for shipping now. Many on this site have had bad experiences with this nursery; specifically in being shipped very small or non vialble specimens or mis-labeled specimens. I was trying to obtain a few of the older Austins which have become very difficult to find and placed my first order with Hortico this year. I was pleasantly surprised with the size and health of the specimens that arrived recently. However, the one rose that I was looking forward to getting, may be a mis-labeled rose. I have the book "100 English Roses for the American Garden", that has detailed photos of the flowers, leaves, and stems of 100 of the earlier English Roses: the prickles/thorns in the photo of Cressida are very different from those on the canes of the specimen that was sent to me. I notified Hortico the day after the roses arrived, and the told me to plant it and take a photo of the flower, in the event that it did not appear to be correct, and to send it to them. If the rose turned out to be mis-labled, they said that they would replace it with the proper rose. I have read that many who frequent these forums, have had similar experiences in receiving mislabled roses, but never received a replacement or a refund. I do know that there have been more favorable reports more recently from others, and I am hopeful that my experience with this company will go well.