Do you spray a fungicide routinely or must these roses also be highly disease resistant? Since they're going in next to the entrance, you need excellent foliage.

I don't mind spraying this bed as it is away from the vegetable bed. In general it is very hot and humid here, so disease resistant would be preferable but not must.

Belinda's Dream is a 4X4 bushy shrub with excellent repeat bloom and big HT type fragrant blooms which are great in a vase. It is a nice clear pink.

Lions Rose would be great; it's also easily 4X4 with lots of healthy beautiful foliage. The fluffy, creamy blooms have apricot centers as they open. Would be pretty with the brick. Not much as a cut flower tho. Lions Rose, also known as Lions Fairy Tale and Champagne Moment (!) is a shrub rose and ideally situated to a situation like this.

Rather than a hybrid tea I would choose a shrub or ground-cover rose for this very prominent location. There are many that will give you the compact size, nice bushy plant, excellent repeat to continuous bloom, and good health. Peach Drift, Sweet Drift, and Coral Drift would be excellent here. They can grow to 3-1/2 feet or kept under 24" high. Their smaller size would be in better proportion for your entry bed.

Then go dig yourself a long border for a row of cutting roses!

I concur with Barbara. Also, because your entry has a formal appearance, I would choose three of the same rose. The Drift series of roses is bulletproof in northern Virginia and blooms with a very quick repeat. A neighbor has Peach Drift and I swear those roses were in bloom continuously last summer. Yes, I realize that no rose actually blooms continuously but they sure fooled me.

Hi rose mom. I agree on the drift roses. I have Sweet Drift, Apricot and a peach. The Sweet Drift is my favorite and it has gorgeous foliage and seems to bloom non stop. It's one I can prune but doesn't grow back like gangbusters so it's east to keep in check. When I first planted it I let it grow and that baby can get 5 ft wide if you let it but I've kept it around 3 to 3 1/2 with little pruning. Gruss An Aachen and Pink Gruss also stays around 3 ft and blooms great. You'll have a blast figuring out what you love. Your home is just beautiful!!!

Thank you all for your feedback! I will check out the Drift roses, but my two main reasons to care for roses are the fragrance and form (for cutting). If I am not getting theses two, I would consider some other perennials or small bush.

Thanks Prettypetals, for the complements for the house. This is the reason we bought this house....

and left behind this at old house....

I miss my roses!!!!!!

Oh rosemom your new yard is going to be stunning! Your previous rose garden was gorgeous!

I'm like you, I like fragrance and cut roses. I believe recommended spacing is a min of 2 feet for floribundas and 3 feet for hybrid teas and most other roses, but double check that with others.

Have you looked into the newer Kordes roses? They are getting rave reviews from others who have blackspot pressure... and wouldn't it be nice if you had diseases resistant roses in the front so you didn't have to spray? That backyard is going to keep you busy enough!

Do you have blackspot pressure there?

If it were my front yard I would be tempted to put an archway over the walkway right near the front steps so I could have a climbing rose go up and over it too. It looks like you have enough room for a climbing rose on either side if you squeeze it in next to the bushes.

With that as a focal point and all one color, maybe white or pale pink, then you could do more hybrid tea or floribunda roses on either side in many other colors and I think it would look wonderful.

What an amazing idea, Cori Ann! I would sure love to do that, but I barely got permission from hubby to plant a couple of roses in the bed, I can't push for more!! :) (He is not a flower lover kind of a person...)

Yes, most of my roses at the previous place was on the scheduled spray program. I would love to find no-spray roses that are fragrant and good for cutting. Can you please give some names of kordes that fit this criteria??

I just looked a little closer and I think if it were my front yard I would definitely put an archway up for a white, easy no care rose climbing on either side (here that would probabaly be Iceberg, but not sure about where you are)... then it looks like I could fit 4-5 additional roses on either side.

What color is that weeping tree in the front when it blooms? And is there anything else that blooms in the front?

It looks like you're a fan a red and pink based on your previous garden. Me tooo! But if that weeping tree is yellow or coral when it blooms that may change the colors you want to use for your roses.

The weeping tree is dead, but I kept it for now, thinking I would train a climbing rose on it (once I convince him... ha ha!)

Well... I don't have blackspot here so I wouldnt advise you well. But there is a thread from some Florida rose growers going on right now that is all about amazing Kordes roses they are obsessed with for this very reason.

Too bad about the archway!

Thinking some more... make sure to leave enough room for the person who trims and shapes the bushes to move in and out without trampling on them! Trimming those hedges looks like a lot of work!

Wow, Rose_Mom, your new property is gorgeous! That looks like North Carolina along the intra-coastal waterway. Got deer?

There is a website called helpmefind that lists vendors for particular roses when you decide which ones you want.

Since you are looking for fragrance, form and cutting, I would plant 4 Shelia's Perfume in that area. It has everything you are asking for. When people walk up to your front door, they will be overwhelmed by the beauty and fragrance of this rose. Especially 4 of them. Since you are in zone 7A, you can get them on fortuniana root stock and not have to worry about them suckering from Dr Huey.

Hi Rose Mom,

I’m in hot, humid zone 7B Alabama. I love all the extremely disease resistant
Kordes roses I’ve tried so far, but the fragrant ones want to get big here. I also love my Apricot Drifts
and Coral Drifts…very disease resistant, constant bloomers that stay compact…but
neither are fragrant. I’ve heard that
Peach Drift does have some scent, but would be surprised if it made a good cut
flower. I agree with Pretty Petals that
Gruss an Aachen is a great little rose.
It does blackspot here if not sprayed occasionally, but not as badly as some. It has gorgeous blooms, a nice, small bush
form and a soft, but sweet scent. It makes
a beautiful cut flower (doesn’t last long in the vase, but blooms a lot, so you can replace often). Bolero is
another one to look at…wonderful, strong scent, good bloomer, compact and doesn’t
blackspot too badly here. Both of those
are floribundas. HTs tend to get tall
here. The only ones I can think of that
stay small for me are Elle and Valencia…both fragrant and good for cutting. Although short, they do have HT form rather
than bushy…so not as pretty of a plant as the floribundas. Both will blackspot some, but not horribly. The Austin, Tamora, has a strong fragrance
and stays small, but blackspots terribly here.
Intrigue, another floribunda, has one of my favorite scents, but another
that is very blackspot prone if not sprayed regularly. Francis Dubreuil (aka Barcelona) is an older HT
that has a wonderful fragrance and is a decent cut flower. It stays small and has a bushy form rather
than stiff HT growth. Its blooms will
fry quickly in the heat of summer, though.

Here are full bush shots of a couple, but only bloom shots of others...will keep looking to see if I have bush shots of those somewhere.

Gruss an Aachen

Francis Dubreuil / Barcelona

Oh wow Pat! All of your photos are amazing, but your Gruss an Aachen is absolutely gorgeous! I have been on the fence about that one myself and now it is definitely on the list if I can find any more space.

Intrigue is a gorgeous bloom here too and extremely fragrant, but it was too much of a lemon scent for me. It wasn't bad... just not to my liking. Most would probably really enjoy it. It just reminded me too much of lemon pledge. If you have a sensitive nose, you may want to smell that one in person first Rosemom to make sure you like it.

Oh so wonderful roses you have, Pat! Thanks for sharing the shots! I loved the picture of Elle!

Ken, Could you please share a full bush picture of Sheila's Perfume, if you have? I think I like your idea of putting multiple SPs in this bed!

Beautiful house with a beautiful setting. I could really see a couple of climbers myself! Just wanted to mention that Munstead Wood stays fairly compact, smells lovely and lasts well as a cut flower. It can take the sun and heat and didn't BS for me in the Ohio river valley. I've also read Pretty Jessica is healthy fragrant and small along with Golden Buddha.

Pat, your pics are gorgeous. I have Barcelona, Bolero and GaA on order from ARE this spring and you made me happy with those choices. Does Bolero have some pink in her bloom, btw?

You can take a look at the wide variety of newer Kordes roses on the website newflora.com. It identifies specific roses good in warmer climates, good for cutting, fragrant, etc. Grrrreat website!

Rose Mom, I've never grown Shelia's Perfume, but if Ken doesn't have a full bush shot, you could check HMF (http://www.helpmefind.com/rose/l.php?l=21.213974) or do a new post about it (I'm pretty sure Sara Ann grows that one) . Also, I misread your original post...thought you were looking for short roses, but now think you were more concerned about width. Although tall here, some of the Kordes don't seem like they will end up too wide (Savannah, Beverly, Karl Ploberger), while others are monster sized even though they are fairly young (Summer Romance, Dark Desire).

Cori Ann, Yes, you NEED GaA. It's small enough to be happy in a pot if you can't find ground space for it, or it is very shade tolerant for a rose if you have a semi-shady spot. Both of mine are in the ground, but in way more shade than most roses can handle and still have at least a monthly flush. More pics below to help push you over the fence :)

Vaporvac, I think you will be happy will all three of those. They will blackspot some here if not sprayed, but not too bad. Otherwise, all three are great roses for me. My Bolero is blushed pink in the center during spring and fall, but pure white in the heat of the summer.

Bolero Spring/Fall:

GaA

Thanks, Pat! Wow, GaA snaps are so beautiful!! I will surely keep this one in mind.

I am also considering to get a few Kordes rose - Thanks, Cori Ann for suggesting to check out Kordes!

Wow! All the pics are gorgeous!! Your back yard view is gorgeous too. I love it. Don't forget to check out Lowes bc they sell quite a few Kordes and they are nice and big.

I just returned a minute ago from Lowes!! They have bare root HTs and Climbers but couldn't find any Kordes! How did you get your kordes from Lowes- in pot or bare root?

I believe Kordes roses get to Lowes later in spring in pots. I'm excitedly waiting for them too! :)

Oh, Pat, you're wearing down my resistance to GaA (wish she had an easier name). I wanted to avoid more pale roses because the color washes out so badly in our sun. But if I remove the pitiful Easy Does It (ha), then I have a space for GaA. Hmmm.

Rose Mom, I love your elegant home, and the flower beds you left behind are wonderful, too. Leaving them would be hard to do. Diane

Yes, Diane, When I moved out of that house, I had tears.. I was feeling so bad to leave behind those babies! Can't wait for spring to plant new roses here!

Yes, I do have Sheila's Perfume, but don't have any good bush shots. Always enjoy seeing your beautiful roses, Pat! Rose-mom, your roses are gorgeous, and I'm sure you will be able to achieve such beauty again, I wish you the best.

Wow Pat, that Intrigue Rose!!

Rosemom, Try Pope John Paul II and Sunsprite, both are very fragrant, compact, disease resistant and free flowering.

Ken, your Sheila's Perfume looks amazing! Perfect form that I am looking for! Thanks for sharing!

Dan, yes PJPII is one of my favorite HT. Have to do some research for Sunsprite.

Hey Rose_mom. The Kordes pots at Lowes come in a few weeks prob if not longer. They usually get quite a few of several varieties and diff stores get diff varieties. I have prob 8 or so diff Lowes I go to. Lol.

Thanks Prettypetals, for this tip! I would have never thought of checking different stores!

Oh my!!!! Swoon!!! and Drool!!!

This does my heart good!

Carol