I can't help you with advice, because I'm in zone 10a. I will say that I don't blame you for trying. I've considered Butterscotch many times myself over the years. There's something so appealing about it! Good luck to you, zz. Lisa

Thanks, I love the color so much I really want to make it work somehow.

zz, I'm also no help as I'm in Z6. Where exactly are you located? I've had this on a top 5/10 roses since I saw it posted last year. I hope you can let us know how it does and that someone in Z6 pipes in.

See if you can find a budded version.

Would that work if the canes are not cold hardy enough though?

One of the effects of a rootstock is making the canes stronger and more vigorous.

I would strongly recommend growing it on rootstock suitable for your zone. My mom loves most of the brown tinged roses and grows Butterscotch Climber very successfully on Dr. Huey. Hers climbs a 9' pillar. However, she's less than a mile from the beach in Southern California.

If it's available on multiflora, I'd try that. Many of the oddities are just poor growers and can't make it even in the best conditions without grafting and/or elaborate fertilizing routines/spraying. You certainly shouldn't blame yourself for its struggles.

I think you hit it on the head with the canes. Even thou the root stock will give it an extra strength to grow. I also doubt that this variety will be reliably cane hardy in z6. You can still grow it just not as a large climber. Root stock will not make your canes hardier. Some rose do get hardier with time and age. To climb and bloom beautifully as you know there needs to be surviving cane.

Rootstock actually can, in some circumstances, make canes hardier. What it does is allow the rose to produce thicker canes earlier in the season. So instead of young, thin canes to overwinter, the rose has thicker canes that are several months older. Of course, also with a grafted rose, the gardener is usually starting off with an older rose - 2 years vs. months for a band.

How much sun is it getting? I moved Halloween, an older HT, to an location with Southern exposure and all day sun and got two cycles of blooms last year. I just move Jo Ann Edwards, an exhibition HT to a similar location and it is now growing vigorously. As own root HTs, neither did much growing until they got all day sun.

It's reassuring to know I'm not the only one who has tried in vain. I think I'll try it in a pot for a while but I am not too hopeful. I tried Koko Loko in a pot after two died over winter in the garden but it didn't like our cold unpredictable spring. I'm trying Distant Drums in a pot this year after one died in the ground over this winter.

As far as Koko Loko and Distant Drums go, Ive grown them both side by side for a year now, they're both weird and sort of exact opposites. KL is painfully compact and likes to grow in on itself whereas DD climbs. KL seems to be a Veeeery slow grower, whereas DD responds better than any Rose Ive ever had to a hard pruning (it just bursts w/flowers a week or two later-seriously the whole plant exploded w/blooms!). I love the buds of KL but unless it picks up the pace it may be getting an eviction notice coming up soon lol.

The only success I ever had with 'Climbing Butterscotch' was budded to R. multiflora and grown in a greenhouse where it was protected from cold events and sheltered from blackspot. Even then, it had no vigor, and - as is its habit - it grew well for a couple of years and then proceeded to grow backwards to a tiny twig, then died. (FYI I am in zone 8, which is typically extremely forgiving to all but the most tender/feeble of roses)

And this, I'm sorry to say, is one of the feeblest of them all. I can't imagine growing it in Zone 6. #ICUroses

ZZ,

What a shame Butterscotch is such a difficult rose to grow. Its color is incredibly eye-opening!

Do you know of any other rose with blooms colored like Butterscotch?

Distant Drums comes to mind, but only closely colored like it.

Moses

I just bought a Butterscotch today from Burling Leong. These comments make me nervous! But I'm hopeful. And I'm in coastal Cal. So, here's hoping...

I love Cl. Butterscotch JACtan. It is my favorite rose. Buds start golden with an olive cast opening to an exquisite buff. I never tire of looking at it. I consider it entirely worth growing.

A vole ate mine -may it perish in flames. I miss it horribly and am searching for another. Here ...a pic is worth a thousand. It grew wonderfully, no troubles at all. I am on the East coast zone 6b.

I bought one from Burling a couple of years ago. I have it in a two or three gallon pot. It doesn't seem wimpy to me, in fact I'm often thinking I need to get it in the ground as it has about outgrown its pot. It is having some large, lovely baby poo/ parchment colored blooms right now. I think Honey Dijon might be a similar color.

similar yes. Thank you, will check w Burling.