I saw a picture of Ballerina flanking some steps and it looked gorgeous. Francesca has very limp-looking blooms that I don't care for. Felicia would look beautiful without a doubt. Pax is one of the more beautiful whites.

Ingrid I agree Ballerina would be beautiful but I have read it has no fragrance so that's a deal breaker for me. I also like Bubble Bath and hope someone chimes in about how it's doing for them. Pax is beautiful but ARE does not carry it and I plan on either making a trip to ARE or will order from them.

I'm a card carrying Felicia lover here! I don't grow many HM's, but I can't imagine my being happier than I am with Felicia. She always has some blooms for me in So CA, in part shade. I love her so much that I gifted a Felicia to both my mother and sister. Her scent is amazing. I admit that I don't get that wafting scent, but I don't get that from any rose I grow. The air is just too dry here.

I have Cornelia, Pink Prosperity, and Bubble Bath. IMHO Felicia is the better rose, here. She blooms much more than my others. Bubble Bath is pretty thorny, btw. Here's a a bit of Felicia to show you. Sometimes she's very peach and other times much pinker. Lisa

This second pic is from spring, before she put on much growth

How much space do you have, horizontally? HMs tend to be arching, and can take up quite a lot of landscape, growing unsupported.

Not conventional thinking, but IF there is enough space for its width, I would recommend 'Bishop Darlington' as being completely disease free HERE, and a very generous bloomer.

But ... when I say it grows wide -- I really mean it:

I vote Felicia. It blooms a lot, smells delicious, and mine is almost completely thornless. She's got a nice shrubby shape, too.

If it's wafting fragrance you're after, Penelope is a good wafter for a HM. Carol

A non Hybrid Musk that can handle some shade and deliciously wafts: Blush Noisette. Always in bloom! If you plant star jasmine next to BN, the intoxicating evening fragrance will make you swoon. Carol

Felicia would be my vote! Not it's best photo, but she is gorgeous.

Thanks for all the replies and beautiful pics!

Lisa-your Felicia looks gorgeous, it really is a very sweet looking rose and I'm glad to hear you give it positive marks.

Jeri- I would have room for Bishop Darlington, your pic is gorgeous btw, but I don't think I want monster size in this particular spot next the stairs. I do however have the perfect spot next to my husbands huge metal garage for three or more huge roses and Bishop Darlington will for sure go there.

Needmoremulch- Im glad you said Felicia has a shrubby shape, I think that would be ideal next to a well traveled area.

Carol- I think Penelope is beautiful and I thought about putting her in that spot but I was afraid she would be too much of a monster Rose and I wouldn't be able to contain her in that area. I think she would be beautiful with BD next to the garage or maybe on the side of the porch, hmmmm I need to think about that lol, I have a whole other bed on the side of the porch and was planning on a few teas for that area but Penelope might need to have that area, wonder could she share it with some friends? And I have another spot for Blush Noisette or Natchitoches Noisette, haven't decided yet but thanks for the suggestion.

Shelia- thanks for the beautiful pic of Felicia. It just makes me want her more.

I think Felicia will perfect next to porch steps and I appreciate everyone's input.

Just thought I'd reinforce your decision with a few cruddy pics of my own. My Felicial has just been planted out and is already thanking me. I'm trying to grow her and her brethren ( Penenlope, Bubble Bath, Lavender Lassie) as climbers. Perhaps you could coax some of her canes onto the handrails since she's thornless. P.S. excuse "my neighbor's derelict wall" : ) and the rusty chair. That's my lame attempt at deer protection.

Vaporvac that's so pretty! I am already smitten with Felicia and excited to grow her. Can anyone tell me if she is a vigorous grower?

She does seem vigorous here, and the wafting fragrance is wonderful!

Given how much she's grown and bloomed in a pot, I'm going to say vigorous. In fact all the HMs I got this spring seem to be good growers.

Another vote for Felicia as she is one of the better Hybrid Musks. She also benefits from yearly pruning as that makes more blooms. If you don't prune Felicia hard then she will grow more upright if that is what you want. Harder pruning makes her bushier. Hybrid Musks do okay in semi shade but you get more blooms in the sun.

Another vote for Felicia.

Three views of Felicia:

Kate

Boncrow, I think you made a good choice! Felicia is a beauty just as everyone's photos imply. I'd take Oldrosarian's suggestion and prune Felicia on the harder side as she matures. If not restrained by strict pruning, she can grow quite wide over time in TX, like Jeri's gorgeous, arching umbrella of Bishop D in CA. Felicia CAN be shaped to make a nice, full bush.

Just a note on Penelope: I find her to be one of the shrubbier and more manageable HMs for smaller gardens and limited bed spaces. She's still a larger rose, but I've never seen her grow to anything more than a substantial bush or very workable fluffy climber or wall shrub. Mine is trained against a fence and is easily kept to no more than 4 feet deep x 6 feet wide. I let her reach above the 6 foot fence with sprays of bloom. Carol

'Felicia' and 'Penelope' grow shrubbier for me than some of the other HMs, both are fragrant and beautiful. 'Felicia' wafts in my garden, and in my opinion she has one of the best fragrances of all roses. They're all lovely, but the others have a more lax growth than these two. I see a lot of people here grow the Hybrid Musks much better than I do.

Buff Beauty is my favorite for beauty and charm. I don't grow it, though.
I have Cornelia which I can recommend unreservedly. It was one of the first roses I planted when we moved here. Initially, I didn't understand why it was so highly rated but have grown to appreciate its individuality and cast-iron health.

If I had space I would like to try Danae.

Felicia is a great Fall bloomer, too. Also Danae, Prosperity, Moonlight, Bubble Bath, Nur Mahal, Cornelia. Here, Lavender Lassie and Buff Beauty are not Fall blooming yet.

I am kicking myself for leaving out Kathleen -- really a lax climber. This rose is a champion. Also Excellenz von Schubert, if it can be considered a musk. This hasn't rebloomed much for me so far, but in June it is a heart-stopper and its foliage and manner of growth are so pleasing. As far as I am concerned, these two roses transcend any category.

I am glad to hear that Penelop can be kept shrubbier and I think that might have convinced me I need both Felicia and Penelope. My mom has Prosperity, she planted it this past May and I have been really impressed with this rose. She is growing it as a climber. I need to start looking for more places to plant all of the HM that have been mentioned on this thread lol.

Monarda, I agree Kathleen looks beautiful and she is on my list for sure. I just neee a place for her. And EvS sounds like a good rose too, I'll have to look into that one. I can't wait for spring!

Oldrosirian thanks for the beautiful pictures and thanks for the pruning tips for Felicia. I always appreciate tips on how to prune my roses to bring out their best. Menja is a very pretty rose, I'm not sure where to find it.

And Kate thanks for the pic and vote of confidence for Felicia!

'Cornelia' has a history of getting very high A.R.S. ratings. Perhaps in part because its flowers are more tidy than those of many others in the group.

On another subject if you don't have a geometrically symmetric house with a corresponding formal garden layout I wouldn't plant one each of the same on each side of the steps. Apart from such pairings needing a formal setting to look in context every time formal planting is attempted there is a risk that the plants used will not develop uniformly, resulting in the desired effect not be achieved. In this case if you flank the steps with single specimens of the same kind if one does not grow as big as the other then the planting will look lopsided. If instead the plantings on each side do not consist of an attempted pairing then this possible outcome will be prevented.

Lyda Rose is a consistent bloomer for me in part shade; Lavender Dream is a wonderful color but not as generous. Neither anywhere near as sprawl-y as Cornelia.

I just got Bubble Bath and am trying to train her onto a trellis. I have never encountered such evil thorns on any hybrid musk. I would dig her up.. if I could get anywhere near her to do it!

I have to admit that pink

I once got Bubble Bath and also almost immediately got rid of it. I am usually very soft hearted and reluctant to discard a plant but the thorns on that one were unusually vicious. Lavender Lassie and Prosperity are really beautiful above, incidentally. I can almost smell them!

Oh wow Cathy your Lavender Lassie and Prosperity are absolutely gorgeous! What is Lavender Lassie growing on for support?

Embrothium you make a good point and thanks for giving me something to think about. My yard is definitely not formal it is more of a country yard with azaleas, hydrangeas, lillies and daisies in informal beds and I have been adding roses the last several years now.

Lyda Rose also looks very beautiful! This is going to turn out to be a harder decision than I thought because now i want all of them lol. Penelope and Felicia have definitely made the cut, now I need to decide on one more and I'll be done.....for now any ways.

I really appreciate all the help and all the beautiful photos of your roses, I will for sure be re-reading this thread over and over.

I love my Buff Beauty, and she repeats well. Fragrant but not sure if wafting. Mine does well in part shade, with fog/damp and temps mostly in the 53-65 range. Color varies depending on weather.

Buff Beauty, sunny day:

Buff Beauty, buds, cool weather:

Also, what about Clytemnestra? I don't grow her (yet!) but I think she's lovely. Fragrant (a comment on HMF mentions that it's wafting). Has excellent ratings on HMF (as does Buff Beauty). Very difficult choice!

http://www.helpmefind.com/rose/l.php?l=2.1236&tab=1

Sheba

Sheba your Buff Beauty is so pretty! I really need to find a place this rose. I thInk Clymenstra is a great suggestion and one I'll will have to do more research on, I actually have Clymenstra and Nur Mahl on my list to find out more about.

Felicia is my favorite for fragrance, rebloom, and being beautiful.

What a gorgeous specimen of Felicia, Erasmus! Mine is not fully mature yet, but I already adore her. I hope mine will bloom as well as yours in the future. Is that her spring flush? Lisa

Oh my goodness that is stunning Erasmus! That is exactly what I have pictured in my mind and I hope I can achieve the same when I plant my Felicia. How old is your Felicia and how long does it take to put on some size? That is a seriously gorgeous pic of a gorgeous rose. Thanks so much for sharing it with us!

Gorgeous pictures, especially of Felicia. She would be my choice. I've had Penelope, and she has many fans, but she's not what I would call a dramatically beautiful rose. For a white I would probably choose Pax. I'm impressed by the beauty of Bishop Darlington.

I visited a garden today that has several hybrid musks. Penelope was blooming and the scent was sweet. The several Ballerinas were also in full bloom; I couldn't detect any fragrance. There was a large Kathleen, which looked very healthy, great foliage, but no trace of a bud or bloom or spent bloom.

Thank you. I'm not sure how old my Felicia is now, maybe 15. Unfortunately it is much diminished from how it looks in the picture. But for a long time it was a wonderful plant and had big flushes like this throughout the growing season. I don't know if this was the spring flush...could have been a later flush. Guess I can look at a date on the picture. I planted a Knockout next to my Felicia..the Knockout grew huge and crowded out Felicia. I think that's the only reason it declined. I'll probably get rid of the Knockout eventually. Some people find Felicia is more fragrant than Abe Darby and that's saying something. It does get some blackspot. I had another one in a different spot that was not nearly as big so for some reason that was a good spot for it, right next to the hot street.

I also like Lavender Lassie. It repeats but not as well as Felicia.

With Alchymist:

Erasmus, I MUST compliment you on the striking combination of colours in your picture. If Alchemist can take shade and LL likes her new spot, I may have to add one. Utterly amazing. Your is also one of the best pictures of LL. I can only hope mine reaches a fraction of that size in morning sun only here in Cincinnati. If these aren't already on HMF, they should be!

What beautiful pictures of Lavender Lassie and Alchemist! My goodness, these are worthy of a garden magazine cover! Truly breathtaking, Erasmus. You grow some incredible roses. I looked into Lavender Lassie, but it seems she's unwilling to rebloom without winter chill. Has anyone had rebloom from Lavender Lassie in a warm winter climate like mine? Lisa

No rebloom here for LL Lisa.

Erasmus that is a gorgeous picture of Lavender Lassie, thanks so much for showing us what theses roses are capable of becoming. I know for sure I want Felicia and Penelope, but I think I want one more to add to this area so I have some thinking to do lol. I really appreciate everyone's help and all the beautiful photographs that y'all have shared on this thread. It really has been very helpful in my decision making.

Thank you. My Lavender Lassie went up into a semi-dwarf apple tree and cascades down from the top, but I don't have a good picture of that. Have a second plant of it much smaller in part shade near my front door. In the last pic the alchymist was having an unusually soft colored day. Often there is more orange in it so I wouldn't go by that picture.

More typical colors of alchymist:

Lest it be overlooked, I still want to put in a word for Buff Beauty, one of the finest roses ever bred and strongly fragrant. Pictures don't do it justice, but:
http://rosomanes.blogspot.com/2013/04/

http://southerngarden.weebly.com/buff-beauty.html
http://www.helpmefind.com/rose/l.php?l=21.300381

Erasmus your Alchymist is gorgeous, I love the variations of colors.

Monarda I agree with you that Buff Beauty is a beautiful rose and one that I am considering. How tall does your get to be?

Im also considering Moonlight, I love the look of the white petals with the yellow center, it has a charming look to me.

According to Helpmefind, Buff Beauty grows to an arching "height of 4' to 10' (120 to 305 cm) and width of 4' to 8' (120 to 245 cm)". The flowers nod on longish pedicels. I do agree that all these hybrid musks are very hard to choose from.

I'd vote for 'Cornelia' for best pink Hybrid Musk, with its' strong musk and rose wafting scent, followed by 'Felicia' which smells of watermelon to me. . I think the dark green foliage of Cornelia makes it one of the best landscaping roses for it is a lovely plant to look at even between bloom cycles. Lyda rose is very fragrant but the prickles have stabbed me so many times I'm glad she's in my back yard and nowhere near a walkway. . They are all excellent roses. Lux.

One thing, the flowers of Felicia and Buff Beauty are quite a bit larger than most of the others, about 7 cm (c. three inches). From what I can gather Buff Beauty is 7 cm, Felicia also 7, Cornelia is 5.5 cm, and Danae also 5.