I wonder about a cream or white rose. If you are Southeast it would need blackspot resistance I suppose. I just got Trinity (Tea) and Jesse Hildreth (Tea) and I know rosepetals has them.

I don’t grow either one, but I think it depends on what you’re looking for. MK looks more orange and has very small blooms. I think it might be healthier than Boscobel, though. MK will be a smaller plant than Boscobel. Boscobel has bigger blooms with lots of petals. It leans more towards the pink side of salmon while Margo Koster more orange. MK=smaller blooms but probably more of them. Boscobel =Larger petal packed blooms, but not as many of them, on a larger bush. Lisa

I read it as wants something in between the two, but you are probably right, Lisa, it is one or the other. CC could get both, then add the cream rose in the middle too. :-)

Correction, meant I need to choose one of them and am having a hard time deciding which one to choose. Thank you ladies for the imput. Very informative of Lisa, and if I had enough room, I love your idea Shella. I might have to see if I could maybe get both in this spot, as I will be having some white shades of plantings in background. Ty

I have her and love her blooms. They don't really look orange they look shell white with pinkish orange trimming. Like a mini mme. Pierre Oger, who I have much loved and wanted for so long. Get her and I don't think that you will regret it!

So appreciate the imput; Alana8a helped me alot. I wanted to make sure there were pink notes in Margo b/c the photos vary from plain orange and some are salmon pink dappled with white. She's the one I need, but ratdogheads, love your first hands on with Boscobel, and am going to find a spot for that beauty. Thank you all for the informative details, sooo thankful to get it from each of you. You all have made my day!

I have a plant of Margo Koster which has grown in our garden since my (now deceased) FIL, who was born in 1913, was a child. It is a fabulous, impossible to kill (I have dug up the original one 3 times and "moved" it, but it came back in its original position each time) rose, if you like smallish polyanthas.

What I really like about it is that it color sports. Mine was the normal orange towards coral color. I now have stable (at least for 10 years) Koster rose bushes in pure white, and dark raspberry, as well as the original color. One of the orange/coral colored bushes (I have 5 total Koster bushes, ALL of which are from the original oldest one) occasionally sports to raspberry, and I just let it - the colors are pretty together.

Jackie

Now you all have me interested in Margo! How does she do in the cold?

I have no real BS pressure but I do have PM pressure in my garden. Boscobel has proved to be quite mildew resistant. It has remained well behaved in my med climate with no octopus tendencies. I would describe its fragrance as mild. Colour is affected by seasonal conditions with more of the salmony colour evident during warm and sunny periods and more of the pink colour attested during the cooler seasons. Mild signs of chlorosis are evident in my very alkaline soil.

I don't grow Margo.

Ratdogheads, I've never been able to overwinter any of the "Koster" family of roses in various spots in the yard, so I'd consider them roses for zone 6 and higher (sadly). I've tried MK at least 4 times and she's never survived over the winter.

Cynthia

At one time I had three of them. None lasted more than a year or two. I miss Mothersday a lot.

Now Nik has me interested in Boscobel! Any DA that remains mannerly in a Mediterranean climate is worth investigating to me. I also have high powdery mildew pressure here. I don’t mind salmon color, but orange is out for me. Ever cut Boscobel for the vase, Nik? Most DA’s aren’t very long lasting, cut. The ones I grow aren’t, anyway. Lisa

Just one thing about Margo . . . What is the pH of your soil/water? Because I've had several of those older Polys, with similar breeding, go chlorotic, and then go Tennies Up. They've got a lot of Multiflora "blood" and they prefer slightly acidic conditions.

Here's a pic of mine. Color is alittle lighter than usual. She is stressed here as I just moved her from my shade garden, use to by rose garden until the trees took over, but she's tough for me. Mine came from Burlington. I got her planted in sun now and she rewarded me before winter frost by giving me a bloom :)

None of the Kosters ever looked chlorotic for me. In general, polys seem to have enough other 'blood' to be OK.

I got my Margo last year from Burling and she was a very slow grower. I finally put her in the ground for winter and have wondered if I should have tried to keep her as a pot pet instead as she alone of all my roses experienced die-back. I think if you can get a larger specimen she might do OK in a slightly colder area, but agree Z6 is probably the limit generally. I finally put her back in a pot as she struggled all summer in a low water area. She looks cute in a pot, however and seems to thrive in one. I had her planted with Cecile Brunner, Fire Opal and Orleans polys which complemented her well.