4' would be fine...and the beauty is that 'Blue Chip' is an excellent low-growing sprawler...I have about 4 of them tucked in spaces around roses where I need a splash of blue/purple. They bloom all summer/fall and I found they are very winter hardy. Just a haircut in the Spring and they start blooming. Just a hint, though...they are lazy and might take awhile to bud out...so don't be too hasty to yank them if you think they've died. I had one that I thought didn't make it through the Winter but I over-pruned it in the Spring and it took it awhile to bounce back. It was late June/July before it woke up and then it went bonkers and started growing like its siblings to make up for lost time. An added bonus is the beautiful butterflies that will haunt your garden...

Thank you again, for those details. I can't wait for next Spring! I guess it's too late to pinch this season, but I'll be on it in March. I wish I knew what I was doing...I don't even know what half these roses are meant to look like fully grown, much less how encourage it. OT, regarding First Crush...she's a sad specimen of a plant, but her new growth and root system are vigorous. And she was $5!!! My question concerns her growth habit. I really need a very pale pink rose next to Dark Desire, but in the same long beds with New Dawn, Munstead Wood and Summer Romance. I was thinking of Earth Angel, but since I have the FC, I could use it instead. What do you think.I prefer bushy and not hugely tall. There's a 4'-5' space allotted for it, but smaller is OK, too. (I don't mind shifting things in the Spring, but welcome any tips for keeping the rootball intact. It's so much work transplanting.) We're having extended gentle rain so I'm glad I slogged through the mud yesterday getting the last two roses planted so I didn't have to overwinter them in pots. (Don't worry; the soil wasn't too wet.) Noseometer, sorry for the total hijack.

At last I have finished Trollope's The Warden and . . . for Sheri . . . who couldn't remember the 'plot' It concerns the warden, kind old Rev Mr Harding, who is in charge of the Barchester 'hospital' ie alms houses for 12 old 'beadsmen' of the city. A young radical hot-head John Bold, believes that Harding is taking too much money as his stipend from the Trust, which should go to the old men instead. People take sides, even the pensioners, not understanding Harding already gives them an allowance out of his own pocket. The London newspapers take up the story leading to innocent-in-the-ways-of-the-world Harding resolves to leave his post and live on a very small amount of money in a tiny parish. Tied in with this is the bossy Archdeacon, the kindly Bishop and the lovely Eleanor Harding who spends too much time, in that rather unhealthy Victorian way, weeping on the bosom of her Father . . . and he on hers.

My Savannahs have terrific foliage, almost look fake sometimes. The blooms were flatter and more of a vivid neon coral than I liked last year. But this spring they are looser and the color is soft and exquisite, with darker and lighter tones. It actually looks like a different rose! The scent for me has been strong and stays the same in the vase, no matter how long it takes me to change it. She has more of a baby powder/products scent to me. Beverly has been healthy with a strong scent. It did change for me in the vase but it could be just that I don't like it quite as much. Big blooms that are VERY bright!