Bella, what an incredible rose, I see why that is your favorite.

Tiffandrew, wow incredible GC, what a color.

My favorite, wow. Hard to choose but probably Munstead wood. Tomorrow it may be a different choice

Mine is boscobel..

And easy does it .. might change my mind in a fortnight:)

And Julia child

So hard to choose I’ll just pick one favorite out of several. Here is Lavender Crush

The color works with everything else, including Jude and Grand Dame here

This was the plant when I took it home from the nursery. Other than when hit by hard freeze, it has never stopped growing and blooming

I have always wanted a true deep royal purple rose, and Lavender Crush is the only one that ever produces such a color for me. It strong growing, always in bloom, and has spectacular fragrance, too. Hard to believe such an exotic color and amazing scent comes on such a big and easy plant. I tried Intrigue, Ebb Tide, Big Purple and Twiight Zone, and while they all had some nice blooms none were nearly as purple as Lavender Crush.

Hey Ben, is Lavender Crush a climber? It sure s a gorgeous color.

R pnwz, I adore my Easy does it

Kristine,

Yes, Lavender Crush is a climber, vigorous and strong growing.

One of the prettiest purples I have seen.

Mine was Earthsong:

Wow! Thanks everyone for posting beautiful pics. Keep them coming.

Ben T your Lavender Crush is gorgeous! Unfortunately mine is not going to make it in this area - hot and humid midAtlantic. It is defoliated to the tips with BS and anthracnose and I don't like to spray. So sad because it is the best lavender I have seen.

Love all the pics above. Wish I had room for a Boscobel--fine-looking rose!

Hard to have a favorite when the excessive heat and the Japanese Beetles destroy all my rose blooms, but it looks like the JBs have left now, and two days of rainy overcast weather has encouraged several roses to start blooming again. Since Munstead Wood has the most buds opening up (8 of them!), it is my favorite at the moment--though it usually wins in most circumstances. Can't get enough of those gorgeous blooms.

Haven't taken a photo all summer, so we will have to settle for last years MW:

Kate

Kate, What a yummy picture of Munstead . I dont care what color phase he is going through, each one is beautiful.

Lkayet

Sorry to hear your Lavender Crush is not doing well. I also live in a very hot and humid climate, but I do spray fungicides like clockwork, so hard for me to tell which ones could go no spray (my guess is pretty much nothing could be no spray in my climate except 2KO).

This winter and spring were rough, many dying back to the ground, not experiencing a spring flush or much of one on many, and loosing a few potted roses. However, only one did not experience any winter damage and has been growing and blooming well and that is Eglantyne.

Wow, Dave!! - that's a huge bush!!! You grow it very well!

Kate - that is an incredible picture...maybe the best picture ever taken of a rose. Holey moley!!!

Jim - your EarthSong is brilliant...all summer long!

BenT - that is a wonderful purple!!! You are so right...I'll never find that color...unless I buy Lavender Crush. LOL

R - your Julia Child is a stunning bloomer!!! Wow!

Kristine - So many MW blooms!!!

Tiffandrew - Those are some huge, vivid blooms!! :)

Bellarosa - Your Crazy Love is one I've never heard of before! I want one!!! :)

Mine is a choice between 2 roses. Which one to pick...hmmm....

I guess I'll pick Chandos Beauty. I love the fragrance!!! And it gets a ton of blooms!!

Carol

So many beautiful roses here! Your Lavender Crush might be my favorite of all those pictured here, Ben. I can’t believe people were finding it at Walmart. My Walmart is a total loser in the rose department. I asked once why they let so many of their plants die, and they said they are only allowed to give a certain amount of water, and no more. I guess even Walmart has to follow the water restriction rules.

I too, love Boscobel, but I haven’t had it long enough to declare it my favorite, yet. Yours is wonderful, R pnwz!

Crazy Love looks great, but Sweet Mademoiselle May have scared me away from orange roses forever! Lol. I’ll just enjoy yours.

Munstead always looks good to me. Yours are both lovely, Kristine and Kate!

Tiffandrew, your Golden Celebration is worth celebrating! It makes me want one, but I know it grows enormously huge! I love it!

Jim, your Earth Song has been blowing me away with its performance this season, gorgeous!

Dave, your Eglantyn is amazing! I’ve always wanted her, but I hear she wouldn’t be happy in my climate. Yours is just beautiful!

Carol, I knew you’d pick Chandos Beauty! She’d be my pick of your roses, too! She’s just so full, and unblemished! I love it! It does remind me of a few of my favorite cream colored roses.

I can hardly pick just one, but I don’t want to cheat by choosing more. It’s between Princess Charlene de Monaco and Mel’s Heritage. (That’s not really cheating, right? I’m going to pick one. I’m just thinking “aloud”, here.)

I chose.........

MEL’S HERITAGE!!! How could I not? This amazing rose gave me hundreds if not a thousand blooms late May-June. I wasn’t able to deadhead them, yet he’s covered with blooms again now. I LOVE this monster of a rose! Lisa

Bella Rose,

Much to my surprise, my favorite rose this year is one that already started to impress me last year as a spring planted gallon from Chamblee's. It is a climber, Climbing Pink Don Juan.

It's praises are considerable: rich medium/deep pink, 4" , 30 petaled, 3-4 per cluster, long lasting, non-nodding, non-crisping nor wilting, and very fragrant blooms. The most impressive point about Climbing Pink Don Juan, is its continual blooming trait, not long flushes with periods of no blooms, but constant flower production. This is remarkable for any rose, yet alone a climber, and a young, immature one to boot!

Climbing Pink Don Juan was tip hardy with no protection last year, it's first winter here. Cane length has been 5', much longer canes are expected. Flowers come in clusters on short, about 8" laterals.

The only fault I have found so far in CPDJ is that it is not black spot proof, but it is in the top 25% of BS resistant roses in my garden, just behind Quietness and ahead of Julia Child, in this regard.

Another point about Climbing Pink Don Juan is unfortunately, it is only available from Chamblee's, to the best of my knowledge. As many of you know Chamblee's has been up for sale. Mark Chamblee was hoping to retire. I do not know the nursery's current status, but when it goes, Climbing Pink Don Juan may become a near-relic, commercially.

Moses

Mine are at this time:

ETRUSKA

Enchend Mariner

Love Song

lilyfinch ur Bathsheba is pretty..I have never heard of this one. Your picture of the bush is better than what I see online. Its almost making me want one but now I want only strong smelling roses. Is this the right one then?

Mrs BR Cant... I've had others that are beautiful and fragrant and have a nice bush shape, but most of them are affected by thrips or are still small. The missus has been great this year. Photos from just a minute ago...

Another one of my favorites this year was Miracle on the Hudson (MOTH)

Ooohh eeee, what beauties.

That gorgeous Chandros Beauty, love that one Carol.

Bathsheba, wow! What a color. I wish it wasnt a climber. I look forward to see how that one does Lilyfinch.

Geeze, Mels Heritage , look at that baby go . Got to love a rose that gives you that many gorgeous blooms Lisa.

Ben, OMG, Lavender Crush, even the name of that rose is delicious .The color is stunning, for me, I wish it wasnt a climber. I have no room for a climber .

Dave., Pretty, pretty Eglantine, wow. What a beauty. It says a lot about that rose that it is thriving when not much else is .

Earthsong , what a healthy gorgeous rose . With all of your rain it is proving that it is a hardy beautiful rose Jim.

Boscobel, this one is on my list

The fact that you chose this as your favorite says a lot about this rose, it is beautiful R pnw.

Mrs RB Cant, another fabulous rose that is dearly loved. Yours is beautiful Margaret.

Crazy Love is crazy beautiful. Personally, I love orange roses .

I can't wait to see how this one does Bella.

Love song is su h a yummy color. It was hard to choose one wasn't it Diana?

Tiffandrew, Holy Moly, I adore your Golden Celebration, what a fabulous yellow. I heard that it is a big healthy rose .

Climbing pink Don Juan sounds so beautiful Your description of it sounds like it is a real beauty Moses

Munstead wood, Kate, we picked the same rose and there is a reason for that, color. That magnificent rich color. It sure isnt for the bush itself

Everyone's picks are so beautiful

Such gorgeous pictures!

Kashmir has done well despite the unforgiving heat. With my limited sun, harsh winters, and high black spot pressure I am limited in what I can grow, so this intensely colored, many petaled, disease free, vigorous rose is a delight. It has not had as much of a fragrance as it did before planting, but I have high hopes that it can regain its fragrance somehow.

Wow! Pretty red.

I just heard back from Hortico znd they may have Chandros Beauty. She said to check back this fall

Wouldn't that be cool if they do

Kristine, Chandros Beauty on my to get list! Yay!

Thank you, Kristine! Chandos Beauty is at the very top of my ‘want but can’t have’ list! I blame Carol for flooding GardenWeb with so many irresistible pictures of it!

Lilyfinch - I love your Bathsheba!!! And I would love to have a rose that smells like honey! Sounds like a winner!

Diana - oh swoon!!!! Your Etruska is sublime!!!! I want that rose!!!! Really cool spider too! :)

jwusauk - Oh wow!!! Your Kashmir is exquisite!!!!! I looked it up...and it doesn't have fragrance...darn.

It's 34C today (hottest August 9th in our history) (tomorrow will be 37C/97F hottest day ever in Calgary)...and Chandos Beauty never stops blooming, and the flowers are still perfect! And the fragrance is incredible!!

Carol

Carol, thank you! When I first got Kashmir, the blooms had a wonderful, sweet, cherry-like smell. I don't know whether the plant has just gotten the smell fried out of it by the 90 degree temps or what. But the blooms did once smell wonderful, and Ping Lim actually recommended Kashmir to me as a fragrant rose good for my location, so I swear I will get this rose to smell again!!

I told them at Hortico that there are a bunch of us looking for Chandros beauty

jwusauk - Cherry fragrance!!!! Oh my sweet goodness...I want that rose...although I'll never find it.

Here's another picture of Chandos Beauty blooming in 35C/95F temps. And the fragrance!!!

That is sooooo pretty, Carol!!! That is rose perfection!

Oh my goodness, Carol. That is beyond beautiful!! Now I want Chandos Beauty, too. Though she would probably be a black spotted mess here, I’m gathering from HMF. Sad.

Thanks, everyone! This bloom is handling the 95F temps we're having....no crisping. Plus it's been blooming non-stop (with lots of roses) for at least a month. And the fragrance is divine! We don't get black spot here...so I can't chime in on that.

Carol

I'm bad at following directions, so sorry - out of 130 roses, I HAVE to list two instead of just one.

This year, I am somewhat surprised to see that my favorites are oldies ... but goodies. With many special new additions, and fabulous DA's, and some rare and hard to get - my two fav's this year are those that can be found anywhere - Crimson Glory (#1), and Fragrant Cloud (#2)

My criteria is:

1. M U S T be fragrant, VERY fragrant

2. Must have dealt well with the crazy heat we have

3. Must have good, solid repeat

4. Must have healthy foliage

5. Must have beautiful bloom form

These two meet all those and more.

Crimson Glory - I realize I keep taking bush shots and need to get some individual bloom shots, as they are fabulous. The repeat is intense - it's always covered in blooms, of gorgeous, classic HT form. Fragrance is heavenly. Bush is very healthy. This is the only rose I have 3 of.

Fragrant Cloud - form is even better than CG, blooms are voluptuous, scent is strong (maybe a little odd for some - I wasn't sure I liked it at first, but it has definitely grown on me). The intense deep orange color, while maybe loud for some, is breathtaking to me. The only thing that lags a bit is repeat is slower than CG. And the only other issue is, what crazy person named a bright orange rose "cloud"? Shouldn't it be white?!

Lavender Crush looks amazing

I love your criteria! That's what I want, except for #1. I'm getting rid of most of my Austins...and will probably get rid of all of them over the years. Love that picture of FC!!! And I loooove bright, in your face, colors!!

Fragrant Cloud is stunning . I like the in your face orange

Rachel , actually in the heat , this is the color! I imagine Bathsheba will have that darker color come fall. I’ll be sure to update . It’s an excellent rose !

I have chandos beauty also from hortico ! But mine is just growing. Gotta show it some motivational photos from carols garden ! Time to feed again also

Lilyfinch - I'm sure yours will be amazing in no time. :)

Carol

My favorite new rose is Soul Sister - love love its color! Thanks Lilyfinch for recommending this rose earlier in the year. Now, I understand why you highly recommend it.

Karen R , your Crimson Glory is beautiful! My dad has two Cl Crimson Glory and it is a truly gorgeous rose. I’m glad you showed the whole rose bush too, it’s nice to see overall shape and size.