Oooh, those are gorgeous, Flowers. Just stunning in that wonderful color. So you have two John Cabots? Do they both repeat well? And where can I buy one? (like I have room). Well, there goes Brother Cadfael, I guess. Are these two own root, and did they grow fast? I'm sorry for so many questions, but I've never paid much attention to John Cabot before, but your roses really grabbed it fast.

Pippa, do you live close to my area? We certainly are semiarid and zone 7. I think John Cabot fits your bill. Diane

Diane, I have 4, it roots so easily. Three of them, including the one by the stump, are just pieces I stuck in the ground. They do repeat well, with a little rest between flushes. The first flush is the biggest. I can only imagine how well it would do in a warmer zone. The one in the last pic was blown down in a wind storm shortly after that pic was taken last summer. I cut all the canes to about 1' and it already looks pretty much like it did in that photo. Each individual bloom is not spectacular, but the bush as a whole is eye catching. I'll post a close up of the blooms. Let me know if you want cuttings. You, too, pippa.

Flowers, that's beautiful. I checked HMF, and out of all the photos, I saw only two of John Cabot that approached yours in beauty. And those roses were grown in Russia and Austria. I'd love to accept your offer of cuttings, but I doubt I'd have a rose remotely like yours (if I could get a cutting to grow). This is alkaline desert, and I'll bet ol' John likes an acid soil and more alpine climate. Just guessing. Your photos belong on HMF. Diane

That rose is just delicious.... who cares about fragrance when it looks as good as that one... I thought 'John Davis' was good in photos, but now I see this one and I don't know which I prefer.... that Canadian lady produced some great roses...

What an incredible display of color.

Wow...that it spectacular. I'm fine with moderate fragrance especially with a rose that beautiful because my main issue is that I just want my roses to have a nice scent when I go to smell one because it's always such a let down when I see a rose and rush over to smell it and there's just nothing. I would love a cutting but I have never rooted a rose cutting before. I have rooted lavender before in the Spring. I have rooting hormone I assume it works the same.

I also think the color of John Cabot would go so well with some of the other roses I have been considering for the new garden, like Felicia and Ballerina and Marie Pavie and light pink Austin's.

You also have me thinking that John C could work at my vacation place too which is high altitude dry zone 5. I eventually want a garden there but it's a harsh environment and anything there needs to be tough and able to grow on its own when I'm not there. Shasta Daisies and poppies have done well there so far and can just do their thing during the long stretches they are alone there.

Diane yes I'm not too far from you at all :)

Pippa, if you'll click on my name, it'll take you to a page where you'll see a 'message' option. You can send a private message to me with your address or box #. I've never successfully started cuttings either, except by sticking them in the ground. I can send them now, or if you'd rather wait, I can send them in the spring. There is a Rose Propagation and Exchange forum here where there are knowledgable folks who can advise you.

Diane, my soil is hard as cement, rocky and alkaline. I have enough boulders that would reach from here to Boise laid end to end that all came out of holes for plants. HMF's description of JC isn't accurate in color, remontancy or size.

Marlorena, you are right about John Davis. From every photo and description, JDavis looks like the better rose, and very possibly is, but for me, he has always stayed much smaller, and blooms much less. It starts easily, also, by just poking a stem into the ground. I have started 2 others from my first purchased plant. It is the most wonderful shade of pure, soft pink. It might also be a good choice for Pippa, but mine are not good examples.

Thank you, Kristine. You are always kind.

Flowers, it sounds like you would have had better luck starting Augusta Luise by pushing that cutting into your soil. No more fancy fol de rol, or whatever, involving babying the thing. I think I'll try the "push in ground" technique, too. Which rose do you recommend for this? I can't wait. Seriously. Diane

Ha! I think you're right, Diane. Since Augusta is French, that would be the way to go. I've been told that French roses like alkaline soil. Can't get any more alkaline than this sticky gluey stuff. I wish I'd thought of that. Oh, wait - is she French or German? I have no idea what German roses like, but wrapping the roots in a little bratwurst couldn't hurt.

AL is very German, flowers, and named after a German Countess who was the great great grandmother (or something like that) of half the royalty in Europe--before Victoria came along. I'm not sure AL would stoop to bratwurst--she probably ate French food. I didn't realize you had such lousy soil, probably worse than mine (sorry). We need to relieve Cori Ann or Lisa of their dirt. Diane

You are a treasure trove of information, Diane. Our lousy soil is probably very much the same. Now the question is, what kind of dirt do German Countesses prefer? This might be a question for that other treasure trove of information - the kind of information that hurts my head - our friend in Chicago. I'm going back through my notes to see if I have anything on German roses. Did you amend your soil any differently for Augusta than you do for any other roses when you planted her?

Yes, I am a font of useless trivia, Flowers. All my roses get the same amendments and same watering schedule. I don't think Austins or German roses need any extra of anything, plus they won't get it, anyway. I'm still puzzled that you would have alkaline soil with all those pine needles and decaying trees and stumps that must have abounded in the area where you garden is. That stuff is all acid, but I'm not doubting you. I need to study soils more, I think. Diane

I'm as bewildered as you about this soil not being the softest, fluffiest, most friable garden soil, perfect for roses, after decades, or more, of undisturbed, layer upon layer of naturally mulched forest floor. But, it is not. Biggest shock of all was finding that this soil is impenetrable with anything less than a pick axe. I have also learned that pine needles, though acidic themselves, do not make the soil acidic. Neither does pine bark mulch make the soil acidic, according to the following. https://s3.wp.wsu.edu/uploads/sites/403/2015/03/wood-chips.pdf. That really surprises me. I wish this were not true. I wish my soil could be made more acidic by simply mulching.

Pippa, I just realized I've taken this thread off on a tangent. I'm surprised there have been no other suggestions for you. There are a lot of roses, especially old garden roses, that would work very well for what you want. It sounds like you have space for more than one.

Lol...I'm perfectly fine with the tangent it's all so interesting. It's funny how you just can't predict what your soil will be like. Before I started removing the sod at my new house I was positive that it would be very difficult to remove and the soil beneath would be a nightmare. I put off even starting the project because I was so sure that getting the soil up to snuff would be a huge project even if I could manage to get the sod out. But to my surprise the sod is a cinch to remove and the soil beneath is truly fantastic...worms everywhere and everything I've planted so far flourishes. I feel like the ground is thanking me for removing the grass and planting flowers instead lol. As much as I've learned about soil it will always be a mystery to me in the end though. Wherever I predict great soil it's awful and vice versa.

I apologize for going astray from the thread subject matter. It's so easy to do. You are lucky to have sod that removes easily. Had it been in place for very long? I think I mentioned that the soil around our sod is like cement, plus it's been there for years. The sod is heck to remove. My flower beds that have been amended for years are pretty good, but the newer areas are not so nice. Plus, if you dig down for a good rose planting hole, the earth gets cement like at that point, and there may be caliche, too (sort of like kiln fired clay). I wish I had roses to suggest to you, but I can't think of any cascading ones that I grow. Colette doesn't grow that way, and Young Lycidas doesn't get big enough. Diane

The weird thing is I think the sod has been there for decades...which is part of why I thought it would be a pain to remove. I did use my favorite soil amending products that I use on all plants over the grass a couple of times in the year before starting sod removal but I can't imagine it worked that quickly that it could have caused that much soil improvement. It's called John and Bob's and I use it on all plants to improve the soil instead of fertilizing them, and I think the grass was treated twice with it, but it just doesn't seem possible to me that it's the cause because I think of it as a long term soil improving product and I don't feel like it was long enough.