Sorry I got WFY name wrong in header. It won't let me correct.

No, that is NOT 'Umbra'. Sorry. I bought a plant of 'Licorice Tea' from RVR last September and received some Wichurana rambler. All emails requesting a replacement were ignored until May of this year, and I was promised a replacement plant. I'm still waiting. I've given up any hope of receiving the correct plant. Why they have such a problem with inventory management I will never know.

Could it have something to do with their contract grower? It's really a shame.

I have gotten many great roses from RVRs and my new not Umbra will probably be another one. I think I will consider this my free rose, since I bought 4 roses and try to go pick up another correctly named one. I did call over this am and Scott was not there yet. Janet said they must be out of Umbra then. What I don't understand is how Juan could grab the rose given to me as Umbra (although it did have an Umbra name tag and the sharpie OK written on it) and not realize it is not even a gallica. My Alaska location was even too cold for gallicas and I could tell once I got the bands set out on the patio. I understand Janet cannot do everything at this point. That detail that buyers want the correct rose requires better inventory management I agree. Scott may be able to get on top of this I hope. My last gallica order from RVRs 2018 was all correctly named. I do hope to get Umbra someday, and I hope you get Licorice Tea back, Paul. It appears to be out of stock ATM.

Maybe their contract grower is part of it, Jeri. If they let me go back into the growing area, I have a dream I could find an Umbra and a Licorice Tea for Paul.

Now where will I put the no ID rose?

What is OK? Oklahoma?

Oklahoma @ HMF

I don't know if the nametag really says OK for sure Belle. I tried to post a closer up photo but houzz would not load it. OK rose has more stem prickles, I think than the rose I was given.

SO sorry about all this Sheila! I have to say you have the best attitude about it! I once got Solfaterre by mistake instead of Alexander Hill Gray, and it turned out to be an amazing rose and I am actually thrilled with S. I hope it turns out OK for you.

Paul, you are a prince to help with the ID. :-)

Perma, that is a great rose. Sam Truck even tho it is called Solfaterre that made me look up.

Shiela, i am sorry about Umbra. i hope you get the right rose eventually but i am so happy that you got SduAmi. It is a beautiful rose and i love it here so much. i wish i can post pics of the blooms but it is getting so hard for me to be on Houzz or post pics.

jin

I tried a photo yesterday too, Jin, and it wouldn't load for me either.

:(

here I had good luck yesterday. At least on the second try! LOL!

I've been able to post by reducing the size/resolution of the images .. but on my last try, the images wouldn't post at all

I had a great experience at Rogue Valley Roses today. They are hoping, as I am, that I got Umbra on my Tuesday pick up. I brought it back to show Scott and Janet. Scott offered a free rose and mystery rose which turned out to add Enchantress Tea and Tuscany Superb in addition to letting me keep the rose tagged Umbra.

They were very gracious and spoke very positively of Paul Barden roses. Scott showed me favorites of his including Oshun and Treasure Trail. He also said they are propagating Licorice Tea and hope to have some by the year end. All exciting.

Scott said they are improving the web site and planning for more propagation on site. They really spoke highly of Juan who is a long term employee. I feel very positive about what they are doing. He is trying to get things organized. I really admire them for hanging in there through some challenges.

Well, my "Umbra" has bloomed and it is not Umbra. I looked at the RVR inventory and the rose right before Umbra is "Ulrich Brunner Fils". I wonder if it is that Hybrid Perpetual. I consulted my Vintage book and HMF and I think I can live with this. The rose has good ratings although it was described as vulgar by at least one person. Of course it is already planted, so I've decided to love the one I'm with and leave it there. Umbra is listed as out of stock at RVRs, but I'll have to give it another try in the future. Thank you for helping, Paul. I'll probably call to let RVRs know but many mislabeled plants have turned out great. This one if it is UBF could be one of them. Time will tell.

Not Umbra. Maybe Ulrich Brunner Fils. HP

Shiela, it is still a beautiful rose. I never heard of it but yes, you should get Umbra. I hope this time RVR sends you a correct one.

And your collections grows :)

Now, i am going to check out the UBF on hmf.

Shiela, you score on UBF !!! Its a beauty and it is scent , color and no thorns and and and......

Now I've learned about a new rose! Thornless and fragrant! It's hard to go wrong with that. :-))

I am still planning on the real Umbra when RVRs restocks. It looks gorgeous! Rook is wonderful and Won Fang Yon will bloom soon in it's pot.

You are always on the right thread Paul. Those photos are wonderful!

Wow! They are all gorgeous—DR is a stunning color! Yes, you can post these on any old thread you like! 😊

I once got the wrong rose from RVR, but it turned out to be a blessing in disguise.

I like the rose they sent me (Cl Mrs Herbert Stevens) better than the rose I originally ordered.

They offered me a replacement and I turned them down. I'm happy with the rose I got.

I too am not going to complain. I have gotten great mislabeled roses from RVRs. I bought 4, and they gave me 6. I am just going to try for Umbra again when it gets back in stock. They did order them alphabetically when I was there, and this rose was just previous to the real Umbra's spot which was already sold out. I'll hope for the best next try.

Paul, gorgeous roses...whatever thread they appear on! I love viewing photos of your roses which are unreleased in commerce. I just ordered 2 Dakota Redwings from RVR. One and a spare. I'll have to wait and see what I receive since Sheila was told RVR is actually out of stock.... The photos of DR tell me its one of the most sublime red roses ever created. And that's not flattery.

Sheila, welcome to the RVR Umbra wait list! Now I'm in good company. :-) Care to join me on the Allegra waitlist, too? And the Rook list, in case of the demise of my current uprooted darling, and the Etienne list?

Carol

P.S. What cultivar is in Roseseek's photo? Wow! Love the on site RVR photos, Sheila!

Those are Grey Pearl, Sheila.

Thank you, Kim! Carol

You're welcome!

Carol, I am so happy for you! I was told Diablo Hawk was out of stock, and it is another one of Paul's that looks great. I'm sure you will love DR. Yes, I'll have to join you on the waiting list, as well as for Allegra and Etienne. Here's hoping they do their own propagation for these. I wish they kept all the Barden roses together so they didn't get mixed up with the riff raff like my maybe vulgar new rose. I'm hoping I will love it too, but I'm going to have to work at it.

I'll be joining you gals on the wait list, but mine will be for Joyce Barden. Do they really let you know when the rose is in? I've been on their wait list for quite a while for this rose and never heard from them, so I signed up again. Does anyone else grow Joyce? I did buy Etienne from them in 2018, re-potted for the summer and planted in the fall, and it has taken off this spring. :)

I have had them email me when a wait listed rose was available.

Well, my "Umbra" bloomed - and its definitely not Umbra. Sooooo bummed about this! I had really been looking forward to beautiful Umbra. My "Not-Umbra" looks just like Sheila's, I agree quite probably Ulrich Brunner Fils. A nice rose but ... Not Umbra!! Oh well, I guess I'm joining the wait list too. I just don't understand Rogue. I have been mail ordering roses since we moved to our house 26 years ago, and Rogue is the only company that has sent me mis-identified roses - and lots of them! Do they just not keep records, is it just total lack of organization, or ...? I want to support them, and they offer a lot of roses you can't get elsewhere - except when you order, you never know if you are actually going to get the rose you paid for! SO frustrating. Here's hoping that what they sent me as "Etienne" is the right rose. It has unopened buds, fingers crossed ...

I'm sending you a sad and mad face. :(( I had high hopes with the new helper, but it will probably take some time to sort things out, especially as they take so long to bloom. Paul, that pic of DR is spectacular. Does this rose need perfect sun?

I have had quite a few correctly named roses from RVRs too, Frances. I'm hoping your Etienne is correct. Umbra does appear to be sold out and the rose they sent us was located right before the rose we wanted. My rose had an Umbra label with an OK written in magic marker on it. I never had seen that before.

When I first moved here, I went over there to pick up a Marianne and bought another 25 or so roses I wanted by wandering through the bands sorted alphabetically on platforms/tables. I really think the lovely owner's age is a factor here. She has Scott now trying to get things organized.

They really don't allow wandering through like I did that first time. An employee is sent back to find the rose for us and possibly they are not all fanatics like we are. I seem to have gotten great mislabels for the most part.

They also get shipments in from a grower or growers I've seen on the grounds too, that have nametags in the little pots. They were offloaded close to the entry. I guess it has been too much to handle at times.

Tooling around in Bakersfield two summers ago, I found a contract grower who had their standard list of stuff. I asked if there were any other "more interesting" roses available and he stated he propagates for RVR and had "much of their catalog" there. Nice guy, but not reliable. He doesn't answer the phone and never responds to emails. He will custom bud, but can't guaranty the cleanliness of his stocks, even though he has many stock plants for stocks of Huey and Fortuniana. He said his father had obtained them and then passed away, so it was him and his mom with a few employees. Looking at the place on Google Maps, they seem greatly reduced in size.

Oh Sheila, of course I too have had correctly labeled roses from Rogue! I hope I wasn't being unkind - I really don't mean to be. Its just, you know, its so frustrating when you spend endless hours all winter planning and dreaming based on a particular rose, and then it turns out not to be the right plant! Really, I was just venting a bit to a sympathetic audience! Like I said, I DO want to (and in fact try to) support RVR and what they do.

I know, Frances. It is so heartbreaking. Kim had a very helpful comment above about the man in Bakersfield. It sounds like that contract grower was the son of a man who knew what he was doing, but the son is not reliable. So sad there are so many people like that and others give out with age. That is what I was reacting to because some people have gotten so worked up about this topic. These small growers are barely hanging on and have so many rare treasures. I hope they can transition to a new generation successfully. There likely is not much money for all their efforts.

Exactly. I don't know how they do what they do. It's clearly a labor of love. When I talk to all the folks at HCR, one just knows they're totally into roses and Burling is just the best. Peter Schneider has just devised a way to at least make a living from his passion.