I also wanted to say, although this is my first time posting, i have lurked here forever, haha! I first started growing roses three years ago when we moved to this brand new property with a completely blank garden. Throughout the years i now have planted over thirty roses, many of which are based on suggestions here in this forum. For example, last fall I got my very first order from Palatine's (mostly Kordes roses that somehow arent readily available where i'm from). I never knew the website until i read about it here. I planted them bare-rooted and am anxiously waiting to see their blooms now.

So far one thing i'm really surprised about is how well the Austins are doing in our climate. I see a lot of negative comments about them for growers in other places, but honestly they somehow really thrive on Vancouver Island, maybe because the weather is similar to that of the UK? But i can see them all potentially getting monstrously huge very soon though, far exceeding their stated size.

I'm lucky to have a south-facing, full-sun front garden that's ideal for growing roses. Mine rarely get any BS or mildew. However right now the biggest problem i face is insects, particularly thrips/sawfly larvae that sometimes deforms the buds and always punch holes in the leaves. I usually give them big times off as long as they stay off my flowers, since they don't seem to do particularly bad damage overall anyways despite the ugly bite marks on the leaves, but this year i started to spray some insecticides because i saw a lot of my buds were bitten. I don't like the idea though. Any suggestions? Thanks everyone!

Minshen, I do think you live in a rose growing paradise--kind of like Southern Oregon, only you are much farther north, and have the moderating coastal effects. But, believe it or not, here in the southwest Idaho desert, the Austins grow monstrously huge, as does most everything else. As long as one can irrigate with a drip system, the roses love it here. There is no blackspot, either, but yes, those awful thrips show up on some of my roses, too. I've never had much luck getting rid of them, but only certain roses are affected. There are granular systemic insecticides that will kill thrips--sort of. This stuff is applied around the base of the rose and is scratched in, but it takes several weeks before it becomes effective. I've never had any luck with spinosad. This year, my Evelyn roses are showing some awful looking proliferations as the buds open. I've never seen such bad ones on her before. We've had a cool spring, but starting tomorrow, it will hit the 90s, ending with a hot wind on Saturday--and my roses aren't fully opened yet. Nothing is ever perfect for the poor gardener. I wish I had your fence to keep out deer. Diane

I went out at 5:30 this morning before the baby woke up to water and deadhead. It is so hot by her nap time that early is better.

So since I deadheaded I can share a couple pictures.

Violets pride

Plum perfect

Munstead wood

Olivia Austin

Desdamona

Kristine your Olivia is bananas gorgeous!

Just realized that last night I posted my pics and comment with a different account (one that’s automatically linked with google)... So commenting again so I don’t lose the updates on this thread!

Kristine, your Olivia is so lush and beautiful! How old is your plant?

Desdemona is also on my wish list. I ordered it last year for this spring through my local nursery but they didn’t get the supply, so I was quite disappointed, Looks very pretty and delicate in Kristine’s picture, Now I want to get it so bad,,,

Pictures of my “Edith’s Darling”. This rose seems to get such bad rap here that I really hesitated buying it last year but I was in the nursery and the blooms really spoke to me, and I don’t mind the plant being compact. The flowers don’t seem particularly small to me though —— I’ve seen much smaller ones. And for me ED is more peach/apricot than yellow.

Kristine, beautiful as usual.5:30!!!! Hats off to you, but I guess you gotta do it while you can! Minshen, gorgeous roses and welcome. I'm looking forward to seeing more of your roses. It's wonderful seeing what they're capable of in a more forgiving climate.

St Swithun opened more for me today

Olivia is lovelier than ever

My icecaps are just starting to bloom now. I love them although there’s practically no scent just because they put on HUGE amounts of flowers every year.

here’s a shot of it with the peonies. Kinda hard to tell which is which, eh? ;)

and here’s a picture of it last year In full bloom, absolutely smothered with flowers head to toe:

I don’t have any roses yet, soon! But my tree peony exploded!!

This year Alnwick’s colour is quite different from last year. Definitely more peachy pink and warmer in tone, reminding me of Abe Darby, while last year the flowers were a true medium pink.

And I have a question: On almost all my arching roses, the buds on the bottom branches close to the ground bloom first, and then all the way up. The buds on the very top are usually the last to open. Is it just me? Why is this? I thought the top ones get better sunshine... no?

I really want a Pearly Gates climbing rose and even ordered it but later canceled my order. I don’t have room for it. I was able to enjoy my sisters today.

Thought I would share since I do not have any roses to share of my own. It is so pretty and smells lovely!

Oh goodness. I've given up on trying to catch up on everyone's news. And now Houzz puts the newest comments first, so I lack context for everything! But wanted to say hello -- hope you're staying well. I'll try to post this weekend. GORGEOUS photos, everyone! So inspiring!

Minshen~ your roses are beautiful! I love your ice caps, what Is the bush size?

@Minshen (8b/9a Victoria BC) your roses are amazing, how old is your Olivia? i have 3 of them on their first years. excited to see how they do here. is Ice cap same as iceberg Rose?

@Lala Idaho Zone 7a i have a pearly gates (my only rose on second year) and she is amazing. Huge blooms!

Thanks, Lala and CeresMer.

Icecap is different from Iceberg, and in my opinion a prettier rose. The blooms are abundant and small, like iceberg, but it is more rounded and compact, and individual flowers are more cup-shaped. They are in their 4th year, and with winter cut back they are about 4’ tall and wide.

My Olivia is only in her second year, can you believe it?! It grows SO fast in my climate. It’s now about 2.5 feet tall and twice as wide.

And wow the sisters are so pretty!! I too wanted a pearly gate for my sideyard fences, but i wasn’t sure how well it was going to handle the part-sun, part-shade situation. I ended up getting a very small DA crown princess margarita instead as I heard it does fairly well with some shade. Anxiously waiting for it to climb!

Oh my word !!!!!! These photos are unreal! Everyone should be so proud of themselves. Welcome to the forum new friends , pleaseeee stick around and keep sharing your gorgeous gardens !!!

Lowe’s patio rose from last year

Emily bronte

Welcome, Minshen!!! So wonderful to have another poster...and you're from Canada too! Although our zones are quite different. :) Your roses are exceptional!!! I especially love your Olivia Rose Austin, St. Swithin and PjPII!!

Kristine ... your roses are ALL swoonsville!! Your ORA has a lovely shape to the bush, and the flowers are awesome! Munstead Woods ... drool!!!

LaLa - your 2nd picture blew me away!!

Ceres - gorgeous!!!

Lilyfinch - your first picture is unbelievable...so many blooms!!

Minshen , welcome to the group

You have some incredible roses and

your Olivia is gorgeous!

Olivia is my favorite rose

She is always in bloom and such a pretty color. I think that this is her year .

Thank you everyone for making me feel so welcomed!

Kristine — yes I love Olivia as well. Such a well rounded rose overall, and never any trouble.

rosecanadian —- yay another canadian grower! Where are you located?

Lilyfinch —— I love your Emily Bronte! So pretty and looks exactly like in the DA catalogue. And the patio rose looks superb! Such healthy foliage.

As I run out of space in my garden and my wish list keeps getting longer, I’m tempted to start growing roses in containers too. Might start this fall or next spring! Currently have my eyes on DA boscobel and princess alexandra of Kent. Anyone with experience growing these in pots?

some farther-away shots from a corner of my front garden today... I hate it when people say you can’t or shouldn’t grow roses in foundation beds, On my opinion they make foundation planting so much more fun when mixed with other perennials and good old evergreen shrubs like boxwood :D

Minshen your yard is glorious and I have roses as foundation plants and it sure looks a heck of a lot better than the ugly juniper that was there.

Here are some pretties from this morning. I'm sorry to keep showing Olivia but she is really showing off

Charles Renne Macintosh, got him as a mistake from David Austin and loved the color . For the first 2 years he was awful but finally he has settled in and looks beautiful.

Plum perfect is impressing the heck out of me

Lavender Veranda has my favorite shade of lavender

Kristine, LOVE all the shades of pink.

Welcome Minshen! You have beautiful roses!

I was sitting on the steps this morning with my coffee enjoying the incredible wafting fragrance of Marie Pavie. Here is my view looking right and left. You can see Marie Pavie peeking out on far right, the red Valentine center and then pink Monsieur Tillier against the fence. On the left photo showing, in the distance, Madame Alfred Carriere starting a second major flush. MAC is continuously blooming as she is never without a flower and blooms pretty much year round, but also has flushes. To the far left is Softee by Ralph Moore.

Kristine- amazing! How is disease (bs) resistance for you on OA?

Kristine, I totally get it! I can’t stop taking pics for Olivia too. Shes in full-on mode.

St Swithun buds are also opening fast:

My tiny own-root Crown Princess Margarita also opened its first bloom today! I love it! Hopefully it grows fast and climbs well for me.

This lily is giving me all sorts of expectations now :P

Holy cow, I needed a new pair of underwear after dealing with this garden visitor!

Beautiful. Do you know what kind?

JC -- I've been startled 3x by a huge king snake in my yard! One day it tried to go in the garage and I was trying to shoo it out with a toilet plunger (the only thing handy) and it started going up the plunger handle toward me. I think all the neighbors heard me shrieking, and it finally decided to give up on the garage. It got me later, though, when I had a friend over for a socially distant happy hour and it just appeared on the patio, nearly giving her heart failure! I'm happy to have a "good" snake on hand to eat the rodents and maybe keep the rattlers at bay ... but I'm just not a fan of snakes in my space!!!

Stephanie! What a lovely garden! I wouldn't think to partner Kangaroo Paws with roses...What a lovely combo.

White Licorice, James L. Austin peeking out, and Life of the Party (Huntington's 100th) behind.

Carding Mill, looking very pink - Yves Piaget, Love Song

Scentuous

A single Julie Andrews Rose open

10 Days Later (or maybe a week?) whole bush in bloom). Still blooming a week later.

Duchesse de Brabant in a pot -- planted 4" from Annie's Annuals

Munstead Wood

Moonlight in Paris

Dee-Lish

White Licorice and Twilight Zone. Still waiting for them to grow up to look like Diane's.

Distant Drums. I love this rose.

Ooops. This was supposed to be Koko Loco! Oh well -- this was the watermelon salad I made for Memorial Day dinner. It was DELICIOUS. Nigella Lawson recipe, more or less...tried it for the first time in London 2 years ago at the little cafe that's in the very old, Chelsea Physic Garden.

Deborah, your second photo is rose heaven. I love it!! And, it looks like what missmary is talking about in her thread, Questions Re: Rose Mass Plantings (My Dream Garden). I hope she sees your photos.

Looks great, Deborah!

Kelly, I haven't had a bit of disease or critters bother Olivia.

I soooo hate to start a new thread but we are getting up there right ? I’m not having any trouble loading but it’s a long thread .. I’ll link it here in a moment ..

please friends let’s continue!!!!

https://www.gardenweb.com/discussions/5927569/spring-new-beginnings-part-5

Wow, Deborah! What lovely roses you grow. You just successfully put carding mill on my wish list for next year with that single photo.

Minshin - I'm in Calgary, Alberta. The hail capital of Canada! LOL Oooh! Your CPM looks heaven-lit!!!

Kristine - Good heavens!!!! If my ORA had looked even a tiny, wee little bit as good as yours...it would still be here. Totally, off the charts amount of glorious flowers!! I can' believe it!!!! Ooooh!!! I've always loved the look of CRM!!! The lavender color is exquisite!!

Stephanie - beautiful yard...and your path is wonderful!!! I want that in my yard!

jc - is it a kingsnake? It sure is long!!

Deborah - holy sh*t!!!!! That would scare the bejeebers out of me!!!! It's a wonder I didn't hear you screaming from way over here!! I love your picture with the blue chair...the colors of your roses are amazing!! White Licorice is such a wonderful rose...yours does you proud! Wowza! Your Julie Andews is awesome!!! What is the fragrance like? Wonderful roses!!

@Kristine LeGault 8a pnw Your Olivia Rose Austin and Munstead Wood mingling with that delphinium is sooooo lovely. I have a baby Munstead Wood in a pot, it will be my only dark colored rose and I'm very excited for it to grow :D

Main, thanks for the kind words. I love botboth Olivia and Munstead

You chose a good one by picking Munstead. When he gets his dark color, honestly he is just glorious

And add to that his wonderful fragrance. It makes him pretty darn perfect.

His only short coming is the Bush is a bit wonky.

Carol -- thanks! I picked up that blue chair at Home Despot for a song. It's plastic. But it's pretty! I'd been looking for a nice adirondack chair for a year or so, then spied this in the exact color I would have spray painted it!

Julie Andrews, brand new, is going to be a keeper. So pretty. But not much fragrance. I thought it was supposed to be fragrant. Maybe it's young, yet.

Deborah...yeah, maybe it's young. Those adirondack chairs are sooo expensive!! I'm glad you got yours on the cheap! :)