Linrose, I don't know from where you got your (blanket) info on Austins, but the many I've been growing so far are certainly neither divas nor stingy with their blooms nor any less healthy than most other modern roses. Most of them are certainly a lot healthier, more vigorous and floriferous than many HT's, making fantastic garden plants. On the three you asked about: Lady Emma is a continuous bloomer with superb citrus-fruity scent similar to Jude the Obscure's, but a bit sweeter and more complex, absolutely delicious. Well behaved and wide growing, and in our temperate English climate practically evergreen (or ever-bronze, given the lovely color of its foliage). Catches some BS without spray but does not defoliate, and just keeps blooming and blooming. Quite amazing. This rose is a must for its beauty, scent and performance. My Tea Clipper is entering its third season. Its repeat was not great in its first year, but improved noticeably in its second. The blooms are very beautiful when they first open, but they fade teribly fast, within a day or two, into a wishy-washy color, ending up a very light, washed-out yellow-beige with floppy petals. That has been disappointing. Scent is tea. The plant is enormously vigorous with few thorns and quite healthy, even in my no-spray garden. Teasing Georgia - exquisitly beautiful and very healthy with an overwhelming display of flowers in the spring and early summer. Repeat in its first year is not so good, but will improve very noticeably every year. Lovely sweet tea scent. A superb, classic rose. Some more Austins I can recommend for performance: William Shakespeare 2000 Molineux Golden Celebration Sharifa Asma Heritage Abe Darby Crocus Rose Fair Bianca Prospero Lady of Megginch Radio Times Pat Austin Claire Austin Christopher Marlowe Jubilee Celebration The Ingenious Mr. Fairchild Sophy's Rose (not much scent) The Dark Lady (BS susceptible but superb bloomer) The Prince (a smallish plant but a good bloomer) The Herbalist Portmeirion A Shropshire Lad Ann Boleyn (flowers blow fast though) Jude the Obscure is also a good, reliable bloomer (albeit not a bloom machine) with fantastic scent and good health. In my experience, Austins tend to perform better when grafted. DA in Tyler TX sells the biggets, best quality plants. Hope this helps, Andrea

Kate, My largest TG plant is 13' high and 9' wide, but that is counting some new canes at the top. I'd say most of the plant is about 9x9'. The octopus canes at the top are bigging to arch over. It is not a sprawly gangly plant, but mostly makes a well-branched sturdy plant, just a nice shape and covered in blooms when it blooms. My smaller TG plant is not as happy in its location and is about 4x4'. My Dublin Bay plant is not grown on a support and it is about as wide as TG though not as tall. My Golden Celebration plant is about 6x6' I think. TG is bigger than Eden here, taller and wider. I just don't think TG would need a pillar and would overwhelm one. My The Pilgrim plant is so much sprawlier, but a friend's plant of it was about an 8x8' globe shaped thing. I wonder if Danae would be a good yellow for you. The blooms are not 1/4 as beautiful as those Austins, IMO, but they are pretty and the plant is very blackspot resistant. Danae has more flexible canes also. Good vigor but doesn't get as huge here. The color fades quickly though. Buff Beauty is often yellow. Linda

My TG is freestanding and about 6 years old. It wants to put out long floppy canes, and never really builds up much substance to hold the branches up, so it takes over more real estate than it might otherwise because it doesn't grow UP much on its own without support. You might try tying her to the fence and letting her grow sideways against that support. I've attached a picture from a few years ago, but even this didn't capture the whole bush. The cane at center left shoots up to about 6' and it's one of the few strong enough to support itself. I routinely chop the canes on her down to about 3' after blooming, and it does seem to be one of the Austins that likes harsh treatment. Still, I find that the pruning helps her bush out but she wants to bloom on long canes. Trying to keep her anything below say 4' would be a challenge and you might not get much bloom. The good thing about your combination is that Pierre de Ronsard (Eden) is a pretty stiff upright rose for me even without support, and they wouldn't interfere too much with the vertical space for each other. Eden would rise above the TG tangle, and you'd want to bend Eden's canes sideways along your fence as soon as possible when they grow to get lateral canes that bloom, since her canes stiffen up pretty quickly with age. And yes, both of them are probably thornier than average, but not unbearable. I wade into TG all the time to prune her and I haven't bled out yet (smile). Cynthia

henry_kuska I am interested in the product that you called wiltproof. I went to there website and read a little about it. I had not heard about it before. Is this product good for roses other than dealing with RDD.... it looks like it is used to keep plants from drying out and to keep the leaves moist..... How would it work in hot drying winds. It says it also made from pine oil..... Here in Florida we have been advised against using oil related products during our summers do to the fact that it can burn leaves. Does this product burn too.... if not since it is oil based can it be used to protect against spider mites.... I know this is off topic but I would like to know more about the product. Thank you Sharon