'Ispahan' has been growing in my zone 4 NY state garden for over 15 years. The only issue I have had with it was several years ago when rabbits ate the bark off all my roses at ground level. It was traumatic to many, although, eventually they have all grown back. 'Ispahan' was hard hit and has struggled to attain its former height and width. It makes long thin canes in this zone to over 6'. I have it growing among other roses and shrubs as it does seem to require support. It grows up amidst them arching over them with its pretty pink flowers falling down to about face height. In the pretty garden pictured above with the birdbath, 'Ispahan' will be completely out of scale with its neighbors in several years. As I said, mine is growing among other large shrub roses and a good 6' from the path.

I think the test fields are moving to Ohio simply because Gardens Alive is located there and that is where their other R&D facilities are. Makes sense to have it all in one place - and saves money. Gardens Alive bid for J&P and even though their offer was, I believe, more than Blackstreet it was not accepted because they would not guarantee they would keep the all the jobs in South Carolina where Parks Seed and Wayside are. Too bad as I think they would have been better owners. Personally I think Weeks is in good hands. Garden's Alive have good people there who actually know something about the plant industry. Keith Zary is a good example. I don't know if Tom Carruth is staying with Weeks but hopefully he is. Christian Bedard also knows his stuff. IMO California mainly grows large roses because of Dr. Huey. It simply pushes larger plants. But Dr. Huey does not do well in my area (or most areas this side of the country) and keep in mind since it cannot be grown from seed RMV is a result of it being used. Personally I'd be happy to see it vanish as a rootstock. There is a lot of growing in Arizona these days and I suspect we'll see more there. And don't count out Tyler, TX. But I think in the end that won't matter. The trend is heavily towards own-root and towards liners finished in pots. Much of the public and quite a few garden centers don't want to deal with bareroots. At best I think we'll see one year field grown own-root crops for wholesale use but I'm not holding my breath on that continuing either. As to retail I think you'll see more and more 2 quart pots being used for mail order - even from the big boys. The traditional bareroot budded crop takes two years from planting to harvest. That means you are attempting to guess what the rose market will be in two years. Think of all those growers who planted crops in the winter spring of 2007/2008 for fall 2009 harvest and spring 2010 sales only to see the bottom fall out in September of 2008. By then the planting of the understock and budding (read the most expenses) were spent for a crop that was now likely going to never sell. With liner production you are almost producing on demand and that means you can react to the market far more quickly and keep losses under control. And conversely bring in larger profits if a rose, or the rose market, heats up. I think the changes in nursery ownership and nurseries closing aren�t the only big changes we are in the midst of. Paul

Hi Mary, I've learned a lot from this forum as well! Another factor in my preferences is I'm getting older and don't want to bend down low to "smell the roses." Tall, fragrant & low maintenance is what I want for my garden these days. Fragrant miniatures I hope to keep potted & up higher to enjoy. Yes, there is crown hardy, then there is cane hardy. Most of the Morden roses are only crown hardy for me - their canes die but they grow back fast & strong. But not all zones are the same (ex. my neighbour's Morden Sunrise rarely dies back & is 4 feet tall, mine dies back to the snowline. I swear they're at least half a zone warmer than me!), maybe that's why cane hardiness is rarely described on tags. A quick run down of some of the rose groups as I informally think of them, based on what is available to me. I'm sure there are more official ways (and multiple names) to describe them. They overlap in the sense that some Explorers are "rugosas", some Explorers are "modern": Types: Species (wild roses such as woodsii, arkansana, virginiana, etc. My understanding is all roses are bred from species roses, which affect the hardiness depending on the species used.) Rugosas (rugose leaves) Rugosa hybrids (cross between a rugosa and a modern rose) Scotch (aka Spinossisima or Burnet) Gallicas (dark rich colours, once blooming) Albas (modtly soft pinks, fragrant, once blooming) Hybrid teas (not hardy for me, but often fragrant with large blooms. Ex. 'Peace' or 'Double Delight') Modern (I use this term to describe the mixed bag of roses developed in the last few decades. These are usually somewhat shrubby, lower maintenance & meant for the garden.) And then there are "brands". These are usually developed from a rose breeder or company with specific goals in mind. Some brands available to me: Canadian Explorer (ex. Martin Frobisher, Jens Munk, John Cabot, Frontenac & more. Most are tough/hardy, but many are larger) Canadian Parkland (ex. Morden Blush, Moden Sunrise, Winnipeg Parks, Hope for Humanity & more. Smaller compared to the Explorers, flashier flowers, but poorer health for some.) Canadian Artist (ex. Oscar Peterson, Campfire & more.) 49th Parallel (ex. Chinook Sunrise, Canadian Shield & more. The latest series of Canadian roses.) Pavement Series (ex. Snow Pavement, Purple Pavement & more. Mostly rugosas.) David Austin (ex. Heritage, Golden Celebration & more. Famous as Engligh shrub roses) Buck Roses Collection (ex. Distand Drums, Prairie Princess & more. Known for good health. ) Oso Easy from Proven Winners (these make a great landscaping rose for constant colour but I don't grow them as they are low growing and usually not fragrant to my nose). Note, the name Prairie at the beginning has been used by a few different companies/breeders. Although some may share some of the same parents, not all do. For example, Prairie Peace and Prairie Celebration are very different. My latest interest are roses like Therese Bugnet, which was bred in Alberta. Here's a garden shot from 2017, things are a little late to bloom this year:

Kordes Flower Carpet survived my zone 5a winter better than Knock-out. Zero diseases for the past 16 years. Didn't fertilize nor water it for over a decade. Peggy Rockefeller Rose Garden in NY rated the top 115 no-spray & disease-resistant roses by score. Quietness came 3nd place, after Belinda's Dream at 8.6. Quietness got the second best score of 8.55, higher than single-Knock-out at 8. Julia Child gets a score of 8.3. Austin Heritage gets a score of 8.8. Alkaline clay folks complained that Heritage is stingy, due less acid-phosphatase. Roots secrete acid to utilize phosphorus in soil for blooming. Too much of that ends up with fungal diseases. http://www.nybg.org/gardens/rose-garden-top-performers-2010.php If you click on the link above, it ranked the most disease & no-spray roses by a score. Knock-out scores at 8, while many Kordes roses are at 8.3 and above. Kordes roses have vigorous root system, mean better winter-survival and perfect foliage. HybridizerVariety (Sorted Alphabetically)Overall ScoreAlexander Hill GrayAlister Stella Gray7.75LimAll the Rage8.15KordesAmadeus®7.90MeillandApricot Drift®8.10BayseBelinda's Dream8.60PriorBetty Prior8.15UnknownBlush Noisette8.00RadlerBlushing Knock Out®8.10MeillandBolero™ 20048.50MeillandBonica™®8.00ClarkBorderer7.75LensBouquet Parfait®7.91BedardCape Diamond®7.85KordesCaramella®7.85AustinCarding Mill®8.50BuckCarefree Beauty™8.25MeillandCarefree Delight™7.75RadlerCarefree Spirit™7.95LimCentennial7.85MeillandCherry Parfait™8.50KordesCinderella Fairy Tale8.50MeillandColette™8.00MeillandCoral Drift™8.40KordesCream Veranda8.75FoundDarlow's Enigma9.00LimDaydream7.90KordesDesmond Tutu8.25RadlerDouble Knock Out®9.10DucherDucher8.25BernèdeDuchesse de Brabant8.25MeillandEaster Basket™9.25HarknessEasy Does It™7.85KordesEiffel Tower8.25KordesEliza®8.00KordesEscimo™8.00MeillandEternal Flame™8.40ShoupF.J. Lindheimer8.40KordesFelicitas8.00KordesFloral Fairy Tale8.00LesterFrancis E. Lester8.00KordesGardening Joy8.25KordesGebrϋder Grimm® (Brothers Grimm)8.50KordesGolden Fairy Tale™8.00AustinHeritage®8.80CarruthHome Run™8.10KordesJasmina®8.35WilliamsJoe Grey™8.10CarruthJulia Child™8.35KordesKarl Ploberger7.85RadlerKnock Out®8.00KordesKordes Golden Gate™8.00KordesKordes Moonlight®8.75KordesKosmos9.00BarbierLa Marne8.15KordesLa Perla8.00NoackLady Elsie May™8.00ShoupLady Pamela Carol8.00KordesLaguna®8.30KordesLarissa8.50ZuzekLena7.90KordesLions-Rose®7.60KordesLupo®8.00LimMacy's Pride8.95DesprezMarchesa Boccella8.25SportMarie Daly7.85AlégatièreMarie Pavié7.85KordesMarie-Luise Marjan®8.40CarruthMemorial Day™8.25DelbardMichel Bras8.25MeillandMother of Pearl™8.70UnknownMutabilis8.25LimMy Girl7.85PissardNastarana7.85ShoupOld Baylor8.45ZuzekOle7.85MeillandOso Easy Cherry Pie8.50WarnerOso Easy Fragrant Spreader8.00MeillandPeach Drift®9.00FoundPeggy Martin 'Survivor'8.75RadlerPink Double Knock Out®9.00MeillandPink Drift®8.75CarruthPink Home Run®7.15RadlerPink Knock Out®8.10MeillandPink Traviata™8.40KordesPlanten un Blomen8.40KordesPomponella™8.00LensPorcelaine de Chine8.00PembertonProsperity7.50KordesPurple Rain8.65BuckQuietness8.55RadlerRainbow Knock Out®8.00ShoupRepublic of Texas8.00KordesRosanna®7.85KordesRosarium Uetersen®8.05UnknownRose de Rescht7.25KordesRoxy™8.50HolmesSally Holmes®8.45BarniSans Souci7.85AustinScepter'd Isle7.80KordesSolero™7.80AustinSophy's Rose8.75AustinSpirit of Freedom8.75LeeStanwell Perpetual7.85BarniStile '800®8.20KordesSummer Memories™8.00KordesSummerSun8.00RadlerSunny Knock Out®8.50MeillandSweet Drift®8.00MeillandTequila™7.90DemitsThe Gift7.95BugnetThérèse Bugnet8.15MeillandTraviata™8.65RadlerWhite Out®8.65RadlerWinner's Circle™7.90KordesZadie8.10 Below is my Kordes FlowerCarpet, pic. taken late August. I didn't fertilizer nor water it for over a decade .. actually did better that way: