I feel like a broken record but she is such a wonderful rose….Renae.

Almost thornless, fragrant, vigorous. I can’t think of one negative quality!

The first name bumping into my mind is Renae. She is the most thornless rose I've ever seen, as well as healthy, well-repeated, and shade tolerant.

oursteelers haha, we're thinking the same rose!

Oursteelers and Feiy Lo - Great minds think alike! Thanks for the suggestion- I hadn’t heard of Renae but she seems to have so many outstanding qualities… takes shade, lush foliage, continuous bloom, double flower and wonderful fragrance. It’s hard to ask for more from a rose. Help me find has her listed for zones 6b to 9b. Do you think she take my zone 10a heat of a month at temperatures 90-105 degrees?

Dianela - Your Raspberry Cream Twirl is gorgeous, thanks for sharing! I’m a sucker for an over the top petal count and quartered blooms :) Love her dense foliage and deep green color, I can see that covering the wall nicely. How is her disease resistance?

Lara, I’m hoping a high temp person will pop in as that is not my area of wxpertise. I also have Raspberry Cream Twirl (thanks to Dianela’s pictures and recommendation) and really like it. It’s not (at least for me) quite the beast Renae is nor is it as perfumed

I've read zephirine drouhin has few thorns. Never actually grown it.

Oursteelers - Thanks for your comparison of the two, very helpful. I would ultimately like a rose that is fragrant enough to perfume the area and always has blooms on it. Good disease resistance is important because part of the area gets morning shade, so I don’t want to battle mildew. But I do use a great preemptive disease formula from BioAdcanced that keeps this away even from bushes predisposed to it. I’m inclined to think Renae would do well in my climate due to where I would be placing her but I’d love to hear from anyone who’s grown her in a hot climate or zone 10 and above.

Kidhorn - I read this too about ZD but am
apprehensive because of reports of
susceptibility to mildew. Could anyone
growing Zephirine Prouhin please share
their experience and advice?

I grow Zephirine Drouhin. It's completely thornless, has amazing fragrance and doing well in deep shade (maybe 3-4 hours). It took 3 years for mine to establish and show its potential. I almost shoveled it. So be patient with it if you get it. Supposedly, it's a repeat bloomer but because mine is in shade, it never repeats for me. Description says zone 6-11.

Mine is very healthy.

Meant Zephirine Drouhin. Also, is anyone growing CL Iceberg?

Based on what I've read about ZD, It's either an amazing disease free repeat bloomer or it never blooms. I wonder if there's more than one ZD in commerce. Or maybe there's a narrow window of sun/temperatures/nutrients where it performs great.

ZD was a horrible blackspotter for me and it was in full sun. I was so disappointed as it's such a beautiful rose.

Yulia - Thank you for sharing your experience with ZD. Glad to hear it’s very healthy for you but sorry for its unusual performance.

Kidhorn - I wonder if your right about two different ZD’s… could explain Yulia’s experience.

In browsing Heirloom Roses’ many of the more recent reviews state issues with blooming.

Smithdale - Thank you for your comments. How did she bloom for you… repeat or once blooming as is Yulia’s experience?

I have ZD and probably would not bother getting it again. She's a monster but nothing great at blooming, plus gets some blackspot. It's true it's thornless, tho. I would way rather have an actually pretty rose.

In this semiarid desert, zone 7, it gets plenty hot and dry. My friend grows ZD on her gazebo and has no complaints. We don't get black spot, so I can't comment on that. Diane

I got mine from Heirloom Roses. So own root. But I don't know if that matters.

Lara, she had very good repeat bloom until the blackspot weakened her, I don't spray.

Lara sorry for forgetting where I’m zone 10 are you. Are you humid like florida or dry Cali?

Raspberry cream T has very good disease resistance here until some time in the summer she gets blackspot. I still grow her no spray but her foliage isn’t perfect in our super humid blackspot area. She never gets mildew or rust, but we don’t have high disease pressure for those two here so I wouldn’t know.

Zone 7, had 60 ZDs and they all got black spot and lost their leaves after blooming. Came back strong each year for about 18 or so then they almost stopped growing. Since I can’t handle the yard anymore I had my Saint (who lives across the street from us) shovel prune them out. We did leave 6 and they are doing just fine. Now and then some of them would bloom again in the Fall but don’t count on it.

I don't know your climate Lara. ZD does poorly in Seattle. Westerland is much better than it in terms of both disease resistance and repeat frequency. It is not thornless, but it's absolutely not a monster.

Here is an old photo of a few ZDs.

60 ZDs? I'm not sure I have 60 distinct plants growing in my yard. Including lawn weeds.

I agree about Westerland. Grew one 15-20 years ago. Probably my best rose at the time. it got some BS, but it didn't seem to bother it much. I wanted to get one in my chamblees order this year, but they only had 3 gallon for $59. Too much extra to pay for a year head start.

Checking my yard layout I had about 92 plants. (Trees, bushes, flowers, vines, roses included) I now have 27 give or take a couple... lol Which will make it easier to weed wack. Robot lawn mower takes care of the mowing...

Dianela- I’m zone 10 Southern California. Hot and dry but still have gotten black spot, rust and powdery mildew… it all depends on the variety. Appreciate you sharing sharing.

Toolbelt - 60 ZD’s, oh my! Looks like poor blooming and disease becomes a problem with ZD at some point for almost everyone.

Toolbelt - your photo is just lovely! So many flowers when she’s blooming.

Diane - You always post the most beautiful photos. I love your friend’s garden and her ZD is so floriferous!

Feiy and kidhorn - Thanks for the info on Westerland. I’m thinking I might have to look at other climbers and venture into some with thorns to get what I want.

There is also Annie Laurie McDowell, who is a child of Renae. Completely thornless and very fragrant.

'Renae'! It was bred for your climate and it will be an outstanding rose in SoCal.

I wouldn't let 'Zepherine Drouhin' in my garden for any amount of money. Poor repeat, got every disease in the book. Absolutely miserable rose.

Noseometer- I just looked Annie up, she’s beautiful. Thank you for this wonderful suggestion!

Paul - Thank you for your expert advice! I’m a fairly new rose gardener and am hoping to get several of your beautiful roses soon. Regarding this thread, I’m leaning towards Renae and as you suggested, am definitely staying away from ZD.

Lara, 2 gorgeous light pink climbers are both almost thornless. I have them both in my gardens:

1. JAMES GALWAY CL

2. THE GENEROUS GARDNER CL

Kitty, I am in the same zone and am looking for another climber. What is your experience with these two? I thought I read somewhere that Generous Gardener was very thorny.

Do they repeat well? Healthy?

Yulia, I just planted Generous Gardner in fall before winter so this will really be my forst spring with her growing. However Ceres in New Jersey has grown her very well-loved her’s. I think she tepeated well and was healthy!

James Galway grows well & healthy, too. I started James Galway last year spring 2021.

My Crepuscle is a climber that has very few thorns. Good in warm climates. Seems black spot resistant in humid FL (I dont spray). It is a good bloomer. Not as flashy as some of the double pink roses though.

I have the Generous Gardener in a pot. I didn't realize it was thornless. I will have to go out and check!

I'm pretty sure I've been nabbed by James Galway's thorns before lol. I have two on a gazebo that I have to walk under to go feed the goats.

Raspberry Cream Twirl is both thornless and beautiful! It is healthy in my climate.

ZD doesn’t do well in SoCal because it gets terrible mildew here. The one at Huntington is barely hanging on and I am surprised they haven’t replaced it. I have only ever seen a couple spring blooms on it and they weren’t fragrant. It probably needs colder winters to do well. I have a large Annie Laurie McDowell, which is a seedling of Renae. I bought Renae this year since ALMcD is so spectacular in our hot dry weather with never a spec of rust or mildew, which are the only 2 fungus I need to worry about. The only pest on ALMcD is occasional spider mites in the hottest driest time of the year, since it’s leaves have tiny hairs, which spider mites like. ALMcD is 100% thorn-free with lightly fragrant pink-lavender carnation looking 2inch blooms in clusters that smell like violets.

Kitty - I hadn’t considered James Galway or Generous Gardener, thanks so much. I love very full flowers and that’s what’s really holding me back from Renae.

Sultry - How does your James Galway and Generous Gardener perform repeat blooming wise and with disease resistance? I just looked up Crépuscule and I actually really like her colors.

Stephanie - Thank your for sharing your experience with ALMcD, I like her flower a little better than Renae. Is her repeat continuous? I’m in SoCal 10a.

And don’t forget Nahema CL Light pink, almost thornless!!! Fabulous perfune scent. Used in Guerlaine perfume!!!! Flowers all 4 seasons if you had 4 seasons, LOL! Can grow 12 ft. Delbard rose. Very popular.

Lara, picking roses that do well in your area like Renae and Annie Laurie McDowell will save you so much heartache. A superbly healthy rose can look so beautiful you would grow to love it.

ALMcD does bloom a lot. The blooms nod downwards so it is best situated where you will be looking up at the blooms. I am looking forward to comparing it with Renae.

Sheila - great advice! Indeed, I think I would grow to love it.

Stephanie- I love the romance of nodding blooms and the location would exactly be one of looking up.