A perfect pink rose to pair with Love Song?

last year

last modified: last year

I’d love to hear suggestions for a perfect pink rose to pair with Love Song in an all-day sunny spot in hot, dry Southern California. I’m looking for a pink rose that will complement Love Song in terms of color, bloom size/form, and bush size/habit. Heat tolerance, floriferousness and quick repeat are my top priorities. At the moment, some contenders are:

Our Lady of Guadalupe
All Dressed Up
Boscobel
Cathedral Bells/Soeur Emmanuelle
Belinda’s Dream

I’d love to hear people’s experiences with these roses, and am open to other suggestions as well.

Here are some photos for inspiration:

Cathedral Bells at Huntington Gardens

Our Lady of Guadalupe at Huntington Gardens

All Dressed Up at Otto & Sons

Boscobel at Otto & Sons

Featured Answer

Diane Brakefield

last year

I've grown Boscobel for years, and its heat tolerance isn't that great, but it's a good bloomer. i like the way it blooms with Golden Celebration. I have two Love Song roses, one is next to Dainty Bess, and one is next to Olivia Rose Austin. Those work well together, though they are taller than my Love Songs, which are quite large in their own right. Diane

Love Song with Dainty Bess followed by LS and Olivia. Diane

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Comments (45)

KJ (9B, San Jose CA)
last year
last modified: last year
I am looking for such a pink rose too!!! I have been doing my research for a while, and am considering Elle and Scentuous.

All Dressed Up: I heard it's very upright and only blooms at the top. This is very unlike Love Song, which is short and bushy.

Boscobel: Mine is in it's first year (grafted bare root), and the heat tolerance is very poor. I planted it by the east facing fence, but the blooms wilted quickly with only morning sun. So disappointed. Hope it will improve later. On the contrary, Sweet Mademoiselle, also in it's first year (own root), is very heat and sun tolerant and the bloom size is huge.

Soeur Emmanuelle: I heard it has thin branch and act like a small climber.

Belinda’s Dream: Yes, blooms are huge, but balled up so badly in our rainy spring. I shovel pruned mine.
Desert Rose (10a Sunset 19) thanked KJ (9B, San Jose CA)
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BenT (NorCal 9B Sunset 14)
last year
last modified: last year
Geez, KJ, I came here to say my top two pics are Scentuous and Elle! Both are dense, compact growers, heavy bloomers from the ground up and ruffled…all the qualities that make Love Song so great.

I’m going to give the slight nod to Scentuous (above) because it’s a cooler toned pink that would play really well with Love Song
Desert Rose (10a Sunset 19) thanked BenT (NorCal 9B Sunset 14)
Kristine LeGault 8a pnw
last year
I would use Our Lady of Guadalupe because of the silver undertones .

My Love Song is short and bushy so OLOG may be equal in size
Desert Rose (10a Sunset 19) thanked Kristine LeGault 8a pnw
Desert Rose (10a Sunset 19)
Original Author
last year
Thank you for the reports about Boscobel's heat tolerance! It sounds like it wouldn't be ideal for this particular spot, which truly does get full sun from sunrise to sunset.

@Diane Brakefield: Does Olivia Rose Austen fare better than Boscobel in the heat? That's a very pretty rose, although I've seen it turn barely pink (aka white) in the SoCal sun. Dainty Bess is also charming! Thank you for sharing those gorgeous photos.

@KJ (9B, San Jose CA): Scentuous has been on my radar, too! They have one at the Huntington Gardens, which I visit at least twice a month. The blooms are spectacular, but I tend to see very few of them, so I was thinking that it might not bloom well in this climate. I'd be curious to hear from people who grow this rose.

From what I've seen, All Dressed Up does bloom mostly at the top, and doesn't have the same bushy habit as Love Song. However, it seems like it can be around the same height as Love Song (4'?), and I've never seen it with bare knees. My local nurseries have really sung its praises, and I'm naturally biased in favor of any rose descended from the amazing Julia Child.

All Dressed Up at the Huntington Gardens in May (far and away the most stunning rose among thousands of roses during that particular visit)

All Dressed Up in the display garden at Otto & Sons Nursery
Desert Rose (10a Sunset 19)
Original Author
last year
@BenT (NorCal 9B Sunset 14): Your photos of Scentuous are too beautiful! The color is perfect: a soft, definite, cool pink. Do you think it could handle all day sun in the dry heat of Zone 10a? And how often does it have that many flowers on it? I'm at the Huntington at least twice a month, and I've never seen it have more than one flower on it at a time, and more often, zero! Yours is stunning.

@Kristine LeGault 8a pnw: Yes, Our Lady of Guadalupe would definitely pair well color wise. I've been worried that it might be a little too small, so it's good to hear that it might be able to attain a similar size to Love Song. Our Lady of Guadalupe also seems to bloom more and more the hotter it gets.
BenT (NorCal 9B Sunset 14)
last year
Desert Rose,

I grew Scentuous in both hot/dry Sacramento and hot/humid Dallas and it’s been an excellent rose. Not sure why it doesn’t bloom better at Huntington, maybe Tom Carruth doesn’t feed her because she’s a Tantau, not a Weeks? (just kidding).
KJ (9B, San Jose CA)
last year
@BenT (NorCal 9B Sunset 14) LOL. Your joke made my day. They don't feed her well because she's a Tantau😁😁😁. Is the one next to your Scentuous Lady Emma Hamilton? The other day I went to DA website to order her, but found it's shown as Out of Stock!!! I guess it has been retired by DA, sigh.........

@Desert Rose (10a Sunset 19) Your picture of All Dressed Up looks very tempting. I am thinking maybe I can add one to the back row of my rose garden since it blooms at the top. I heard it's very heat tolerant.
Diane Brakefield
last year
I live in the hills outside Boise, ID, in the high desert, zone 7. This year has been our hottest on record so far. Anyway, I've found Olivia does keep blooming better during dry heat, but she's washed out in color, and for that reason, I'm not really that fond of her. You asked about Boscobel, a big, vigorous rose, and a terrific bloomer in spring and cooler months, but he took a big rest this summer during the hottest part of the season. I like his color for this sun bleaching climate. My favorite rose to be a neighbor of Love Song, you didn't ask about and is not next to Love Song in my garden, but she's one of my top Austins and a continuous bloomer in the heat or any time else, with a perfect growth habit, and smallish size that's never out of control. That's Tamora from Pickering Roses 16 years ago and grafted on multiflora, which does just fine in my alkaline soil. So here is Bosco and a bit of Tamora. Diane

Boscobel
Desert Rose (10a Sunset 19) thanked Diane Brakefield
Diane Brakefield
last year
Not all the pics posted.
Desert Rose (10a Sunset 19) thanked Diane Brakefield
BenT (NorCal 9B Sunset 14)
last year
last modified: last year
KJ

Yes, that’s Lady Emma Hamilton next to Scentuous in my pic. I do know she was available this year from DA and just sold out quickly. She’s a surprisingly good Austin for hot weather. Usually when DA discovers that one of their fragile English lassies doesn’t wilt in our hot weather (Evelyn, Tamora, Abe, Claire Rose), they totally annihlate her out of existence, so we ’Mericans can continuing suffering! Hopefully LEH doesn’t meet this fate. Only half-joking this time.

What happened to Scentuous’ Rose Tone and Alfalfa tea ? Looks like All Dressed Up , which happens to be a Weeks rose, got all of it!
Desert Rose (10a Sunset 19)
Original Author
last year
Thank you for the suggestion, @Diane Brakefield. An apricot like Tamora or a warmer pink like Elle could also work really well with Love Song. So many choices ...

@KJ (9B, San Jose CA): All Dressed Up seems like it would be perfect at the back of the border. I've also heard good things about its heat tolerance.

@BenT (NorCal 9B Sunset 14) Yes, it would certainly be safer to be a Weeks Rose at the Huntington, wouldn't it? Haha.
Kristine LeGault 8a pnw
last year
last modified: last year
Ok, you have forced me to bring out the big guns.

Love Song and Plum Perfect

Unless you are totally committed to pink.
Desert Rose (10a Sunset 19) thanked Kristine LeGault 8a pnw
Desert Rose (10a Sunset 19)
Original Author
last year
@Kristine LeGault 8a pnw: Of course, I have a weakness for purple! Thank you for reminding me of this Plum Perfect pairing. I do love that color combination. My list of possible companions for Love Song grows longer still ...
KJ (9B, San Jose CA)
last year
Ben, oh no, I didn't know LEH was available earlier this year. So bad I missed it. Wonder if it will be back in stock? If not, where can I get her?

Kristine, what a brilliant idea to plant Love Song and Plum Perfect together! So beautiful!
Kristine LeGault 8a pnw
last year
last modified: last year
Thank you KJ.

Desert Rose,

I guess that we arent making it any easier
Desert Rose (10a Sunset 19)
Original Author
last year
last modified: last year
You aren't making it any easier, but you are making it more fun! With Love Song, I am liking the idea of the cool pinks: Scentuous, Olivia Rose Austin, or Our Lady of Guadalupe. Scentuous and Olivia are probably a better match for Long Song in terms of ruffliness. But Our Lady of Guadalupe sure does bloom a lot at the Huntington, even though it isn't one of the Weeks Roses that gets all of the food!
BenT (NorCal 9B Sunset 14)
last year
Desert Rose

Olivia Rose was very sprawly when I grew her, I know somebody who trained her as a full sized climber. As Diane said she fades considerbly too, mine was off-white, not even light pink in summer.

I bet Our Lady of the Guadalupe is clutching her rosary beads and praying they don’t discover she’s not a Weeks girl. Could you imagine the conversation? Christiansen: Nope, didn’t breed her. Bedard: mais non!. Carruth: What? I’ve been feeding her for years!
Desert Rose (10a Sunset 19) thanked BenT (NorCal 9B Sunset 14)
Austin
last year
last modified: last year
You might consider Angle Face. I grew Love Song beside Angle because LS did not have fragrance and Angle Face is so wonderful in that area. Your dry climate should help with the black spot she was prone to when I grew her in Houston. Also Angle Face with her fewer petals repeat faster so you always have flowers in that section of your garden.
Desert Rose (10a Sunset 19) thanked Austin
rosecanadian
last year
There are some SERIOUSLY beautiful roses here!!!! Good luck in choosing. :) :)
Desert Rose (10a Sunset 19)
Original Author
last year
@BenT (NorCal 9B Sunset 14): Thank you! You've helped me narrow it down to Our Lady of Guadalupe and Scentuous. Our Lady is sooo bloomy, and Scentuous is sooo ruffly! Ah, how to choose?

@KJ (9B, San Jose CA): Have you been able to decide between Scentuous and Elle?

@Austin: I do have another spot in my garden (afternoon sun only) where I'm looking to plant a lavender/purple rose, and Angel Face (along with Plum Perfect) are at the top of my list. Your Angel Face looks remarkably healthy! Is she as tough as Love Song in the heat? How big does she tend to get for you? Basing my experience solely on the Huntington again, their Angel Face seems quite a bit smaller than their Love Songs, even though both varieties are Weeks Roses in the curator's good graces. =)
KJ (9B, San Jose CA)
last year
@Desert Rose (10a Sunset 19) I think I will get both😁. But Elle has been always out of stock at Heirloom. I am unable to find a own root for Scentuous, so probably I will just order the bare root from Edmunds.
Austin
last year
last modified: last year
Angle Face is not a carefree plant. I have always loved the ruffled petals, color, and fragrance. For me she was worth the extra effort. Houston was harder than Dallas where she did not black Spot, but she was my canary as was Chicago Please. *Love Song is a work horse once established. I just didn't love it. Ben has posted some drop-dead photos and grew her longer, so he is your reference. For me it was the lack of smell. I made the decision after LS that I would never again grow a rose without fragrance. Like a pretty girl or guy with no personality.

My Angle was about the same height but not as full, so I had it behind a bit in a triangle planting. She tends to leggy. My best planting of her was a rose tree with a bush below. This was in Houston in a bit too much shade. She will handle it but that increase blackspot in climates like Houston. I am a glutton for punishment it seems.

My experience with Olivia Rose was different than Bens. He is by far the better gardener but maybe my dirty made her happy. She always showed pink color, never washed white, she always carried blooms of acceptable size in heat. She was grafted from Austin, I grew her over an arch and continually cut off canes at the bottom to make her rise. She wanted to be a big bush for me. I had her for several years and moved her twice before I decided on the arch. For me that was the key.

this photo has Evelyn behind/not all those flowers below to Olivia

Better photo of just her. This was when I first began trying to get her to climb. I later cut off those bottom canes. This was in mid -July according to my notes and she has good color and size still.
Austin
last year
Oh, forgot to say. Angle Face loves heat blooms away no color fade nor size,
Desert Rose (10a Sunset 19) thanked Austin
Austin
last year
last modified: last year
You know guys, i am wondering if our different experiences with various Austin roses is related to what Straw shared about their current practices. I bought Olivia Rose the year she came out and she was an easy strong growing bush. I bet you bought her much later Ben. Just saying, something to throw in the mix. Olivia would be fine OR in my opinion and she most certainly had reverted to that once I moved her to climb. I put Austins deep hoping they go OR. All except Dark Lady.

Ben and I were both in Dallas at that time.
Diane Brakefield
last year
Angel Face is pretty carefree here, mainly because we don't get blackspot and have lots of sun. I've grown her for years, but I like my two Love Song plants just as much. Diane
Desert Rose (10a Sunset 19) thanked Diane Brakefield
Desert Rose (10a Sunset 19)
Original Author
last year
@Austin: Olivia Rose Austin makes a beautiful climber. Wow! And thank you for all of that great information about Angel Face. I didn't know that it repeated faster than Love Song!

@Diane Brakefield: Your photos of Angel Face are exquisite. In the second photo you posted, I'm also curious about the darker rose next to Angel Face. Which rose is that?

Here's a photo of Angel Face being gorgeous and liking it hot at Otto & Sons during late summer. She did not look this put together earlier in the summer, when the powdery mildew was still upon us ... but nobody's perfect.
Diane Brakefield
last year
Thanks, Desert Rose. The rose with Angel Face is Young Lycidas. In that area is a big mix of those two roses, plus a little Julia Child and a favorite perennial, Jupiter's Beard. Young Lycidas is a lax draper that likes to hang on his neighbors without being aggressive. Diane
Desert Rose (10a Sunset 19) thanked Diane Brakefield
Austin
last year
last modified: last year
desert rose - Angle Face repeat vs Love Song.: so my Love Song got the tiniest bit more shade than Angle; because it was so petal packed buds took longer to open. Did not want to mislead you. LS never balled like other many petaled do. The shade helped both, because although they neither lost color in heat, the sun glare made them less lovely. Both loved Texas heat so always blooms.
Desert Rose (10a Sunset 19) thanked Austin
Desert Rose (10a Sunset 19)
Original Author
last year
@Austin: Thank you for clarifying about the repeat of Angel Face vs. Love Song. That's very helpful!

@Diane Brakefield: Your sense of color has me thinking about more saturated hues. I wonder if Young Lycidas might work as my "pink rose" with Love Song. What's he like?

The photo of Young Lycidas also made me want to consider Pretty Lady Rose. I've seen that rose look surprisingly good in heat. Does anyone here grow her?
oursteelers 8B PNW
last year
Pretty Lady is more pink for me whereas YL sneaks into the pink-purple camp.
Diane Brakefield
last year
Young Lycidas is definitely purplish most of the time, though it's a pink purple, and varies some. He blooms a lot for me, but takes a rest for a bit in midsummer. I like this rose a lot, partly because he drapes like an antique rose might drape. YL is large, but not monstrous large like some of my roses. I don't grow Pretty Lady. Diane
Desert Rose (10a Sunset 19) thanked Diane Brakefield
Kristine LeGault 8a pnw
last year
I grew Pretty Lady rose and it didnt have the incredible blooms that Young Lycidis has.
Desert Rose (10a Sunset 19) thanked Kristine LeGault 8a pnw
Diane Brakefield
last year

Above are YL and AF; LS and Olivia; LS
Desert Rose (10a Sunset 19) thanked Diane Brakefield
Desert Rose (10a Sunset 19)
Original Author
last year
@Diane Brakefield: I'm swooning over Young Lycidas. I have a feeling that my lawn is going to continue shrinking in direct proportion to the number of photos that you post here!
Austin
last year
Awww Claire Rose did not grow her in Texas, Thanks Ben good to know😎This has been a good learning thread for me.
Austin
last year
Lady in Red is nudging Dark
Lady for my favorite rose. Have her in pot (was 1st yr grafted rose, moved from Dallas in Dec) and living in part shade… she has not stopped performing. Unbelievable red climber. Only flower form and color keep her second to DL for me. She is certainly the best performing climber I have ever had. ARS did 2017 video at Weeks garden showing her and others.
Thank you Ben she was your suggestion.
Desert Rose (10a Sunset 19)
Original Author
last year
Thank you to everyone on this thread for your great suggestions and inspirations. I took the day off and headed to Otto & Sons today, still undecided but ready to get out of my head and into the nursery!

In their display garden, I got a feel for Young Lycidas' large and languid habit, so well described by @Diane Brakefield—he drapes like an antique rose might drape. He does sneak into the pink-purple camp, as @oursteelers 8B PNW so aptly put it. One of the gardeners also snipped a bloom and gave it to me to take home, which was extremely helpful, since the color is so rich and vibrant that photos can't capture it. So I fell in mad love with this rose ... and it's out of stock until at least March.

Young Lycidas looking like a red rose, because my camera couldn't capture that incredible color

@BenT (NorCal 9B Sunset 14)'s top pick, Scentuous, was actually paired with Love Song in the display garden, and the colors are just perfect together. Yet just like at the Huntington, Scentuous only had one bloom. I asked one of the nurserymen, and he said that it really doesn't bloom all that much for them. Maybe it's a zone 10a thing, because Otto's definitely feeds all of their roses via a constant infusion of fertilizer in their drip system. I've had my eye on this rose for a while, and never seen it approaching what it looks like in Ben's beautiful garden.

Love Song with Scentuous

Back in the rose yard, several different roses temporarily jumped into my cart—notably, Our Lady of Guadalupe and Sweet Madam Blue. But the one that I finally ended up buying is ... Pretty Lady Rose! To my eye, her big, blowsy blooms are a match for Love Song. Hopefully, her habit will be more bushy than the typical hybrid tea—Cori Ann was pretty convincing on this score on some older threads about Pretty Lady Rose. And I found her fragrance to be pretty intense, and my car smelled wonderful on the ride home from my Otto's rose adventure. =)

Love Song with Pretty Lady Rose

Young Lycidas in a bud vase (left) with Pretty Lady Rose
rosecanadian
last year
Good choice! They look great together. :)
Desert Rose (10a Sunset 19) thanked rosecanadian
Desert Rose (10a Sunset 19)
Original Author
last year
Here's a better photo, now that more of the buds on Pretty Lady Rose have opened!
Diane Brakefield
last year
Desert Rose, that's a lovely pairing. Is that Love Song with Pretty Lady rose?

Here's my Young Lycidas just a few days ago, enjoying October, though the deer took off some bloom just hours after this photo was taken. Diane
Desert Rose (10a Sunset 19) thanked Diane Brakefield
Desert Rose (10a Sunset 19)
Original Author
last year
Yes, @Diane Brakefield, that's Love Song with Pretty Lady Rose. Thank you again for getting me to think about the darker hues. Your Young Lycidas is such an rich, deep, vivid color. It's almost unreal. I just love it!
Vaporvac Z6-OhioRiverValley
last year
@Austin, to which of David Austins practices are you referring? couldnt find anything up-post.
BenT (NorCal 9B Sunset 14)
last year
Desert Rose, I think you made a great choice! PLR looks great with Love Song.
Desert Rose (10a Sunset 19) thanked BenT (NorCal 9B Sunset 14)
rosecanadian
last year
Desert Rose - I love those colors together! Gorgeous flowers/bushes!!

Diane - you are the Queen of purples and dark pinks like that!! Fabulous!