Hi My interest in old roses is growing, and after a bit of clearing out I should have room for 3 or 4 of 'em. Is there any group which is more troublesome than the others and maybe best avoided. Unbeknown to me and thanks to Marlorena for pointing it out, I already have a Gallica in the form of Tuscany Superb, I've never seen it in flower yet (because I've been pruning it too hard) but it's certainly been trouble free, no disease and lovely foliage. So any group which fulfils those criteria would do for starters. I know it's a really broad question, but any help would be appreciated. Thanks.
@peteS … allow me to give you a few names of Old Roses that, in my view, are best for those newish to the subject, in that they perform well in our conditions, without having to wait too long...
..I recommend the Alba and repeat Bourbon classes..
..for an Alba, that blooms only once but over some weeks, the first rose you should choose is 'Queen of Denmark'...a sumptuous beauty with a heady fragrance, very healthy and trouble free... 5 or 6 foot when established.. blooms well from the 2nd year.. a few in the first year..
..for repeat Bourbons, I recommend 'Louise Odier'... and 'Reine Victoria'... as these will bloom in the first season too..
...those are good starters for you to at least consider...
...that Wildeve is lovely @B3 ... it's not one I've seen personally before..
@peteS ...I did forget to mention the Portland Damasks, another group to explore... and one you should definitely have is called 'Rose de Rescht'... it repeats well and the scent is to die for..
Another stunning looking rose Marlorena. I'm beginning to realise how easy it could be to get sucked into buying a rose purely on how sumptuous it looks on a photograph (particularly a well taken photograph), without fully understanding it's requirements. That's why I find it incredibly useful to get advice off far more experienced people like yourself.
@peteS I grow both of those, they are beautiful and fragrant. Louise Odier is very vigorous and healthy, Reine Victoria I had some issues with early in the season but it’s doing fine now. I would suggest if you don’t have space, particularly for LO, you could put in obelisks to grow them up. They have an arching shape that takes time to build up otherwise, and LO wants to get huge. Mine is like an octopus. RV is more slender but still arching for me, although all descriptions say it’s upright so maybe this is an awkward stage.
@Omori Thanks for that, two really nice looking roses, certainly very worthy of consideration, and it's always better to get first hand experience/knowledge. Is it worth hanging on for bare root specimens rather than buying container ones now. This might sound like a stupid question, but how is an obelisk fixed into place without it being dislodged by the wind, for example.
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My interest in old roses is growing, and after a bit of clearing out I should have room for 3 or 4 of 'em. Is there any group which is more troublesome than the others and maybe best avoided. Unbeknown to me and thanks to Marlorena for pointing it out, I already have a Gallica in the form of Tuscany Superb, I've never seen it in flower yet (because I've been pruning it too hard) but it's certainly been trouble free, no disease and lovely foliage. So any group which fulfils those criteria would do for starters. I know it's a really broad question, but any help would be appreciated. Thanks.
… allow me to give you a few names of Old Roses that, in my view, are best for those newish to the subject, in that they perform well in our conditions, without having to wait too long...
..I recommend the Alba and repeat Bourbon classes..
..for an Alba, that blooms only once but over some weeks, the first rose you should choose is 'Queen of Denmark'...a sumptuous beauty with a heady fragrance, very healthy and trouble free... 5 or 6 foot when established.. blooms well from the 2nd year.. a few in the first year..
..for repeat Bourbons, I recommend 'Louise Odier'... and 'Reine Victoria'... as these will bloom in the first season too..
...those are good starters for you to at least consider...
Wildeve. I didn't get around to pruning it properly this year. I suppose it's too late now . There's flower buds only on the bits I did prune.
... it's not one I've seen personally before..
@peteS
...I did forget to mention the Portland Damasks, another group to explore... and one you should definitely have is called 'Rose de Rescht'... it repeats well and the scent is to die for..
https://berkeleyhort.com/how-to/pruning-old-roses/
Here’s Louise Odier, ignore white splotches which are old Sulphur Rose...