Hall of Shame Roses

I have to admit, my Woburn Abbey grows good powdery mildew. I'll give it another year but I'm disappointed in it.
Val

Mine would have to be Tequila Sunrise, over the years I have killed three of them. I am trying again but I'm getting those green centre things on this one. How much do I get for taking to it with a Machete.

TasV wrote:It's funny you should mention this Val. You know how you say things in the heat of the moment and then later you look back and think that maybe you were a little hasty or harsh (or, as in my case, both!)

My Woburn Abbey was brutally attacked in winter... I got sick of its poor performance (in the ground) and reefed it out and hoiked it into the back paddock for the goats to clean up

Some months later I was walking through the back paddock and low-and-behold what do I find!!! WA was sitting there on the ground with not a leaf on it, a series of sorry looking twigs but a shoot was coming out from just above the graft union. It had landed roots-down and it must have been getting just enough water to let it make a last-ditch effort to survive.

That's just one thing I love about roses - they're SO tough. Well done on that one TasV!

We are progressively hacking down our climbing Woburn Abbey. It is a mildew magnet too. The goats get regular feeds of it. It grows like a weed in a duck yard.
Another bad one for me is Amadeus. I have struggled with it for 3 years. Bill took pity on it and repotted it but it is also a mildew magnet and unthrifty struggler. Goat food!

W.A.'s looking really good now.
I shall have a severe talk with mine............
Val

Have had very poor growth from AMADEUS, looks sickly and must have a problem I can't identify. That's the description of it last season. This summer it looks very healthy but will put it under pressure and check it's health after the next flush. Last year I sprayed and this year I haven't sprayed at all?

Cree alerted me to Black Spot problems with most of the modern yellow HT's. The rose used to enhance the yellow colour was very unhealthy and decendants have the same problem.

Correct Simon, sent Amadeus out to Mudgee with Roseman. Will be interesting to hear how it goes out there in the dry grape growing climate.

Rose growing in my climate is not all bad and some may think I exagerate and go over the top with wanting healthy bushes
Perhaps I should describe the life cycle of a HT, Modern English or European rose in my no spray garden.
End July,prune away all the dead canes and shape.
September, October a few nice blooms with the first flush but most ruined by aphids and borer beetles.
November, Black spot appearing and starting to defoliate, continues right through December, January, February and March. Constant borer beetle attack during these months together with constant defoliation. December and January are bad for red spider mites, white fly and most all other bugs known to man.
April, there are a few nice blooms starting to mature but Aphids are still causing a big problem.
May, there are some really nice blooms appearing, colour beautiful.
June, all shut down for winter.

Tea and Noisette roses flower very well in winter so will have to go with these or give up.
This is the reason why most gardens in the suburbs here have been changed from roses to natives.
If you have the climate to grow cold climate roses then go for it, the blooms and fragrance is fantastic.

I had a friend that she had a Double Delight that had over a hundred blooms on it ( well I remeber it was alot anyway ). I have a own root of it growing but it's not very big and one time it had a yellow bloom on it, but the last bloom on it had been the right colour. I will be keen to see how it went this Spring/Summer. Double Delight was already growing on a property my exhusband bought when we were together. It had beautful blooms and fragrance.