When did you realize that you were hooked on roses?

hi everybody. I have not looked in for a while but now is rose buying time and I am just as susceptable as the rest of you even though my garden is FULL.
I had no intentions of buy roses yesterday but Jude the Obscure and Red Pixie became mine in a weak moment.
In a few weeks two climbing Gold Bunny and Rosa Moyesii "Geranium" will come in the mail. GB is gong to cover the piers of the new deck out the back and Moyesii is coming because I saw it at an open garden covered in gloroius orange urn shaped hips and I was smitten.
A lot of my roses have to be moved this winter because of the aformentioned deck so a bit of re-landscaping is happening to make room for them. Fortunately I did not have to ask for the fence to be moved out further!

Oh, I see I have diverged from the subject of this thread. Sorry Damo.
I became hooked on roses about 5-6 years ago when I saw a garden full of roses and the owner generously gave me lots of plants and taught me how to grow them. I quickly became hooked.

What do they say when in Rome do as the Romans do. If the shoe fits wear it. In other words if it works keeps on doing it,

I first came in contact with roses 50 plus years ago, my dad had about 30 odd roses. The one that sticks in my mind is "blackboy" growing along our back pailing fence where I grew up at Bass Hill(outer western suburbs Sydney), all these were pruned and then "painted" with lime wash to kill any form of desease, loved them ever since.

Hi,
same here. My dad had Blackboy, Peace, Crimson Glory and Shot Silk as climbers growing along the verandah. I remember some of the names of his roses - Sutter's Gold, Lavender Pinocchio, McGredy's Sunset. I was probably about ten years old at the time. I must have been interested even then or I wouldn't have remembered the names.
I didn't own any roses of my own until about 2000 when I started two large garden beds devoted solely to roses. At one stage I had nearly 300, but it's back to a reasonable number now - only 200.
Barbara B

Damo you are in as good a spot as any to grow HT's
Nearly every lady looking for roses wants high centered extremely fragrant blooms that can be vased. Unfortunatly here in Sydney these roses require a lot of care. I notice a lot of front yard gardens with HT's all along the front have changed to natives due to roses being high maintainence plants.
It's unfortunate the heat and humidity loving roses are almost unheard of due to nurseries pushing cold hardy PBR HT's.

I have a lot of Australian bred HT's that are possibly bred from these cold hardy roses that don't grow well in our coastal climate. However I am keeping the dream alive by propagating them. One in particular is 'Lubra'
that has a short life here on the coast but would go well down Goulburn way.

Just at the moment Mrs B R Cant is in full bud and not one Blackspot leaf
to be seen. Mrs. BR C and Crepuscule are just fantastic roses.
I met a guy at a wedding reception sitting at our table, he related to me his HT rose problems.
I mentioned I grow roses that ARE EVERGREEN, FLOWER IN FLUSHES THROUOUT THE ENTRE YEAR, NEVER NEED SPRAYING OR PRUNING and bush up closer to the ground.
He replied "I will be down to see you next week"

Considering that my mum, my aunt, my grandmother and my other aunt (dad's sister) were all passionate gardeners I think I got hooked on gardening after playing in my maternal grandmother's fernery when I was 3 yrs old. When I was a in primary school, the next door neighbour grew roses and was also a passionate gardener. She always encouraged me into her garden and showed what was happening. I was 7yrs old and had to go to the dentist - I'd had a fall and chipped a tooth - and I remember not having an anaesthetic. But the dentist gave me a beautiful apricot rose. I can still see it in my mind. And the smell! Citrusy, cinammony, powerful - just fabulous. He grew roses when he wasn't being a dentist. He was also a family friend.

Simon it is quite dry and cold around Goulburn so if HT's are going to do well in Australia then that is the best spot to grow them.

Thanks Damo for sharing your roses and experiments with us. I just love your enthuseasm and your love of roses shows through.

Keep growing, pollinating and stay healthy.