Oops. I just meant to say, some moss rose that's heat-tolerant.

@sylviaww 10a, hot dry inland Socal, yes, the heat part is interesting, especially as climate change is making things hotter and drier, so which roses can stand it? Is there a thread on this?

Rogue Valley had Paul Fontaine in stock briefly a year or so ago. I ALMOST bought it based on Kim's recommendation. I haven't seen it back in stock since.

Somewhat off topic, maybe.

When we lived in Louisiana and were working on our houses there and the farm in Tennessee, the drives to and fro were immensely restful and recuperative to our aching muscles.

What this might have to do with R. gigantea happened along I-10 over in southern Mississippi maybe ten miles from the Bay St. Louis exit.

On the north side of the interstate, a bit swampy, but lots of tall trees. and clamboriing all over these trees were huge white flowers facing the sun. First thought: magnolias. But magnolias have easily recognized leaves amd a ;lot more petals that cup upwards. These big petals looked rose-ish even at interstate speeds. And clamboring up and over some very tall trees.

A couple of weeks later, I couldn't see any blooms along that side of the road (once bloomer evidence?)

Anyway, maybe somebody rose-interested will drive that road to work daily and will watch for that plant.

@Paul Barden those HMF photos I posted for Girija Viraraghavan . I've not seen the rose, nor really any of the others for which I've posted photos for her as I've entered them into the database for her. It does seem quite "cherry red". The images were taken in her Kodaikanal garden where many of Viru's roses were bred.

Woops. First half of post gone into the ether. I wanted to say, Kim, with my pale sidewalks and beige walls, I'd never really made the connection between heat--not water!--and root health..

It's a miracle any of my pots survived.

I struggle to keep mine healthy also. Will make changes.

@susan9santabarbara those plants you gave me are the most vigorous I have ever grown! And they root so so easily, I have a 100% success rate with them, it’s crazy. It gives me false confidence in my abilities lol. I’ll definitely take your advice.

@roseseek do you have recommendations or sources of information that I could start with? I’d love to start practicing on less rare varieties! Thank you so much!

@susan9santabarbara thank you! @SD Shine -Z10a Bay Area fortunately there are many tutorials on line. YouTube has many. I posted a blog post many years ago complete with photos on my blog here. https://pushingtheroseenvelope.blogspot.com/2014/11/chip-budding.html There are more photos of how they develop at this post. https://pushingtheroseenvelope.blogspot.com/2014/08/its-been-good-year-for-budding.html There are more in other posts as well as how to create seedling tables, how to pollinate roses, wrapping cuttings (Burrito Method), and other subjects including seedlings I've raised over the years. Please feel free to browse to your heart's content.

Go to YouTube and search "chip budding roses" and it will bring up a number of videos. This is from Kitty and Bob Belendez from the Santa Clarita Rose Society chip budding on Fortuniana. The only difference is Fortuniana's bark is very brittle. Pink Clouds is not. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OUOmujtzqvg and their article about it. http://www.santaclaritarose.org/BuddingUltimate.html There are others on line, too so if one doesn't stick with you, surely another will. I hope that helps!

Cutting off my draft posts before they're finished! Grr. As to my roses, they managed almost without any care. They are on timed drip irrigation, which helps. After May 1, I dragooned my son into deadheading. He learned fast, and has been quick to point out issues ie mildew. I tell him the gardening gene will surface in him eventually... it took a looong time for me, but my dad was a dedicated gardener, so I hope this holds true.
The other day I got close enough to Full Sail to inhale its mindnumbing scent. Progress!
so I know ut's there

Roseeek - thanks for explaining that so well. We have the same weather every spring, so I try to get really disease resistant roses. I like that you tested the theory and that the solution worked so well. I always thought that rust was from too much water. I'll remember this. Thank you SO much!

Roseseek - today I super watered my pm roses, I hope it really helps them. Thanks so much for the great tip!!

I've always found it fascinating where DAs thrive or don't. I guess it's kind of a no-brainer that they do well here in a Mediterranian climate, veering towards UK climate at times. What I find interesting is how well they do for some hot summer growers like Judi and Diane. I suppose a big part of that is lack of humidity and fungal diseases.

I completely agree with Ben and Roseseek about not being a fan of the company, particularly in the past ten years. As Joe Average, I obviously have no experience with Roseseek's comments about their pricing and policies to their growers, but that's truly awful. But as Ben said, arrogant and greedy has been my impression of them recently, and it appears that they've been that way for a long time.

@susan9santabarbara If I stopped purchasing from any company where the top is led by greed, I'd like have very few options.....and a lot more money in my bank account hah.

@Diane Brakefield I got my Fred from Heirloom! It's own-root and took a bit to get going (as do all my own root roses) but it has quickly climbed the ranks in my garden and has earned its prime location. Golden Celebration has been such a fantastic, reliable bloomer for me and it was yours that inspired my purchase, so thank you!

@BenT (NorCal 9B Sunset 14), oh I totally agree re: this being a fantastic place to grow roses. My mom in Canada grows in zone 5b and I do not envy her at all. I also agree with your take on Regan's. I've purchased so many huge, healthy roses from them and would much rather support my local nurseries regardless of cost, plus chatting with Kim about roses whenever I'm there is a joy. From what I understand, the city jacked up their rent by a lot last year and they were forced to raise prices as a result. I was also lucky enough to snag a Sharifa from them last year and I love her so much. My real issue with them right now is the fact that my company just moved down there and I'm now working an 8 minute drive away. The last time I had a craptastic day at work, I somehow ended up there to treat myself. Some big win at work? Treat myself. Wednesday? Treat myself. And so on.

@SD Shine -Z10a Bay Area: Completely agree about the dilemma of buying from companies. And companies should charge what they want... the point of a business is to make money, and let the market decide.

When I started my insane rose career back in 1997, Austins were readily available at my local nursery that specializes in roses for the same price as others. As the years have gone on, the Austins gradually got more expensive than the others. Which is fine... they priced their products as they wished. I guess my issue with them started when they began removing their beloved classic roses after DA Sr. died. It was obviously a way to get people to buy their new (worse) offerings. The other thing that really bugged me was that they released a statement a couple of years ago that the reason they were deleting these beloved varieties was b/c of climate change and their concern about the environment. I call major P.R. bulls**t on that. Kim's comment about their practices with their growers didn't help my opinion. I will say, however, that I've been impressed that DA's bare root grafted roses via their website have been $30 with minimal shipping charges. I ordered a couple of them 3 years ago. They're definitely not grade #1 grafted bare roots, and have the most hideously long shanks ever, but they catch up.

Regan is one of the greatest ever, whether in person, or their former mail order. It's good to hear that they're still going, despite the rent hike. A couple of years ago, the city announced that they were going to build housing on the property, and they were going to be kicked out.