You must have the patience of an angel. After the third year mine would have gone to rose heaven. Life is too short and there are too many good roses.

Ingrid

Nothing is nicer than a Constance Spry in its prime. but it sounds as though you got a dud.

Rosefolly

Sorry, I see you already had the answer to my last question in your post.

I assume at this point your constance suckers are its rootstock, where did you get it from?

Also, Constance Spry would be touch and go for me and Im a little warmer than you , though I dont know what state you are in, I have fairly long winters, with several warm /cold /ice trends. If I lived closer to the coast I probable could get away with it more...

Constance Spry is wonderful here. By the way, I do take 1/3-1/2 off in winter, it doesn't harm this rose at all. Dispaly is overwhelming each spring.
Olga

I'm glad I'm not the only one going through this quandry. I have a Constance Spry that I bought own-root and it is in it's third year. It is huge and taking up so much space. I was willing to sacrifice space in a small garden for this rose, because photo's I've seen are spectacular. I thought this would be the year it would take flight, but no, it is just sending out long canes. I read in some books that it could bloom in spring or summer, so I'm hoping it will still bloom this year. Am I fooling myself? Should I wait one more year? I hope someone will give me some advice out there. I am so close to getting rid of it, but then I think, what if next year is the year. I don't know what to do. You waited ten years! I am not so patient.

Jardin, you may not have enough winter for a once-bloomer to bloom. "Once blooming in spring or summer" means "at the usual time of the first flush, give or take a couple of weeks" -- except for a few oddball species and near-species roses.

Thank you Michael! So I guess I will get rid of her. If she needs winter chill, she won't get it here. I really wonder if anyone in z10 has ever miraculously had a CS bloom with abandon.

I used to have CS, in a small garden, which always sent out very long canes and I had to prune severely to keep in bounds. I had wonderful displays of flowers which lasted about two-three weeks at most. I decided it did not earn its spot even though the blooms were very lovely. It is a wonderful addition for a large property but not for a small one. There are many roses to try.

While we're discussing Constance Spry...can we also consider Chianti (supposedly very similar to CS in all but color)? I'm wondering if the disease resistance for Chianti is comparable to that of CS. My CS is resistant to BS, but Chianti is not...but Chianti is in partial shade, so I'm wondering whether a move to full sun is in order.

Robert

I have a very healthy---neglected CS--she is a beauty but I don't care for the fragrance.

she puts on a show every spring with little or no care----

Florence

Well, it makes me sad when one of my favorite roses, and an outstanding one at that, receives a bad review here on the GW. Certainly it affects others who read it and are turned off, thereby missing out on an excellent rose. Certainly we all have different experiences and it is really hard to predict how a particular rose will do under different circumstances where the clone, cultural practices and environmental conditions all contribute to a plant's success.

Still, I have got to wonder how a real 'Constance Spry' could possibly have only two flowers in 10 years. It just doesn't make any sense at all which leads me to believe that the author is using hyperbole to make a point or the plant is clearly not 'Constance Spry'. Zone 5 is a perfect zone for this rose. I have two in zone 4 and one in zone 6 and they all do wonderfully producing countless blooms during their long flower period. Further, I would add that there is very little difference in growth pattern of flower production between my Zone 4 and zone 6 plants.

So what is the evidence that the maligned plant really is 'Constance Spry'? "...tiny white rugosa-style blooms." is clearly not she.

Robert, I do grow both CS and Chianti. They both get BS here, but CS is more resistant, keeps more leaves. Both are vigorous enough to grow and bloom well, if you just ignore BS. I love them both a lot.
Olga

Olga..you know that I ignore BS. I'm just wondering whether Chianti needs a sunnier spot. It's not growing as well as I think it should.

Robert

Dear me!! My Constance came from a reliable nursery. It may have been Cruickshanks. It is a Constance Spry - I bought it for one and the two (2) (no hyperbole) blooms in 10 years were Constance Spry blooms. Thanks, everyone else, for your help.