Hello all

I had an Agway Rouge Royale and Mary Rose that did well last year (first year) and miserably this. RR is dead, MR has one spindly single canelet. They each had a mingy first flush, then straight downhill. They are in a border along the southfacing deck, against lattice work. Looking at the bed, the anchor at the end, by the driveway, is a huge clump of Siberian Iris. Then, moving to the right and up the slope, there is RR, MR, then a healthy Rose du Roi a Fleur Pourpre (sp?), Comte du Chambord, Cardinal Richelieu, and finally Darlow's Enigma holding down the top corner, sunroom wall to one side, deck to the other. So pulling out the RR and MR leaves two serious holes. The underplantings include geraniums, catmint, and perennial bachelor buttons.

I have more than a dozen roses of varying sizes in pots, most of which will go into that wintering ditch in a few months. But I get to pick two to plant in the border! Selecting the largest and healthiest of the potted ones, here are the candidates - these five are in huge pots, at least 18" at top and at least that high:

Therese Bugnet

Reine des Violettes

Cinderella

Bremerstadtmusikanten

Abraham Darby

Or should I chose smaller ones? These are in pots about 10"-12" in top diameter, and no more than 12" tall, and are either a single branched cane of about 3/16" diameter or several thinner canes. The three best looking are:

Allegra

Ebb Tide

Sharifa Asma

I am not including two mystery roses (Queen Elizabeth and Heritage, which were Sears body bags, and looked nothing like the photos of those two) and this year's Agway tempter, Aromatherapy which blossomed all summer, All three are leafed out and healthy, in the really big pots, and have bloomed steadily all summer, but so did last year's Agway duo).