Some things, you just know because you were around, and people like Tom Carruth told you that.

Jeri

Chris, think about it. A major producer is going to release their best roses themselves. Roses named for celebrities and politicians are very often the "also ran" roses. The name will make or break them. Fans of the name will buy them because of the names. Those who don't know the name or who aren't fans, often won't bother. The rose was too good or too limited in its adaptability to dump, but not good enough for Week's to promote themselves. Selling it to Armstrong, which is southern Californian, where the rose is better suited, was perfect for them. Even the bad roses cost money to develop and test. Selling these to smaller introducers helps make back some of the R&D costs. It's been a common practice since at least the 1930s in the US.

With that information, you may now be able to see who bred something and who introduced it. If it was created by a major US producer and a smaller concern introduced it, the creator thought it probably wouldn't be worthy of their own marketing and advertising dollars. Kim

Hi Kim,

I see you understood the real question.

HMF would be more valuable if it included remarks like "an Armstrong exclusive introduction."

By the way, I asked you a question in the lavender quest thread.

Thank you for this response and thank you in advance for the other one.

Yep -- that's it, well said, Kim and Jeri. Della Reese is a really good rose in my yard, and nearly mildew-free, but I've been told by folks who know that it was not intro'd nationally because the testing they did for it back east showed it was too prone to blackspot, and this introducer (Weeks) did not want to have their overall reputation for healthy roses (at least the newer ones) affected by the proverbial "one bad apple." Armstrong has intro'd bunches of Weeks "not quite good enough" roses over the years. Palatine does the same thing for Kordes roses, sometimes, and Edmunds for Star.

I know I am far away from this as in distance(Australia). Kathy, Kim, Jeri. Is it possible to have a sort of "Zonal release"

If you mean a rose released only in suitable zones or climates, that is pretty much what selling the rose to the Armstrong Garden Centers was, David. Kim

Well I have to say that I have a few of these "Armstrong exclusives", and I could not be happier with them. Joshua Bradley is one of the healthiest, most prolific blooming roses in my yard, and Della Reese has not been any more BS prine than any of my other HT's.

...Joshua Bradley is one of the healthiest, most prolific blooming roses in my yard, and Della Reese has not been any more BS prone..

In this case, could be the skill and expertise of the gardener. :)

And/or the micro climate in which the particular varieties are grown are suitable for them, where the larger areas where they were tested were either marginally or unsuitable for them. There will almost always be exceptions. We've all seen how moving a plant just a few feet can often make all the difference. Kim

Yes Kim, that is what I meant, your correct as usual.