I like Roses too, but our deer love them even more so I don't really bother with them. I do indeed love Florence, Oregon. Your climate is so mild you should be growing some palms too! Cheers, Banana Joe

Banana Joe- I've heard deer don't like rugosas and they don't eat mine so I got 2 new yellow ones this year, Agnes and Topaz Jewel, so I hope they do well.

As for red climbers, you can find lots of threads about them on the roses and rosesant forums. Here is one recommendation-
"Climbing Cramoisi Superieur, Etoile d'Hollande, or Fields of the Wood"
I have Dublin Bay and the flowers are wonderful, very vivid red, but very few produced and the plant is slow to grow. It's getting one long cane this year and should do better when it gets up onto my deck out of the shade. I have to say I don't pay attention to rose diseases and don't spray either.

Some of my best performers have been Zepherine Drouhin, Crepuscule, Champney's Pink Cluster, Reve d'Or, Souvenir de la Malmaison, Betty Boop, Mons. Tillier, La Biche, Distant Drums, Marie Pavie, Penelope, Cornelia, Fourth of July, Tuscany Superb, Rosa Mundi, Baby Blanket, Evelyn, Knock-out,
Excellenz von Schubert, Mrs. B. R. Cant, and mini's White Cloud, Sea Breeze, My Honey, Pacific Serenade, and Sequoia Gold.

hemnancy - I've been wanting to get Cramoisi Superieur! I've been unsure if it is hardy enough for here. I love it, I am going to order one! I've been wanting to get Marie Pavie too. I just got the Red Fairy and Souvenir de la Malmaison. I have a Rosa Mundi as well and I've planted a couple of red knock-outs in an area where they won't get much attention. We'll see how they do.

I also have planted a couple of own-root Rugosas to form a hedge. A hot pink with large fragrant flowers.

Good luck in choosing some roses Peg in Oregon. I love roses too!

My favourite red climber is Dortmund.... single red flowers, very prolific and although it gets some b.s., it is not severe. I like a "simple" flower, and this fits the bill for me.

I'm sorry, pacnwgrdngirl, I wasn't thinking well when I just copied the recommendation from the Rose forum. I have Cramoisi Superieur and it was one of those struggling in the ground that I dug out and put in a pot to see if I could save it, and it bloomed some then it wasn't doing very well in the pot either, could be my fault for not watering enough. Sometimes roses are just unlucky at being hit by voles though so it's hard for me to say that it was the rose's fault. So I can't really give a personal recommendation on it. I'm sorry my post was unclear.

I saw a climber blooming at Portland Nursery that had big near single flowers, I don't know if it was Dortmund or Altissima sp?. It was impressive.

I'm still going to order one hemnancy. I'm a block from the Sound. I might be in one of the micro-climates. I have a lot of annuals that don't bite it, and some bienniels that are perennials, who knows? I have a semi-protected spot for it too. I will give it a try.

I like singles too. I have a "Nearly Wild" that is new this year, can't wait to see it bloom.

I don't think it was a hardiness problem. Some roses just take off and some dwindle. It could be vole damage or ? Last year my 4 new bands were damaged by the 100*F hot spells and I planted them out last fall and so far have lost Westerland and Edith Schurr and there was one tiny leaf on Buff Beauty. Not a hardiness problem, just a cultivation problem. Ghislaine de Feligonde is doing well, though.

peg,

I have slowly been adding roses to my little landscape project, many of them seem to have the typical rose issues but four, in particlular have really impressed me. The first is 'Lyda Rose'(lavendar/white). I trained it on a 6' cedar/copper fence section and it is stunning. It was virtually evergreen all winter, the foliage is shiny and spotless, it is just shy of 7' tall right now with probably a minimum of 100 buds. It's in the foreground of my white wisteria which is also just beginning to pop and it should be something if both bloom together. Just across a walkway from the 'Lyda Rose', I have a 'Scent from Above' (yellow)in it's second year on the same type fence section. It also has very nice clean foliage and is all budded up. It's right behind a 'Briotti' horsechestnut which is also in full bloom. Just down from that I have a 'Darlow's Enigma' growing on another section of the fence. While I'm not as impressed with it yet, it too is quite young. The fourth one that has really impressed me is not climbing on anything, in fact it is only about 3' tall but it's a WOW ! Great clean foliage and dark velvety purple blooms. It's called 'Midnight Blue'. All four of these have really impressed me because I haven't learned how to successfully overcome my rose inexperience on all my others yet but these perform inspite of me :-) They are all quite fragrant too.

I love roses also but they sometimes got rust. Then I was recommended the Knock Out and it has been doing really well as it is disease resistant. Others that are disease resistant are the Julia Child, and the Livin Easy. I am pretty sure these are all floribundas. I have heard that yellow roses are the ones most prone to disease. Good luck!

to balance this thread, i have to say i really dislike roses. when the aren't in bloom, they are really an ugly plant (IMO, of course). to my eye, they always take away from an otherwise beautiful garden scene.

To me no other flower blooms as long and with the hope of fragrance. Each to his own. Souvenir de la Malmaison surprised me last year with lots of fall bloom in its second year. This year its sending up a very sturdy cane with lots of buds.:-) And bloom on Reve d'Or was sensational last year. I'm happy when I find a rose that will exceed my expectations. It makes up for the ones that dwindle and die. I especially like ones with the burgundy new foliage.

I love mine so much I'm taking them with me!

Here is a link that might be useful: He promised me a rose garden

Wow Pat! ARe those ALL yours? I've never seen such beauties and perfection. I had to shake my head and remember my deer and black spot or I would run out and try to emulate your garden. Very lovely. Thanks for the show.

I live in Florence and have about 70 different roses. The ones that are the most problematic are: Mr. Lincoln, Royal Amethyst, and Rock and Roll. Many others do well when controlled for blackspot and downey mildew. For blackspot I use Bonide Mancozeb with zinc. For downey mildew use Aliette alternated with Heritage. Early spring determine which fungus is the problem and spray, spray, spray. If you want to be organic, forget roses get some other flower. The roses that do well include Just Joey, Climbing America, Golden Celebration, Firefighter, Fragrant Cloud, Pope Paul, Secret, Meredith, Pearly Gates, Intrigue, Sheer Bliss, Oscar Cordel, New Zealand, and Ching-ching. That is a wide array of colors. The are all huge, fragrant blossoms. Do not mix your roses with other perennials. Make a separate rose garden. Otherwise you will poison everything in the vicinity of your rose spraying. Roses need specialized treatment that other plants do not.

I garden with roses intentionally mixed in with other perennials and do not spray. I live outside Portland but up about 1600 ft. Doing really well for me are: Austin's Benjamin Britten, Madame Alfred Carriere, Cl Souvenir de la Malmaison, rugosa rose Purple Pavement, Austin's Crown Princess Margareta, Zigneunerknabe (Gypsy Boy), Austin's James Galway, Complicata, Lida Rose, Cantabrigensis (although this winter hit it hard), Schlarlachglut, Kiftsgate, Queen of Denmark, Charles De Mills, Westerlund, Chevy Chase, Alchemyst, Jacques Cartier, Quatre Saisons, Ferdinand Pichard, Raubritter, Cl. Paul's Himalayan Musk, Super Dorothy, Julia Child, Sheila's perfume, Cardinal Richelieu, Tuscany Superb, Variegata di Bologna, Gloire de Dijon (in a protected place), Albertine. Doing less well but OK: Charles Darwin, Austin's Harlow Carr (remains a bit "bitty"), Gruss an Aachen, Austin's William Shakespear 2000 and his Falstaff; Dainty Bess, Queen Elizabeth, Golden Showers, Blaze improved, rugosa Roseraie de la Hay, rugosa Blanc Double de Courbet. And more which are babies and yet to prove themselves.

Portland, OR, is the farthest North that roses seem to do really well, at least hybrid teas. Once you get North of Portland the length of warm sunny temperatures in the year is shorter. Roses still grow very lush but all the Spring moisture can lead to disease issues (in many varieties) and roses may not have as much time to bloom prolifically.

That's one of the reasons Camellias and Rhodendrons tend to be more popular in the Tacoma-Seattle area. (ironically these aren't as cold hardy as roses but they do grow better in the cool wet climate)