How about the Generous Gardener? I don't grow it but I have been thinking about giving it a try in my garden. I also live in NJ. Some members have good things to say about TGG.

ratdogheads.... right that's it, I like that very much so you've just persuaded me to get this rose. In fact I'm getting 3 to plant together, I think it's just what I've been looking for... thanks again...

I've not had an Austin yet that does not get BS. Try the Kordes roses that have ADR designation, they would be your best bet.

I'm with opuntiamc, a BS free Austin doesn't exist. There are some that don't totally defoliate, but most get some form of BS. Avoid Golden Celebration and Bishop's Castle if you do go this route. Teasing Georgia doesn't defoliate, but does get spotty.

Black spot reigns in my no spray, not quite organic, garden but these Austin's I would put forward as more than 90% clean..

'Kew Gardens' 8 x 6 foot and almost 100%, barely a blemish all season...

'The Lark Ascending' huge, nearly 10 foot tall without pruning, almost 100%..

'Desdemona' which you might get next year, 95% clean, grows between 2 blackspot magnets...

'The Lady's Blush'... 90% clean I would say..

'Munstead Wood' is also pretty good, 90%... I'm getting another 5...

'Royal Jubilee'... 90%, so vigorous you would hardly notice..

'The Generous Gardener'... very little blackspot so far.. grows next to a magnet..

'Scarborough Fair'... very little... I'm getting 2 more...

'Rosemoor' a rugosa type, and 'Harlow Carr' are showing good promise.

those would be my best from about 20 Austin's I grow... of course I've no idea if they are any good for your climate or zone 6...

My worst would be...

'Tranquillity'... 'The Poet's Wife'... 'Sir John Betjeman'... 'Ancient Mariner'...'Lady of Shalott'

Thank you so much for all the suggestions. This is great! I particularly had my eye on The Generous Gardener. I am so glad it seems to be well rated by everyone. I was also eying Boscobel. The other suggestions, I still have to research, as I am not quite familiar with them. I was also considering Strawberry Hill, Wollerton Old Hall, A Shropshire Lad, and James Gallaway. Let me know if you have any thoughts on these.

Yes, there are some great BS resistant Austins. I live in an area w/ high BS pressure and Teasing Georgia, James Galway, Gentle Hermione, Spirit of Freedom, and Claire Austin do very well - very little to no BS on the very bottom of the plant during peak BS season (usually around late August here). There are others that look promising that I planted this spring but way to early to judge (Munstead Wood being one of them).

I hear The Alnwick Rose, The Generous Gardener, Wedgewood Rose, Boscobel and Molineux are all very disease resistant as well. I hope to add a couple of these next year.

Queen of Sweden is quite good on BS resistance. My only complaint with her is that the re-bloom is a bit slow. But lovely pastel pink (with apricot highlights) blooms. Very upright, taller bush--maybe 5 ft tall.

The Wedgewood Rose is a climber, very floriferous. Does get some bs occasionally--not a lot, but a bit, but charges right on through it and gets busy blooming again, especially if you remember to water it regularly.

Molineux has a bit of a BS problem periodically, but is quite good most of the time. Blooms good even in hot, hot, hot weather. Also somewhat upright, but shorter than Queen of Sweden--maybe 3-4 ft tall at most in my region, though Californians claim it grows much taller there. I really like this golden/yellow/apricot rose.

Pretty Jessica--if you can find her for sale, she is a good one. Touches of BS occasionally, but doesn't let it slow her down. Fat fully packed pink blooms.

Those Austins (plus Munstead Wood) are reasonably good choices for a no-spray garden, assuming you don't demand 100% no spots. I don't find they have any more problems than my Kordes roses do--and they are supposedly the most BS resistant roses out there.

I've been hearing really good things about Boscobel, but don't have it yet. Think you will really enjoy it. I believe Princes Anne of Kent is highly rated and BS resistant also, but I don't have her yet either.

Another new Austin that I do have is Olivia Rose Austin--she is wonderful so far--delicate pastel pink blooms, quite floriferous, and no disease problems so far--but I've only had her a few months, so I can't make long-term judgments yet--but she definitely looks very promising.

Hope that helps.

Kate

The Mayflower has the reputation of having zero BS, I've had 2 of them for 2 years & they're living up to their reputation.

Jane

Lady of Shallot, Heritage, Wollerton Old Hall (all in partial sun), Pretty Jessica, don't get any blackspot for me and I believe there is a lot of BS pressure here. They have all been blooming through the heat too.

I hear conflicting stories about how BS resistant Lady of Shalott is--so I guess it depends on what variety of BS is found in your region.

Kate

Thank you, everyone, for your suggestions so far. I was going to wait until Spring to order any new Austins, buuuuut.... I saw The Mayflower at HR, and they were having a 2-for sale, soooo...it somehow managed to magically hop into my shopping basket along with First Crush from Kordes. ;)

My Heritage x 3 gets BS. I second what Kate said about Olivia Austin Rose, no BS, so far and her comment on Queen of Sweden. The Poet's Wife, same as Marlorena, has BS.

Excellent find! Susan William-Ellis, the white sport of the Mayflower is 100% BS free for me. I always forget about that one, I just take it for granted. Tip hardy though zone 5 winters too.

Good luck with your search. None have been resistant for me (I'm in eastern Monmouth), including Heritage, Lady Emma Hamilton, Teasing Georgia, L. D. Braithwait.

If you find one that is resistant in NJ, please let me know, I want to add it to the list of disease resistant roses that I give out when I give talks.

Diane, I will let you know. When you say that none were resistant for you, do you mean they were not 100% disease free, had some disease, or were completely covered and just did not survive the disease? My Bow Bells is 17 years old and it gets very little disease. Whatever defoliation it suffers is from some sort of tiny green caterpillars. I just don't use any spray on anything in my garden. Not even organic stuff.

eweandbee--those tiny green caterpillars are rose slugs that mostly hang around the underside of leaves and chew "windows" through the leaves. They are usually present only at specific but limited times--then, predator bugs come along and destroy them. If you can't wait a couple weeks for the predators to come along (though evidently you do), you can help out by checking every morning during rose slug season and squishing the tiny slugs (if you aren't squeamish) or tossing them away into the grass. That's what most of us do so that the leaves won't get all skeletonized by the time the predators show up.

Kate

They all defoliated without a fungicide treatment. Heritage at least tries, the rest were spotty messes by early July.

Here in South Florida we get tons of BS and my Austins are usually the only ones that don't end up completely defoliated without spraying. Well, that and a few of my Kordes and OGR's.

My clean Austins:

Pat Austin is my best performing rose of all roses in my garden. She gets very little disease and is always blooming.

The Shepherdess: Sometimes she's the only rose with leaves on it at the end of my "season" in a bed with all Hybrid Teas (I prune my roses in September after the summer has defoliated many of them to get them ready for the dry season where they all bounce back happily with less disease pressure)

Ambridge Rose: For me she's been very disease resistant. She does get a little black spot but again, compared to my hybrid teas she's down right resistant.

Olivia Rose Austin: By far the most disease resistant Austin ever and maybe my healthiest rose of all.

Lady Emma Hamilton: This rose has been recently planted so its hard to tell, but so far she's had very little black spot and tons of blooms. And she's only about 1.5 feet tall.

Bishop's Castle: Someone said it was a bad black spotter for them, but mine has been great thus far.

Gentle Hermione: another one that is not immune to disease but has had good resistance.

Princes Alexandra of Kent: also a good bloomer and little disease

Charlotte: a great rose that is also very disease resistant for me

Scepter D' Isle: again, not disease free but healthy enough and blooms a ton

Other non-austins to consider for their disease resistance:

Elegant Fairy Tale, Summer Romance, Wedding Bells, Colette (climber), Souv Baden Baden, Duchess De Brabant, Mrs. B.R. Cant., Easy Does It, Ivor's Rose

I am in NJ. I don't spray. The Austin that are healthy for me are Heritage, Lady of Shallot and Teasing Georgia. And Jude the Obscure.

Crocus Rose, Mustead Wood and Abe Darby are all decent, meaning they do get some blackspot and but does not seem to bother them.