Be in awe, be very very in awe...

I'm not usually one to go gaga over blush toned roses, but this one speaks to me. To get this quality of bloom in a first year rose is terrific in my world. Not yet a prolific bloomer, but few roses are for me in its first year. Besides, this one is in part shade because I knew a Kordes rose could handle it.

Cynthia

Blink or you will miss it! Blows very fast and don't think of putting it in a vase. Not a prolific bloomer even out of the shade.

I have never seen that quartered look that modestgoddess posted in mine. Wish mine looked like that. I usually see a kind of asymmetrical halved look that you see on the Kordes website.

Planted mine last year from Lowe's and it bloomed a lot in early summer, but It grew over 4 ft so I had to move it to a rear bed (not the best timing and I did not do a good job). It was slow to recover and only just eked out a small bloom.

Thank you all for your evaluations.

What I believe is happening with the blossom of First Crush is that it is showing the quartering genes in its pedigree.

However, the gene is somehow supressed so that incomplete quartering is the result, therefore what we see in a fully open bloom is noticeable asymmetry. From what I understand, quartering is not actually quartering, but quinteting. The blossom actually divides into five (5), sections not four. The word quarter is what has stuck in descrbing such blossoms.

Almost all of the Austin roses have quartering blossoms, mostly very symmetrical.

Now, does asymmetrical quartering result in a faulty bloom?...not necessarily. Perhaps the appeal of the bloom some of us experience when beholding First Crush is exactly due to its lack of uniformity.

With great fragrance, ADR designation, and other desirable traits, First Crush may deserve a second look by me.

I used to have predominantly hybrid rugosas in my rose garden, and lived with the fact many hybrid rugosas had what I call 'confused looking' fully open blooms. Their many other strong attributes over-rode the bloom issue...until I had enough! I want beautiful blossoms! Now I accept the extra work the cultural demands such roses require.

I choose new roses very carefully, blossom form wise, because of my past experience with hybrid rugosas.

I don't mind the asymmetrical bloom, but the form of the bush is not to my taste which is why it is hidden in the rear garden now. Really straight, tall and stiff looking thick canes. I am wondering if this is what a Grandiflora looks like.

totoro, has tall is yours getting? I had considered this for Spring, but don't want tall and thing for this space. Seems like Earth Angel is a better fit. I adore these FC flowers, however and may need to find another spot for it.

Repotted a pair of 2-gallon own roots from Lowe's this Spring into 5-gallons & grew them on to see their habit before planting out in the garden. Already well branched & shaped at purchase, a sturdy 2'x2', with just a bit of further pinching & snap deadheading, they've grown to 4' high. Past 3 feet, the canes arch gracefully outward, allowing breaks along the canes to develop & bloom. Numerous clusters of buds & flowers stud the branches like nosegays. Each opening bloom lasts at least a week in high heat & humidity (95-100F days, low 70's overnight/50-90%). When an individual bloom shatters & drops its petals cleanly, more buds & blooms within the cluster are still swelling & opening, several at a time, giving a long display. Each flush has produced more flowers than the previous one more rapidly. Bloom form identical to those of modestgoddess ("next door" in Maryland), showing shadings of pink mingled with blush. Fragrance is rich & satisfying. Foliage still spotless no spray. Very pleased with this lovely rose! Sue

Vasue,

How is the spacing between First Crush's blooms within a cluster? Are they tightly packed? Does First Crush produce blooms one to a stem also?

The reason for the questions is my Summer Romance, also a Kordes rose, is getting shovel pruned ASAP, in part because its blooms are so tightly packed there is no distinction between blooms within a cluster. The cluster looks like one, confused, globular flower. Since the blooms within a cluster open somewhat in sequence, the spent blooms, which annoyingly hold their dried up petals, destroy the beauty. Try to deadhead the spent blooms, whose necks are extremely short, and neighboring blooms and buds are accidentally broken off in the process. In addition, Summer Romance repeat booms slowly and flushes a lot of vegetative growth at the expense of flower production in my garden. Its a shame because it is extremely disease resistant with richly fragrant blooms.

Mine got over 4 ft by early June. I don't mind tall, but mine did not arch, just stuck straight up. Maybe from the first photo (right after the move) you can see how close the buds are on a cluster. Unfortunately I had deadheaded some before this photo so it may look like more space between blooms.

Here is the bush now with fewer leaves so you can see how straight the canes are. the canes would be even more vertical and closely packed if I had not trained the outer stems outward a little.

My experience is more like to Totoro's rather than vasue's. Stiff canes. Mine also has a lot of thorns, not suitable for a high traffic area. Blooms are gorgeous and perfect when they happen, but it is pretty stingy in my experience. Two years old.

My First Crush has been disappointing so far.

The best formed flowers I got were shortly after purchase in a 1 gallon pot so maybe it needs a lot of fertilizer? I have read from Straw that many roses with many petals need lots of calcium and magnesium which are easily leached out soil by rain.

Yay, I finally got a decent bloom off my First Crush!

Thornworn, sorry I didn't see your question till now. (Tend to visit here in odd moments.) The individual stems/pedicels of each flower in a spray of First Crush seem longer by maybe 1/2" or so than those of Summer Romance, observing pairs of FC & triples of SR equal in age. May just be their response to my conditions rather than characteristic across the board. (Full sun from 10-4 or 11-5 depending on season.) Looking at these photos of First Crush & Summer Romance at HMF may illustrate what I see in this garden. Also note Dave's photo early in this thread.

First Crush - http://www.helpmefind.com/rose/l.php?l=21.286333 

Summer Romance - http://www.helpmefind.com/rose/l.php?l=21.255134 

Consequently, First Crush's individual flowers are slightly more separated & defined from each other than those of Summer Romance here. Yet both present a nosegay impression to my eye. No, I've not yet observed a single stand alone bloom, only multiple buds & blooms in a cluster. You could remove some of the buds at an early stage to thin their number & space those remaining to your taste. Often done by exhibitors or to push individual blooms to larger size by disbudding. Also note that older plants often gain stature in all parts as they grow, sometimes including the stem length of each pedicel in a cluster - something each plant reveals in maturity. Might keep that in mind with Summer Romance & give it a chance to show you what it may accomplish with regards to flower spacing as it matures.

As far as deadheading an individual blown bloom in a cluster - I tend to snap it off by itself at the abscission point. Larger hands than mine may find it easier to snip it off at the same point with thin bladed snippers or manicure/cuticle scissors. Routine here for all types of roses unless cutting for bouquets, find this promotes quicker & more generous rebloom than cutting farther down a stem.

www.goldcoastrose.org/articles/rethinking_deadheading.pdf 

If that last link doesn't work for you - as just clicking it didn't for me - type in "rethinking deadheading" in the search box there, which results in a green "Articles". Clicking Articles should take you to a list of articles, where it's sixth from the bottom.

Sue

Thank you, vasue, for your information loaded response to my inquiry. Much appreciated!

Moses, you don't NEED another opinion, but I have to say how wonderful this rose is. Like Nipsstress, mine is in partial shade and is one of the most perfect bushes I have in health and form. Mine is new this year from a 2 gal. nursery can, own root, and has not been without blooms. Small when purchased, is already at the stated mature size. Unlike Ninkasi, mine has not stopped blooming, and has good staying power. I don't know how they last in a vase. Worth having for the fragrance alone.

Moses, I agree about the quartering/quinteting blossom form. Mine are not always perfectly quartered, yet appealing. Northland Rosarium's description: "...the rose was well named. As the bloom opens, it is indeed a crush of beautiful ivory pink petals." Emphasis mine.

Might add that FC is planted next to Summer Romance, also new this year, same size, so the comparison is easy. FC hasn't stopped blooming all season, where SR has given me 1 single bloom, with a new spray about to open on one bush and no blooms at all on my other SR, awkward form on one, perfect form on the other. Hoping they just need a bit longer to settle in.

Flowers Are Music, thanks for your report. First Crush is now pushed to the top of my 'future,' rose list. Fragrance is #1 to me. First Crush being ADR designated and an abundant bloomer is music to my ears, Flowers Are Music.

My Summer Romance is getting shovel pruned any day now. I hate to do it, but after two years in the garden, its 4', dense, massive size is contradicted by its pitifully poor flower production of cluster blooms on the shortest necks cramming the flowers tightly together make it an unsatisfactory rose. So, you may draw a similar conclusion with your Summer Romance. I hope unlike mine, it blooms satisfactorily next year for you, but the short flower necks may be a universal trait of this rose.

You'll find the same trait with First Crush. It doesn't last long when cut, either. Wonderful fragrance, though! Less disease resistant than Summer Romance and buds bullnose frequently (both do).