Thanks for the feedback on how this rose worked (or didn't work) in your yard Desertgarden. I will see if the leaves and habit bug me. So far I like it, but little baby leaves are hard to dislike. It's happily blooming in the heat with no sun scorch, so it has gained favor in my eyes so far.

Diane you like Dominique Massad's look? Too funny. He has that long French hair in the front. I love so many of his roses. Even ones with yellow, which you know I usually veer away from. He has so many large, frilly roses. Have you seen Rosomane Janon? The color change on that one is so vibrant. Belle d'Espinouse is a red/purple stripey that I would love to see in person.

He also has so many roses with unique color combos we don't see here too often. Diablese de Mers is one with that purple shade we both love, but it also has a yellowish center and supposedly smells like jasmine. I want all of his roses. He has so many full and fluffy ones, so many unique singles, so many color combos we don't get to see here.

Since we can't have these roses we want to much, here's a consolation video of a man you find sexy speaking in French about his passion for roses in his rose garden... https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=FbbWRij4zjs

Cori Ann, I will watch the video in a little bit, and see if the man is still sexy, or if the HMF photo was a doctored fluke-heheh. I have not seen photos of Rosomane Janon or Belle d'Espinouse. Did you know rosomane means rose maniac? Froufrou must mean he has an Aunt Jackie who's frivolous. I love these names. Much more interesting than Gee Whiz or something. Going to look at the above two you mentioned. I love large frilly roses, as you know. I'm still amazed that so many of your roses even try in the heat you have. Diane

"I have heard people complain (especially those who are more into the
old roses) that the European roses (other than the Austins) that have
blooms with an old-fashioned look are often perched on top of sky-high
bushes with a stiff growth habit and modern-looking leaves." says Ingrid. I think this is one reason I tried the Austins in the first place, and have never really looked into the modern European "old fashioned" ones. I really don't like that habit at all. Belle de Sardaigne is a Massad climber,and seems to not have this fault. I now have Durance in a pot; the flowers were so beautiful; I'm hoping to grow this as a small climber to avoid the "lollypop look". I also got a rose called Belle de Segosa from Petales des Roses,which they say is a climber which can go up to 3 meters,though everywhere else I've only seen Bde S described as a shrub. However this one has not impressed me positively at all. Typical lollypop habit, flowers boring, and as soon as it got hot the whole plant began looking like it was sunburnt-and this is morning-only sun. It's in a pot; maybe it'll do better in the ground. The Austin rose James Galway seems to be by nature a "lollypop", too; I'm trying to train it's canes as horizontally as possible,but it isn't easy. Still, I'd like to learn more about these French roses...especially to find ones that aren't lollypops.

Hi Bart! Oh I would love to see photos of Belle de Segosa if you have any! Have you ever been to Novaspina nursery in Italy? They list quite a few Massad roses and seem very knowledgeable.

http://www.novaspina.com/en/les-provencelles-5

They seem to breed roses specifically for the hot climate of Italy (with water issues too). If you go, please post some photos! All of us will be so jealous! They list quite a few roses that are so unique and interesting, like Speronella Dalesmanini.

http://www.novaspina.com/en/valorose-5

I also grow Belle de Segosa in a pot (since spring 2014) and I agree with Bart that the growth habit isn't ideal (for a pot), but I think it has a special fragrance and it's been very mildew resistant for me so I still keep it.

I don't necessarily think that "lollypop on a stick" is automatically a bad thing but I do think the canes of BdS grow too tall before setting flower buds. It would work better in the back of a border with smaller roses in front.

A couple of old photos of my plant (not the best bush shot but it was the only one I could find):

Oh it's gorgeous! Maybe wound around a little tripod to rein it in? I wish I could smell it through the photo.

Mine didn't look nearly that goodeven when in bloom,but I've only had it since last december. It grew like a maniac,but in a very angular way, only 2 really long canes -very differenr from Henrik's handsome plant. And, as I mentioned before, as soon as the temperatures went up, the entire plant took on a wierd burnt quality,leaves all yellow-brownish coloured(though not dried out???),canes looking burnt, etc. Since the one I got was sold as CLIMBING Bde S,maybe it's a particularly vigorous sport? Anyway, if the weather ever improves and becomes rainy and cool, I'll try planting it out in the ground.

Cori Ann,

You've dangled too tempting of a worm in front of me, and I bit! I believe I just ordered the last two Chantal Merieux (wanted three, but only two were available, presently), from Roses Unlimited.

I may container grow them until next spring for now. A winter in my fruit cellar will definitely give them an edge over going into the ground now, and facing winters onslaught there, even if heavily winterized.

I like to take chances and play hunches.....and if you, Cori Ann, have a rose that's new to me, there must be a very good reason you do, so its worth a trial for me. What have I got to lose? Nothing, really. What have I got to gain? A lot, if Chantal Merieux works here.

Cori Ann, you may not be aware of the positive influence you have on your fellow Roses Forum members. You seem to pull extraordinary roses out of nowhere like a magician and get us all stirred up about them. Your cutting edge, 'Adventures in Roses,' gets us all going and inspired. Thanks!

The flower form of the CM seen in your photos is one of my favorites. The flower is beautiful in form and color. I truly have a weakness for roses with button eyes....draws you in to take a closer look. Then the scent gets you. What more do you want?

The odd foliage growth reported on CM doesn't matter that much, as long as it is healthy. Stingy blooms? I'll see how it does here. Maybe my climate will kick it up a notch or two.

I'll keep you posted on its performance here.

Also, I knew a Catholic nun, Mother de Chantal, a tough, petite, sweetheart, who was a treasured family friend. Her last name from home was Mulligan. The children gave her the nickame, 'Mad Mulligan'. Mother de Chantal took no prisoners in her classroom. You had to learn, no exceptions. She went home in 1998 at age 108.

Cori Ann, just the name of your rose, Chantal Merieux, brings back many cherished memories.

Moses

Fantastic Moses! I hope it flourishes for you. A pot to start sounds like a great idea. I kept mine in a pulp pot for a few months here. I wanted to watch it since there isn't a great deal of info on it in the states. It grew slowly at first, but is picking it up now. It does seem happy in the intense sun here with little shade, so take that for what it's worth as you're deciding where to put them later on.

Even for a little baby rose, the scent is remarkable. HMF says something like anise, old rose and strawberry. I agree. It also has a buttery, cookie fragrance... like Madame Anisette. To me, the fragrance is like anise biscotti with strawberry jam and a bouquet of roses. Delicious!!!

Thanks for the kind words Moses. Gardening is an adventure isn't it? We get to explore, discover, experiment learn and grow. I will be following how your roses do. What an amazing rose if it can do well in both of our climates!

Cori Ann, I'm a little off topic here, but on the summer thread, a ways up thread, I thanked you for the peony poppy seeds which arrived safely several days ago. Love that Christmas card, too. Did the seeds I sent you ever arrive?......We are all deciding whether to start a second summer thread because the photos are not showing up for a lot of us. I think that's a good move. Tell us what you think of this. Diane

'Chantal Merieux' looks like a peony at HMF!! And has an excellent rating. How did I miss this post? How is yours doing now?

Thank you for the Novasprina link. Enchanting pictures. This link has only a few Massads, duplicates but 2-3 different ones.
http://www.bastabalkana.com/2015/03/dominique-massad-francuski-selekcionar-ruza/

Ran across this lovely Massad in pearl grey.
https://www.helpmefind.com/gardening/l.php?l=2.40660&tab=36&qn=1&qc=0

Hi guys. I. Looking for updates on Chantal merieux as I have one coming from RU in a couple of weeks. How’s the disease resistance and bloom power? Does it like heat?

SoFl Rose,

No major update just yet that would be particularly relevant to you in FL, but for what you may glean out of my experience so far, Here goes....

The nicest of the two I received from RU last summer, and were winter rested in my fruit cellar, went into its 'permanent,' spot in my rose bed a few days ago.

I had them for about three months' growing time here, outside, in their RU gallon pots they came in, when they arrived last year. Neither one ever produced even a tiny bud, but produced continually, incredibly twiggy growth, the same twiggy, bloomless growth they came with. They both also needed a couple liquid feedings with Miracid for chronic chlorotic leaves. They greened up nicely after that.

I mentioned in a post here on the Roses Forum concerning my apprehension at CM last year, that they came from RU very twiggy. I trimmed 20 semi-green stemmed, leaves out twigs from them to tighten them up. The twigs were then put under propagation, and 19 of the 20 rooted within about 3 weeks time! Enough big roots to be potted out into liner pots! That's remarkably fast rooting which I have never experienced with any variety of rose before.

Aren't easy to root roses supposed to be vigorous growers and bloomers?

back to the present time....

Their fresh, new leaves are now chlorotic again! I just gave the recently planted one a Miracid feed today.

All my negative press so far is hopefully a temporary aberration, just a rocky start, and CM will prove to be a winner here. I have great hopes still. It is a stunning rose photo wise.

I hope yours takes off running, or I should say rooting!

Moses

Thanks Moses. I’m more of a buy first ask questions later type of rose shopper. Mostly because my climate is so different from most Rose growers. (We are practically in the tropics), so a lot of my rose gardening is trial and error. However I do have 1 thing I absolutely must have before I order and that’s at least some degree of disease resistance. Very disease resistant is more ideal. I’ve heard this has some resistance so I’m giving it a shot. :)

Love this one! What a beauty!

I don’t have the same disease issues here as Florida, but mine seems very disease resistant. Does well in dry heat. Fast grower. Mine has also had very healthy and green foliage, but I have acidic soil so that may be helping. I will take some more photos once the buds open. :-)

Here’s a photo as it is now. Very healthy. Lots of buds. Should bloom within a few weeks.

Hello Cori Ann - thank you for your info on Chantal Merieux, I am ordered her I am in zone 8, AL and I think she will be perfect for my garden ..

Any more pictures from this year? Many thanks

Not blooming here yet this spring, but soon!

Wow! The Bush is pretty Cori Ann! Thank you

Chantal Merieux Update:

Growing normal colored leaves now, looks healthy. All the liners from her struck late last summer are coming along fine.

So far this year we are 8" ahead of normal rainfall to date. ..wet, cold spring...3 weeks late this year. Punxsutawney Phil was right this year. There was a freeze last night in some neighborhoods. That makes three freeze nights this week. The turtle tub had 1/4" ice on it the other night. Put them in the bathtub just as a precaution.

There is only 3" of new growth so far on the most vigorous roses. Otherwise, the weather prediction is for an improvement.

Moses

Any more updates on Chantal? I've always ogled this rose but haven't pull the plug yet on buying it.

Glad you asked.

For me, she is a wimpy, disorganized mess. Is very black spot prone. Is starting to repeat almost acceptably, which she was very poor at until this year, 2019. Makes very skinny basal canes. Not one basal is even 1/2 inch in diameter. She makes consistently very wild, lax, flower face in the mud growth. I tried to bulk her up with mega liquid feedings only to get vegetative centered blooms galore.

Now onto the good things. Her bloom is pretty, and fragrance is intense. One or two more years for CM to shape up, or it's the shovel for her. I'm being far more tolerant and patient with her than she deserves. Have booted roses that performed better, but in my mind, I see the exquisite photos of her I've seen of her on the web, so I persevere. Success may be just around the corner, like the Ugly Duckling becoming a beautiful Swan. Truly, I am trying not to let her awfulness upset me....taking a new tack.

I think it's because my garden is otherwise coming together very nicely, so her awfulness is moderated by the wonders of these new roses: Dee-Lish, Pink Climbing Don Juan, Quick Silver, Purple Prince, Princess Caroline of Monaco, Pretty Lady Rose, Sister Emmanuelle, Polar Express, Miranda Lambert, and the Drift Roses... plus my old workhorses: Quietness, Julia Child, Sweet Fragrance, Bolero, Pope John Paul II, Apricot Nectar, Milwaukee's Calatrava, and Lady Ashe.

You know, I think I named every rose in my garden above, except for Dame de Coeur (looking at eviction), and a new very promising yellow, big, fragrant, HT Meilland I can't think of its name?

Moses

Moses, thank you for your detailed feedback! Sounds like CM won't make the cut. You have a great collection of roses. Would love to see some pictures if you have them available! :)

Fed up with mine. Poor grower as an own root plant.

I know this is an old post but Chantal merieux is also available at hummingbird roses, in case somebody looking for it ..it’s still a hard to find gorgeous rose😁

@erasmus_gw, I am about to order it, what state are you in? I feel like there needs to be separate list for the humid south as roses behave differently here compared to the drier state.

She's either in Georgia or South Carolina--definitely in the humid South. Diane

111plisa, I'm in zone 7, NC, and humidity is not great but not slight. I got rid of my plant of it . It had no vigor. Maybe it was a dud and would do better for you. I can think of some other pinks I like better.

Leonardo da Vinci

Pink Princess - great repeat

Mrs. B.R. Cant has it all

Dames de Chenonceau is lovely but nods.

Of all these I think Chantal Merieux has the prettiest name.

Erasmus, well I blew your location, and I apologize. I have traveled a lot through your state and Georgia, so really, I should know better. I love your pinks above, and I've been crazy about Leo for ages. Is yours a climber, or the bush variety? It's stunning. Can you post more pics of him (and any other pinks you like). Pink Princess is so froufrou gorgeous. I've never heard of her. Tell us more about her. Thanks for posting these photos. Diane

You were generally right, Diane.

Hi friends!! I’ve been absent busy with my mom visiting but ready to join back into the Rose fun. So, I’ve learned that we will be moving to Georgia at the beginning of the year. Of course instead of thinking of listing and buying the next house, what occupies most of my thought space is the roses that I will now be able to grow...teas, noisettes and chinas. Forget school districts, show me the yard of the houses for sale. Lol!

Erasmus, those are lovely roses! I actually ordered Mrs B R Cant l. Leonardo looks lovely. Do you spray?

Hello from tropical Malaysia :)

My new # Chantal Merieux arrived today after reading all the comments here l decided to give it a try :)

It came looking short , a grafted dwarf ..sort of...funny looking foliage with some Black Spots :( so much for disease resistance huh? I've heard the Meilland team spoke about disease resistance on YouTube saying that even if a fungus infects the hardy rose, it won't be bothered much but, my # Nahema is even weird...hahaa....l go for the fragrance.

It has a bud! . Yayyyy.. .once, it blooms , l'll post its photo here ya :) So far, so good, it doesn't wilt under the hot sun & cooler wet evenings as our # Monsoon Surge brings cold rain coming from icy Siberia-China now.

I also read somewhere like the hardy # Red Drift rose is also supposed to be very disease resistance unless , the rose is stressed. We'll see ya.

I have tried several Massad roses. Many of them are really unique in form and color, and some of them are real go-getters. Lea Mege, for example, had perhaps a hundred blooms at once last year in its first flush, compared to its neighbor DA's Princess Ann, which had about a dozen, even if they are the same size. Christian Tetedoie is a dark, deep red, which would certainly please those that love DA's Munstead Wood or The Prince but can't find them anymore. And Somme 2016, which is also a great grower, can go from fuschia to dark purple, so another for dark rose fans. Belle d'anjou is a ruffled apricot with a lovely fragrance that would please fans of Abe and Evelyn, but like those two, it is not the sturdiest, at least I have found. There are magnificent colors in Diablesse de Mers (dark purple swirling with yellow and cream). The colors are richer or lighter, depending on the time of year--and mine bloomed almost into winter, in part shade, with a few breaks. Smells lovely. Magnificent. One of my favorites. Centenaire de l'Hay les Roses also has the most vibrant and unusual mix of colors I have ever seen on a rose (bright orange and bright pink) and is very vigorous. And I am looking forward to seeing what comes out of the "La Durée" I just planted as it is also a one of a kind...

Moses I know this thread is old but wondered if you could give another update? I too bought one from RU this past spring and it never bloomed once the entire season. The growth is twiggy and low to the ground. I live in SW Michigan zone 6b.

Quit while you're ahead. I finally gave up on Chantal Merieux. You need to garden in paradise, like Cori Ann did to succeed with hers, not garden in hot/humid summer Michigan as you do. Ditto for me in Pennsylvania.

Moses.

AD,

You may like Celestial Night. Our Roses Forum member, Elestrial, grows it with great success. Also, Bliss Parfuma, a black spot fighter+++, although a bit lanky, has blooms rivaling Chantal Merieux. BP has a big following on the Roses Forum. Both of these roses should not present the problems CM does.

Moses.

Hi again....my Chantal Merieux bloomed so soft pinkish with musky fragrance ! ...love em :) it gave me much happiness for a year b4 Spider mites killed it :( l was so sad.

My little Chantal Merieux has been great so far, but I’ve only had it for maybe six months. The blooms are amazing and in my climate the foliage is spotless.

Judi

Beautiful, beautiful! How big is your Chantal Merieux bush so far? What are the blooms' size? My True Bloom True Inspiration looks like CM, but not as elegant/refined, and it's very thorny.

Moses.

Chantal is one I have been contemplating, but didn't pull the trigger on this year. I worry she won't like the humidity in PA. I've been so happy with the two Massad roses I got this past season that I'm eager to try some more

Celestial Night is a very nice, very healthy rose with good shade tolerance, but she's darker than these pictures of Chantal, and has no fragrance. I don't think she'd be a good alternative to Chantal

Sorry, I didn’t see your question till now, Moses. My little Chantal is maybe almost 2 feet tall by now. It’s still a baby, but a very healthy, pretty baby.

@judijunebugarizonazn8 How does she smell?

Judi,

I hope CM exceeds your expectations. It would be nice to know how Cori Ann's CM is faring. She was a frequent poster a while back. Her garden project took off running....in no time flat Cori Ann had a spectacular garden.

Moses.

Elestrial, I’m not good at describing scents, but she smells very nice to me! Not super strong fragrance, but she’s a baby and will probably improve with maturity.

@judijunebugarizonazn8

@Elestrial 7a

& Rosie Friends,

I have 2 Chantal Merieux which are very cold hardy!!

They get BS, but they bloom spectacular and have great form in bushes & bloom profusely! They are one of my best florist roses as of May 2026, now! This will start their 3rd year. I will take them both to PNW. I think I am moving in June-hope.

Right now they are both fully 3ft & leafed out, since they did well during our very cold NY winter.

2024 first blooms

Judy, Love your very full bloom. Photos!

KittyNY6 I am in SW Michigan near the lake zone 6b. I planted one from Roses Unlimited (own root) last spring and it never bloomed. We had a bad winter too and it’s looking a lot bushier this spring so I am hoping for blooms. When did yours start blooming a lot?

@ADzone6b

Hi! Wishing you a beautiful rosie day!

My Ch. Merieux bloomed a ton first season, coming as a 2 year old rose at the start. Next year it bloomed much more. This year us really a 4 year old rose so filling out well. I am zone 6b. It takes a few years to become a robust bush and fertilized well and kits of summer sun will bloom a ton!

What a beautiful rose my Chantal Merieux was, but what a price beauty! Fraught with major black spot susceptibility, it had to go. Anyone who can grow her successfully will be rewarded immeasurably!

Moses.