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nikthegreek_gw

Your opinion about these Austins, please

nikthegreek
6 years ago
last modified: 6 years ago

It never hurts to dream... I'd like you to share your experience and opinion about these Austins. I know a few of them have been extensively discussed before and others haven't. You may notice that I shy away from varieties bred in the last century due to worries about health and general plant performance. I also am not versed on Austins introduced after 2014 so feel free to suggest any. I'd like to stay away from any PM magnets as I do have my share of Austins who are too mildew friendly..

Gentle Hermione

England's Rose

Harlow Carr

Princess Alexandra of Kent

Queen Anne

Strawberry Hill

Crown Princess Margareta

Wildeve

Wisley 2008

The Wedgwood Rose

Port Sunlight

Charlotte

Tranquility

Thomas A Becket

Comments (12)

  • ingrid_vc so. CA zone 9
    6 years ago

    I don't have a single one of these and will be interested to see any comments about how they and others mentioned stand up to the heat, since it seems that many areas are and will be experiencing higher temperatures than ever.

  • Lynn-in-TX-Z8b- Austin Area/Hill Country
    6 years ago
    last modified: 6 years ago

    Princess Alexandria of Kent can do this:

    On the bush at the same time....beware if you are not looking for salmon colored blooms

    Harlow Carr is so thorny and the last rose in the Austin bed I prune. Decent color, blooms have a "different" form, especially for an Austin. I continue to be unsure about this one as it is in a prime garden location having very little visual impact.

    Crown Princess Margareta had good heat tolerance, nice soft apricot coloring.

    I do not grow Queen Anne, but have Princess Anne. I like the deep pink blooms, and thusfar, the bush has very mannerly growth versus the octopus arms Austins are known for having in warm climates.

    nikthegreek thanked Lynn-in-TX-Z8b- Austin Area/Hill Country
  • User
    6 years ago

    Everyone knows what I think of 'Thomas a Becket' and probably bored to death with it, so I'll leave that one and just say that I'm liking 'Harlow Carr' very much... only in its first proper season with me, sweely scented most times, not always, and no other issues.... thorny yes as Desertgarden says, but I like this one so much I asked Austins to send me 2 more but they were sold out... oh well, too late now, got something else instead..

    'Harlow Carr'.. pretty little rose, still a small bush... no idea about suitability for other climates..


    nikthegreek thanked User
  • K S
    6 years ago

    I can only offer an opinion on Crown Princess Margareta, which I planted about six years ago in my parents' garden, and which has outperformed the other dozen Austin roses they have. Unfortunately their climate (Northern Illinois, USA zone 5, VERY cold winters and hot, humid summers) is not at all like yours, so this may not help. It is a lovely rose when it is happy, and it flowers abundantly. Desertgarden seems to indicate that it also does well in an arid climate, so maybe it is just a good all-around rose.

    nikthegreek thanked K S
  • Vaporvac Z6-OhioRiverValley
    6 years ago

    I just saw four of these this weekend at public garden in 5b. Charlotte was gorgeous as was Tranquillity and TaB. Strawberry Hill is one I'm looking to add next year. So healthy in a no-spray garden, but very different to you with plentiful rain and sandy loam. Hopefully, it will do well for me in my very humid more southerly garden.

    nikthegreek thanked Vaporvac Z6-OhioRiverValley
  • rideauroselad OkanaganBC6a
    6 years ago



    Hi Nick,

    The only one on your list that I grow, is Crown Princess Margareta. She is also one of the few that I brought across North America with me in my recent move.

    She has the most gorgeous peachy/apricot flowers, very double and does not fade too much in heat. I grew her in a zone 4 climate, where she struggled a bit, but was still a wonderful rose. Virtually disease free, she has a fruity tea rose fragrance, and is relatively thornless. She will be a tall arching shrub in a warm climate. She blooms well, but not continuously She gets rave reviews on HMF under member ratings.

    I just planted a band that I struck from a cutting two seasons ago before moving back to the warmer western part of Canada. I am now at the northern tip of the Sonoran desert and planted her in her new bed about 3 weeks ago. She is already beginning to grow with abandon and will flower in a week or so. I suspect she would be incredible in your climate.


    Rick







    nikthegreek thanked rideauroselad OkanaganBC6a
  • Curdle 10a (Australia)
    6 years ago

    I have two- PAoK and Charlotte.

    Eh PAok...bought one midsummer, it bloomed madly, saw another one on end of season sale, bought it. Next year had two black spotty messes- and both of them got powdery mildew too, #1 to a rather revolting extent. I put it in the ground, hoping for it to improve, but it didnt really help all that much, although it was pretty good in the heat (took until end of autumn for the PM to clear up tho). Halfway through winter its a collection of sticks with some leaves and a couple of flowers on the ends. In two minds as to wether I should persist for another year or dig it up and replace it, because it does seem to want to flower when its not covered in PM... and last year was pretty bad for PM here.

    Charlotte has been 3/4 years in a pot, so she stays small. Quite a bit of BS, but no PM. Flowers are quite a pretty lemon colour and nicely shaped when they do arrive, just dont get many of them, and they tend to bleach out to white. Usually get a couple in spring, then that's it for the year- don't think she likes the heat that much. Cant remember getting any blooms last year at all, come to think of it..Probably will get rid of that one this winter..

    Yours is rather spectacular Pat! mines never looked anywhere near as good as that.

    nikthegreek thanked Curdle 10a (Australia)
  • Sheila z8a Rogue Valley OR
    6 years ago

    Pat, Your photos of PAoK send a different message than your text.

  • ingrid_vc so. CA zone 9
    6 years ago

    Rick, nice to see you here again. I lived in B.C. for five years, although more near the coast, but remember going through the Okanagan Valley and it was quite hot! I hope you'll be able to grow a lot more roses in your more benign climate.

  • pat_bamaz7
    6 years ago

    Shelia, Even though
    they are my pictures and my rose, I was shaking my head wondering when she
    looked like that….kind of like those commercials where someone is on a first
    date and rechecking the other’s online dating profile picture to compare to the
    person who actually showed up. So, I looked back at pictures from all four
    years I’ve grown the rose and all were the same….pictures taken in April and
    May of each year where she looks beautiful…but no pictures of her after May in
    any of those years. She must look like
    that when conditions suit her, but mine only suit her in April & May...lol

  • SylviaWW 9a Hot dry SoCal
    6 years ago

    Nik, I have Tranquillity, now in its third year. The first two years were awful -- I nearly SP'd it last year -- but now it's on a drip system and this year it produced a fantastic first flush. -- large blooms, even. Also, the smell (I originally compared it to cat box) has improved, as far as I can tell.

    PM has not been a real problem for Tranquillity, but bugs love her. She needs to be sprayed, or at least carefully watched.

    I have her in a large (22") pot. Here she was on April 12.