Moses, the necks are stong enough to hold up the blooms...I am not even a 5 leaflet deadheader...I cut off right behind the spent flower on all my roses... I like to have some blooms all or most of the season with fastest repeat...

Moses, Earthsong took a major nose-dive on me...Every leaf was engulfed in blackspot...Since I do not spray I took off every leaf from the bush...Removed the bush from the ground and put in a large pot...I am replacing it with a "True Sincerity" Ping Lim... I ordered a 2 gallon from Home Depot...Should be here this or next week...

Once I get Earthsong to hopefully grow well in a pot I will put it somewhere else in the ground or just keep in a giant pot...

Thanks Steve_M in PA ....

For me in the PNW At Last is great, I probably didn’t prune it enough this year cause it’s already as tall as me (5’ 4”)

WOW! that is a beauty oursteelers 8B PNW! 5ft 4 inches to boot!

Looks great! :-)

Jim,

I just planted a True Sincerity yesterday. It replaced a White Knock Out, 3yrs. old, that couldn't make it to 1' tall! This recalcitrant WKO was determined to set hips for almost every bloom, and I mean profusely. No matter how much I dead headed its hips it made no effort to enlarge its bush size, but bloom just inches above the ground. This frustrated me immensely because as Rifis can verify, I was greatly impressed with White Knock Outs profuse blooming in a commercial landscape setting not far from me. Wait another year and things could turn around for the White Knock Out, you may say? Too late now. We'll compare notes on our True Sincerity bushes. It seems to have a lot of strong assets.

Actually, my first True Sincerity came from Home Depot online order, from a Texas nursery. It came DOA. Sent back to Home Depot...and have yet to be credited. Purchased through PayPal. Second bush I ordered through Amazon. It came in great shape.

Our Markay from Maryland sold me on True Sincerity by the photo that came up somewhere on the Roses Forum, can't recall, it was pretty sharp. The same photo is on HMFR, posted there by Markay. Easy to find if you want to see it.

Mr Moses

Mloses, my step dad planted sunny KO 6 years ago and its still only 16 inches tall and less wide....lol...Not sure why some roses do not want to grow...

Did you see oursteelers 8B PNW At Last rose above? Its a beauty... :-)

Yes, Jim, everything seems to grow prolifically in the PNW. It looks like it wants to be a climber for oursteelers.

Mr Moses

Moses, my True Sincerity is coming from Texas... :-O

I will prepare myself...lol

Today 6/12/24

I can’t let it be a climber. The area I have it is already engulfed by Augusta Louise, Wollerton Old Hall and Lady of Shalott. Getting pretty full!

oursteelers 8B PNW I grow Lady of Shalott. Fabulous rose but very tall.

Jim1961 look! I went outside to check and this is what my At Last rose is doing today. Blooms! Moses my At Last rose was transplanted last fall to this new location away from an encroaching lilac shrub which had been causing it to not do well. So this is a first year planted shrub. There are no weak necks at all, and never have been weak necks on my At Last rose. I'm not sure where this idea of At Last roses having weak necks came from. It isn't true in my experience.

Every garden's different Jim. Here, At Last had serious problems with weak necks, bloomed profusely, hardly missing a beat as far as next flush after dead heading. Its short lasting blooms were its major fault because with weak necks for me, I could at least see some color. Wish they came out with a line of syblings for At Last. I would be anxious to try them all to give them a chance. Even if one worked out for me I would be ecstatic.

Moses (back to Moses, Jim. Mister/Mr. was too formal, I realized)

Wow, the bud count on your At Last, Jim. Phenomenal! Looks healthy as can be, too. Nice to have a rose that has so many strong, strong assets. Short lived blooms can be a blessing, too. After a heavy rainfall blooms turn shabby, long lasting and short lasting ones...so the wet weather evens out things somewhat.

Moses

awesome dara_gardener-Vancouver Island, Z8 ....I am very happy for you! :-) Looks great!

Moses, here is that sunny KO at my moms...planted 10 years ago but it never grew...

Sorry to have to inform everyone BUT my "At Last" rose is engulfed in blackspot and other leaf fungal diseases this season already with leaves yellowing & dropping... Started in June...Previous 2 seasons "At Last" rose stayed very clean up until frost. But not this season.....

That is too bad, Jim1961. Your rose has been doing so well. My At Last hasn't any fungal disease problems, but is still far too whimpy in it's new spot.

dara_gardener-Vancouver Island, Z8 , I hope your At Last kicks into gear soon!

With my At Last I am seeing leaves yellow then leaves dropping BUT it has vigor so leaves are being replaced rapidly...Lots of buds forming still... So not slowing it down much...

I am seeing Knockouts around my area engulfed in fungal disease so probably just a bad year...

I can't grow Knockout roses at all. They just don't do well for me. The exception being Fruity Petals which isn't a Knockout but related to that breeding program. Fruity Petals is a short climber which is one of my best and healthest performers.

Here is Fruity Petals. This rose sets the standard for me in my garden. In it's third year.

Fruity Petals is looking great dara_gardener-Vancouver Island, Z8.... :-)

Jim

In Texas, I think when I plant a new rose in a new spot, it has a year or two grace period before blackspot finds the plant and thoroughly infects it. That first year in a new spot, almost every variety seems to be free of disease. Of course , in Texas, there was a race between RRD and blackspot to see which one could get there first. Somtimes RRD clobbers a plant so grotesquely there’s not much left for blackspot to infect.

Yes thats also what I have seen over the years here.BenT (NorCal 9B Sunset 14) .....

Jim, I wonder if it could be the excessive heat Pittsburgh has been experiencing? I just went and whacked the heck out of mine cause one, waaaay too big and two, covered with blackspot. We too have been in an ungodly heat wave that i think At Last does not care for

oursteelers 8B PNW

yes our heat this year has been way worse then the previous 2 years i had At Last...so yes something to think about...

Really nice examples of Cercospora, jim.

I've given my At Last rose away today. It was healthy, but I've had enough. Only bloomed once in the new location. I would rather have plants there that bloom more freely. So it is gone.

I agree dara_gardener-Vancouver Island, Z8 if your not happy its time to make a change! Lifes too short! Maybe another rose will be happier in that location I wish you the best of luck! Please let me know how things work out in the future... Thank You... I THINK I will be doing the same thing next season with At Last...Since I planted Double Easy Orange (Orange Dude) I prefer its non fading orange blooms etc etc over At Last so changes will be made here also...

Good to know that Double Easy is the better orange, Jim, I had suspected as much. Most tangerine oranges usually look very pale or very messy as they age, so good that DEO holds its color so well, too. If you take out ’At Last’ does it become ’Axed Last’?

Just had to pop in and say I love the fade to At Last, helps it to blend in the peaches and cream bed

I did give At Last to my friend Susan, Jim1961. Perhaps she will do better with it. The south/west side of my house is so hot and dry roses in general don't adapt well. The exception is Eden climbing rose which loves this site. This year I'm experimenting with hot and dry loving plants like Purple Hot Lips salvia and red geraniums to see how that works. Have tentively named the bed the 'African Bed' in a nod to the type of plants growing here. Moonshine achillia is doing really well. Gazania Daisies are loving the growing conditions. Gaura and phlox are doing well. Am using a polychrome color scheme with multiple bright colors.

I gave mine away, it was super prolific and pretty and had a nice fragrance but i had it in a pot on patio and the flowers opened and shattered same day and it had a lot of petals and flowers so was a real mess cleaning up after. I would rather have less blooms and longer lasting ones.

Your flowers look great dara_gardener-Vancouver Island, Z8 ! Happy experimenting... :-)

My conclusion to the At Last rose is this: This is a love or hate rose....Depends on what you want... Its not the best rose out there many are better... BUT if planted in soil and a climate it likes it will grow well and bloom well! BUT the blooms will shatter fast 1-3 days and the color fades fast... In heavy fungal disease areas it will not stay clean...But appears to replace fallen diseased leaves in a timely manner if it has vigor where its planted.....

7/20/24

Your At Last rose has always grown well, Jim1961. I'd monitor the fungal problem and see if it is recurring or a once off. I have roses that get fungal disease but are not unduly distressed by it, the heritage rose Dorthory Perkins, for example. For roses like that, I ignore the fungal hits. Roses that become defoliated and don't regrow leaves quickly or at all, those I toss out.

I loved the orange sherbet color of At Last but the blooms just didnt last . Mine got the boot

Jim,

My At Last looked just about like yours, at about this time of year, too. It got worse, weakening as the days rolled by. Big disappointment. Glad I didn't waste but one year on it. Same for Italian Ice...another dud. Blooms lasted two days and went to hips lickity split. A big nothing of a rose.

Jim, take a look at Orange Glow Knock Out. Some rosarians look at Knock Outs with their noses stuck into the air, but this man (me), is tired of self inflicted bloody noses that could have been avoided had I 'humbled' myself and gotten a rose, for example, like my 3 yr. old Double Pink Knock Out, years ago. It's now one of my favorites. The blooms last and last on strong stems. I am liking my new Orange Glow Knock Out more and more each day. The White Knock Out I got just wouldn't put on size, but I'm not done trying again....in due time.

Moses

7/25/24

Recovering well, Jim1961.

dara_gardener-Vancouver Island, Z8 , my neighbor said she will take my At Last rose next year... I'm going plant another rose to play around with next season... :-)

Sorry about what your At Last looks like. Maybe another year's trial is in order, but I just didn't have the patience to go round two with a rose that beat me up bad in round one, so to say.

There are too many great roses out there to try is my philosophy now, and time is not as broad an option at my time in life, years ago, yes, but not now.

Jim, I am sorry that I cannot provide a photo of my Orange Glow Knock Out. I am not a photographer, period...which is a sad state of being for a retired art teacher. Painting, mosaics, sculpture...yes, but not photography. I would say that OGKO's bloom is un-Knock Out like, in that it has a character that appeals to me. If it wasn't a Knock Out I would guess it to be an older Austin rose, like Tamora, but much improved regarding: bloom life, bush vigor, flower repetition, better flower color and quite a bit better disease resistance.

The flower form and color in the photo floating around on the internet with the black background represents Orange Glow KO pretty well.

Mine is just a first year from a very small start, so next year will be a telling year, I hope, and holding a positive report therein, Lord willing.

Moses

Jim1961, it's been quite a journey with At Last Rose! I'm fascinated to see how things progress in your garden. Keep posting on your new rose when it replaces At Last. I'd love to see it!

Thanks dara_gardener-Vancouver Island, Z8 I certainly will keep you updated...

Moses, no problem with the pic of KO Orange Glow rose....Yes please keep me updated Moses...

At Last dropping more & more leaves...canes are spotting black also... 8/1/24

This is horrible, Jim1961! When the canes become infected I usually consider that to be too much.

Ok At Last was becoming a major eyesore since it was a stand-alone rose bush SO the mood struck me to remove the rose! So At Last is gone! I placed potted Earthsong there temp but I think Earthsong will end up going also...Too much trouble with this one too!

What a journey, Jim1961! I am mourning a little for your At Last rose. Earth Song is a new variety to me so I did some research. Dr. Buck, 1975. Grandiflora 4 to 6' height. Resistant to blackspot, powdery mildew and rust. Very fragrant. Thorny. AARS rating 8.4. It sounds like a wonderful rose! Make sure to amend the soil before planting where At Last once grew to avoid the new rose not thriving due to the old rose having put substances into the soil to sicken any competition. I dig out the old soil and add compost to it, mixing things well. That seems to do the trick to avoid this problem.

I had a Earthsong at my old house and it did really good dara_gardener-Vancouver Island, Z8 BUT this one here acts like somethings wrong with it! Blackspot keeps attacking etc etc etc...So probably it will get the boot also....NO new rose going in that spot going plant annuals or perennials in that location next season... lol

Jim1961 you are having a terrible year with blackspot attacking your roses! You do know to only water from the bottom so as to not wet the rose leaves, I'm assuming? Those wretched fungus diseases need several hours of wet to actually latch on to and attack a rose leaf. If the leaves remain dry, fungus can't get it. Nontheless, the horrid stuff does somehow find a way. Especially with older rose folige. Which is why my friend Bob tends to prune out all the older canes on his roses, leaving only new canes which are healthier. Of course, some roses bloom only on old wood, so that has to be taken into consideration. Another point is roses generally don't like being grown in a pot even a fairly large pot. Heat stresses their roots. In the ground is cooler for the roots. I'm pretty happy with my conversion to hot loving perennials in my South West bed. They are very colorful and virtually maintance free. Though lately I'm thinking again about Preference rose. It grew very well in this location. Naturally I changed my mind as to the preferred color scheme at the time, going for pastels not bright red, so gave Preference away. With the beds being bright polychromatic now, Preference rose would look right at home.

Its hot humid and rainy here so blackspot pressure is really high! I noticed even knockouts down town this year are covered in fungal diseases...

I put Earthsong in a pot because it lost all its leaves to diseases over a month ago...I dug it out of ground & put in a pot to get it away from my other clean roses that were near in the ground...lol...Those ones are still clean...

Jim,

What can I say to give you a lift in your spirit? Maybe just showing up here and keeping my trap shut will do more than a thousand commiserations.

Moses

Oh, Jim1961! That weather sounds very trying. I don't know what rain in summer is even like these days. Nanaimo is pretty dry, though this year 'summer' didn't start until July. Before that it was very cold and wet somewhat, more than usual for my location.If Earthsong was put in a pot due to fungus problems, then you are right, it isn't the rose for your At Last bed. Moses, good of you to send supportive vibes out. Gardening can be frustrating!

This really has been a brutal summer. My shovel prune list is growing!

Actually I do not get frustrated much at all everyone! I enjoy every rose bush while its here and IF the time comes when the joy ends then I say my good byes and I add something else that brings me joy... :-)

Living in a high pressure fungal disease zone gives us the chance to experience many roses without ever having to many...lol...

No problems everyone....

Instead of cursing or getting discouraged I just think about how I will enjoy the next rose or plant! :-)