The Austin's are beautiful! I need to read a bit about this one as it's just up my alley. Thank you for posting.

I got one from Hortico this Spring, (thanks Rick), and love it.

I think it is so much more beautiful than I expected. I also got Cressida (thanks Rick again) and it is also charming. Jjkoc, I too can't wait for next Spring and more maturity.Cressida will be wonderful larger.

Is that a short mountain mint in the photo? Or just the angle

That "modest" bloom is absolutely gorgeous. Beautiful photography too!

Sheila, I can't believe what gorgeous blooms and large bushes you have from a spring rose. You must be doing all things right. I wish I could send my roses to your garden for R&R. Of course they'd refuse to come back here!

There is no doubt it is an easier climate for roses here than your climate, Ingrid. I tried so hard in Alaska and many plants could not survive for me there. I do think your garden is the more beautiful, spare and artistically designed, although I realize your climate is such a challenge for you. My garden is going to be, and is, a messy wild jungle. I know I'm setting myself up for an out of control chaotic disaster down the road, but I'll think about that tomorrow. I think I'm more the plant collector type than garden designer. You inspire me. I love these Tea roses.

St. Cecelia's fragrance is my most favorite of any rose I grow, it smells like marzipan! My 2 year old bush is now covered in end of season BS, but I will never part ways with her. Her flower form and fragrance are outstandingly beautiful! This year has been an incredibly difficult one for me and I haven't been in the garden, but here are some of the only photos I snapped quick to share a few months back..

with nahema in the backgroundwith piilu clematis in the background

The dove weed, turkey mullein in my photo is a delightful weed here. I can't understand how DA discontinues selling these delightful roses. The newer ones are not always better.

I agree Sheila...

recent bloom

What a beautiful rose! Good thing I’m not ordering any more roses. If I were, St. Cecelia would be one of them! Lisa

Ohhh that is a beautiful rose! Michael’s comment about it smelling like marzipan makes me want one. Although HMF description is strong myrrh, which also sounds amazing. I am not entirely sure what myrrh smells like. I wonder if there is a list of roses that have a pure note of these fragrances I read about. I am sitting here with Golden Celebration and it smells a little fruity mixed with the smell of rose water or rose oil, but I don’t know if rose oil/water is damask or myrrh.

I think rose oil/water is damask. Myrrh refers to the family Myrrhis as in M.Odorata AKA Sweet Cicely. It has a strong herbal anise scent which seems to be really polarizing in the Austins. I can't recall now the one that really exemplifies this, but I know Scepter'd Isle is meant to have it. If that's true, I definitely fall into the "love it" category. I've often wished there were such a list.

Yes, Saint Cecilia is a fabulous little rose, with an alluring fragrance. A mixture of sweet fruit and soft myrrh notes to my nose. The cupped blooms with muddled centres are very attractive as is the colour which in my Garden was usually pale pink fading to a pleasing creamy colour especially in heat.

The growth habit was also quite pleasing, fairly upright yet lots of foliage and many canes. The own root plant stayed just under one meter in height in my garden. Best of all for cold climate folk, Saint Cecelia was probably the hardiest English Rose I grew and withstood cold temperatures of as low as -30C with only minor winter kill to her upper canes, even without protection.

Here is an image of a perfect bloom taken in my last garden in Eastern Ontario a couple of years ago.

Cheers, Rick

Rick, that is a perfect picture, even more beautiful when enlarged. This rose has so much charm in an old rose-way and I regret that Austin no longer offers it. With some of his "improved" newer roses to my eyes some of that charm has regrettably been lost.