I grow it but like other roses in a certain part of my garden, it has declined in shade. Also some roofers smashed it with roof debris. For awhile this rose was a strong grower in part shade. Canes were thick and very tall. Rebloom was good. the blooms are huge and beautiful though I don't remember much fragrance. Leaves have pretty good bs resistance here. I am trying to get another plant of it established in a sunnier spot because it's well worth having.

Can have more yellow in it:

Gorgeous! Love this color. Part shade is a problem in my garden.

Polka is a rose I’ve wanted for a while now. It’s just no one local sells her and at this point my yard is a thorny briar patch, worthy of the Disney movie set Sleeping Beauty. You know the scene guarded by the dragon. Soooooo I likely won’t be ordering her. But she is grown locally in the Point Defiance Rose garden. There she is a medium to small climber. She does get some black spot, not really bad she’s cleaner than most, but in my costal growing zone 8b practically anything that’s not rugosa does. Polka is a prolific bloomer and I love her color. I did notice her petals have sort of serrated edge to them and I’ve never noticed a scent. And believe me I’ve checked, many times, just in case because I’m drawn in every time I see her and I think it’s likely you will be too. She’s a very lovely rose. I always thought her name was kind of odd and even a bit disjointed with her romantic nature oh well. I do think she stands out and if you see her in a garden you won’t forget her.

I have two Polkas in the PNW . One is in morning sun and afternoon shade. She does very well and looks like this pic.

The other one is in full sun and seems to bleach. She looks like this pic.. No disease problems.

Thats good news @Oldrosararian. Im thinking I will get her. Her blooms are so gorgeous and if she is healthy thats the #1 thing to for me.

Another name for this rose is Lord Byron, Seeingreen, so that's romantic.

I like that much better...

I've had Polka in a large pot for several years. Just planted it, and with all the rain we have been having, it has thrived - just put out 3 gorgeous blooms. Saw it listed in Hortico's 2019 roses.

I have had a Polka for a long time. I have actually been lucky enough once in a while to win something in a rose show with it. It looks like most of the pictures already posted. Its biggest problem here is its sensitivity to late, hard freezes which affects almost all the other roses anyway. It is not very cane hardy, but it bounces back. This year was a VERY poor year for growing anything here, and my Polka hardly bloomed at all. I had many roses that did not bloom at all this year, and I saw a number of my peonies in full bud fail to bloom because of the weather. My experiences this year were typical according to others in the garden clubs I belong to. In south Florida, I doubt that would be a problem for Polka. It is quite a pretty climber that usually has a steady supply of flowers.

I used to have Polka. The colour of the flowers is beautiful and unique,kind of like orange sherbert, and the buds never show vermilion tones, which to me is a great virtue. But i don't know that I'd get it again; it had a very stiff habit in my garden,tended to flower only at the ends of the VERY thorny and viscious canes,and the foliage was light green, whereas I am a lover of dark green foliage. Also it seemed to begin blooming a wee bit later in the season.

My Polka is planted next to a fence where I have tied the canes where they are bent and laterals can form. Wonder if this would help it flower more? I dont plan to let it get huge so will keep it pruned........

Judith

Yes, I think that Polka is one of those climbing roses that really, really benefit from being grown on some rigid,sturdy support,like a house,wall or a fence. I suspect that this is one of the problems in my wild garden for all roses that tend to have stiff, rigid canes. I think that for lack of support, the canes just tend to grow fat and rigid,in order to support themselves. All the supports in my garden are made by me, and therefore tend to be teepees and pillars,but if a roses' canes are already tending to be stiff, it's very hard to train them around such a support,and it's also SO difficult to get them to be horizontal. On a wall or a sturdy fence I think things would go MUCH better. So, Judith, I bet you chose a perfect spot for this rose!

I have 2 plants. Had them in a shady spot, not a single bloom. Moved them to a sunny spot, and now they have a good amount of buds, opening into beautiful dark apricot flowers, lightening in color as they age. Lasts nicely in a vase. Unlike the advertised description, the fragrance is mild and unimpressive. If you are looking for a fragrant apricot climber, consider Royal sunset.

I almost got it last year but didn’t because it’s very stiff and thorny lol

Yes, very very thorny! And mine was a new band last year so it could change, plus scents are subjective, but I found the fragrance very off-putting.

Updating my comment.......my Polka does well for me on a fence - it is in full sun, survived our terrible snow/ice storm of 2020 just fine. It blooms alot - I love the color. Cant recall smelling it but dont care if it has a scent or not - the color is so beautiful. Its got thorns but they are not a problem, lots of roses have thorns, like Cl. Tess of the d'Ubervilles which is a gorgeous climber. I like this one so much I got another one as a band that I am growing in a pot. I planted Heirloom at the base of Polka - the mauve/apricot colors are beautiful together.

Judith