I don't know why its listed on RVRs web site. As far as I know they lost the inventory of it I sent them 10 years ago. I seriously doubt they still have a plant of it.

I'm not surprised they still have a listing for it. There are MANY roses which they absorbed from other defunct nurseries for which they have had open pages with NO information and NO photos for over a decade. Many of which they haven't offered for sale in about that much time, either.

That is just so disappointing.

What they need is a webmaster/IT guy...with a real-time inventory list to update the site. For that matter, anyone with an authorized password could delete unused pages. Simple. Not too expensive. Good PR.

*Should be* a no-brainer.

Unfortunately, that is the LEAST of their problems. Mis identified roses continue to plague them. You see frequent posts here from people attempting to figure out just what they received as something else. I also read much of that on Face Book, too and know of several who purchased large orders from them this summer and received FIFTY PERCENT mis identified, but they still roll the dice, pay the money and HOPE they'll get the "rare and fun" things they hope they are ordering. Probably one of the most insulting aspects of it is, there still is NO ONE THERE who has any idea what on earth any of their mis identified roses are. In all this time, no one has been sufficiently interested in what they are watering, spraying, grooming, packing and shipping to actually LEARN any of them? They do have such a wonderfully interesting list of roses and I wish to Heaven they could actually get some of it right, but they seem incapable of it, or just don't care. I have no idea which, but I won't throw money their direction because when I order, that is THE rose I want, period. I receive more than enough questions asking for help identifying a mis named rose to have to PAY for the privilege.

It's a real shame, Kim, especially since what they DO have is some really rare and desirable roses. They just don't know which ones are which :P

I have no idea what the issues at RVR are, but the fact that as many as half the plants shipped are determined to be mislabeled is shocking. How does a nursery end up in such a state??

I suspect Janet isn't nearly as involved as she once was, so management is likely someone else's job now.

At one time, IIRC the roses were propagated on site. Now they are grown elsewhere (somewhere in California).

Thank you Paul for responding. That is too bad. It is a really nice looking flower.

I ordered Silver Jubilee, Climbing Hadley and Old Master from them this summer. Hadley is about to bloom for the first time, so fingers crossed. One thing I discovered is that if you log in and look at your order detail, it provides the inventory of that rose, minus the one that you just ordered. So they do have some sort of inventory tracking system in place.

I submitted a complaint on the contact us part of Rogue's website and at the end of the complaint asked about Farside de Mills. This is the part of the response regarding Farside de Mills:

"Yes, we do plan on propagating Farside de Mills this next year. Please add yourself to the waitlist so I know to contact you when we do have it back in stock.''

So apparently they do have it? Looks like I need to figure out how much peanut butter to give up so I can get it.

@PaulBarden maybe if you ask about or have others ask about your other roses you sent them they may give a different answer than in the past?

Brandon

This is one of those roses that makes me wish I had a winter.

But even though I can't grow it, I do hope it still exists. It's too lovely a thing to be lost.

Jeri, I agree with your sentiment of "It's too lovely a thing to be lost."

I do find the situation with Rogue so frustrating! Though I have all kinds of sympathy for them as a small, struggling business, still, its just such a shame that so many of the great and rare roses they list are simply never available. And yes, the mislabeled rose thing is a real problem. I'm beginning to question whether its even worth ordering from them, since so often you get your hopes up for a particular rose, only to get the wrong thing. Though to be fair, this spring I only had one mis-identified rose (though, really, that's plenty, particularly when you consider that lots of other small, family-owned nurseries seem to manage to identify their plants correctly). In my case, the rose in question was Umbra, which was SUCH a disappointment, since I really really want Umbra. I'm on the waiting list, but am not sanguine that it'll ever actually be back in stock. Oh well, at least I got Etienne. Paul, I assume you have an exclusive contract with Rogue, so nobody else can offer your roses? Or if not - any chance you could find a different nursery to carry them?

@User

"Paul, I assume you have an exclusive contract with Rogue, so nobody else can offer your roses? Or if not - any chance you could find a different nursery to carry them?"

RVR once had an exclusive deal with me, but that expired years ago. Any nursery that wants to supply my roses can do so. However, that brings up an important issue: where will other nurseries obtain these roses to add to their inventory? If they buy stock from RVR (I know several have) then what assurance do they have that they've got the correct variety?? I suspect that mislabeled varieties are now showing up in other nurseries.

As for finding other nurseries to supply these plants - that's not something I'm interested in pursuing, and as far as most of my named varieties goes, I don't have mother plants of them now anyway. probably 75% of the roses housed in greenhouses were destroyed in the 2015 Polar Vortex. Many roses out in the archive were destroyed that winter as well. So I simply don't have the plant material to offer for propagation.

@Brandon Garner

"@PaulBarden maybe if you ask about or have others ask about your other roses you sent them they may give a different answer than in the past?"

I very much doubt that. I know for a fact that several varieties I shared with RVR a decade ago have been lost, found, lost again, and ended up given away in their "free lost label" giveaways. Varieties like the superb 'Carolyn Supinger" have definitely been lost - I know this for certain. (Though I still have a couple plants, and so do a few other folks: its not extinct)

I'm skeptical that the rose that ends up being propagated will actually be "Farside deMills", but we shall see.

Paul, considering its breeding, I'm guessing this rose still grows in your garden? Seems like it should be hardy enough to have survived the polar vortex.

-Chris

@chris209 (LI, NY Z7a) "Paul, considering its breeding, I'm guessing this rose still grows in your garden?"

Oh, its still out there. But there's a problem: Its planted in a section that is 20 years old now, and all of the Gallicas have grown into one solid colony, and distinguishing one variety from another isn't possible, unless I find a cane with blooms on it. Because this section receives no care, its becoming overrun with Hawthorns and Blackberries and so few of the plants in this section flower reliably. Its been years since I've tried to ID 'Farside deMills" in this area, so I have no idea how much of it is left, or which pieces represent it.

Paul,

understanding that you have moved on to other things in your life; and that taking care of roses can be an big under taking, especially with how big of a property you have, I wish that there was a way that someone could come take care of them so that there would be the possibility to id and get to the plants of yours that you still have that may have grown all together.

Brandon

I suspect that something similar must have happened to Rogue Valley Roses, but the proprietress seemed in denial when I called to complain about a disappointing mix up with the waiting list. I see many other nurseries append a note: "This description is for reference only, we are no longer offering this plant," which seems to avoid confusion.

I think Janet REALLY wanted to make it work, and, well, she might well be living in denial.

My "not Umbra" (probably Brunner Ulrich fils) has turned into a healthy vibrant (vulgar?) rose during this first year. It has bloomed steadily and grown vigorously. My mislabels from RVRs can be very interesting plants I never would have known about. How is yours doing Francis?

Speaking of 'Umbra', I see there are numerous photos posted on HMF by a German grower (Maiglöckchen) as 'Umbra', and the photos clearly depict what we grow here under the study name of "Rush Family Rose".

How interesting! There is a German garden listing Rush Family... Alter Friedhof Erndtebrück. There is only one none US garden listing Umbra.... A Little Piece of Heaven. Tatiana Roses in Russia. With only RVR listing Umbra in the entire world. Maiglöckchen posted more than a year ago, the photos of "Umbra" in their German garden, however they don't have a garden listing to show what they grow so it won't show up in the database. I wonder who mistakenly sent Rush Family overseas as Umbra? It might be fun to respond to those photos they are actually Rush Family, @User.

I got Rush Family from RVRs. Maybe it was them, Kim.

If it was RVR, then they must have meant to send Umbra.....

Paul, if I were still in Oregon I would totally jump at your offer to get things straightened out. Unfortunately St Louis is a little far:(

@Sheila z8a Rogue Valley OR

"This Rush is lovely too, but I still want Umbra."

I seriously wonder if RVR has any correctly labeled plants of 'Umbra' in their possession.

I do hope so Paul. I am not sure. When I questioned my not Umbra's foliage, Janet pointed to a nonblooming plant on the right side of their entrance driveway at RVRs and said she thought it was Umbra and the she thought the foliage looked like mine. Since the plant was not blooming last Fall of course I had no way of knowing if what she pointed at was Umbra. This coming Spring, maybe I could go over there and look to the right side of the driveway when gallicas should be blooming and look for it. I think it was in a half whiskey barrel planter. I do remember where she pointed.

I'm wondering if they have any correctly labelled plants of 'Ellen Tofflemire'. I've wanted that one for a while and feel like it's been years since they've offered it.

-Chris

@chris209 (LI, NY Z7a) "I'm wondering if they have any correctly labelled plants of 'Ellen Tofflemire'. I've wanted that one for a while and feel like it's been years since they've offered it.

-Chris"

I have two divisions of 'Ellen Tofflemire' in gallon pots available. I also have about a dozen plants of 'Marianne' in 3.5" pots, all guaranteed true to name.

Paul, that's terrific. I will message you!

-Chris

Paul, I would surely love to buy an Ellen Tofflemire too. I'll try to message you too.

Paul, I don't seem to know how to send a message, but I can respond to one.

I love the name 'Farside de Mills' -- so evocative. Don't know why.

I wish I was able to come Paul! Maybe I will make the trip one day, will definitely let you know. We were wanting to travel some anyways, we have to start somewhere :)