Which State are you in? Will you Winter them outside?

In southen ontario canada, i can winter outside or my unheated garage.

3 roses in each container? How big are the containers going to be, and do you have a way to move them?

No, you can't winter over roses in a container outside in your climate. It might even be a challenge overwintering them in the ground without adequate protection. And how large are the containers you contemplate using? They would need to be very large to accommodate 2-3 roses each!

I dont have to use 2-3, but this person recomended doing so https://youtu.be/xV9sfQuMFek

I do have one unidentified rose in my garden that I dont do any winter protection and it comes back every year. so i assumed other roses would work too

LOL!! There is more garden nonsense published on YouTube videos than there is anything of value :-) I would give very little credence to that recommendation and at best it may be okay for a single season. The lack of air circulation in that dense a planting is an immediate cause for concern.....I can see all manner of disease cropping up as a result.

Not all roses share the same degree of winter hardiness so research and check before you order.

Good thing i checked here,

This david austin plant grabbed my attention, I just love how big and full this looks, Id love to achieve something similar if at all possible. clearly more research is needed before I order

I might look to Cornhill and Hortico for hardy rose ideas. These Canadian companies have very hardy roses that are wonderful for your area.

Palatine Roses, Niagara-on-the-Lake. Go, look, ask questions.

David Austin actually recommends planting their roses in groups of three (in a triangle, overlapping them by half of their mature width) to achieve a full look. The gap disappears after a couple of years and you end up with a very impressive shrub. But that only works for inground roses.

I'm sure you can try this trick with a more hardy rose that will work in your climate.

Diane, it worked for me in zone 6b (Maryland). The combined rose was ginormous, but I had a big garden. It was so full, even towards the end of the season when everything else looked overgrown and unkempt.

Slightly off topic, I planted my Mexican birds of paradise (Caesalpinia pulcherrima) this way and they look great. There's still a gap in the middle after only 1 summer, but I think my "super-shrub" will work out.

Marble, you asked for recommendations for large, preferably white blooms and you like Austins. I grow a few, however, mine are in the ground. Three full size roses in a single pot would be so hard to move twice a year that I think you would regret it.

All of these are fragrant and all are fine in your zone 5, some are zone 4

Winchester Cathedral, random splashes of pink

Desdemona

Mary Magdalene - soft cream with pastel pink, peach toward center

Bolero Romantica - not an Austin

Moonlight in Paris - very soft peach, pink and cream - not an Austin

Lichfield Angel

Susan William-Ellis

I grow the first 5 in zone 5 without winter protection. The only one that is tender is Mary Magdalene. She needs the consistent snow cover. Moonlight in Paris is her hardier twin.

I think you would be happier with one rose to a pot, and once mature, these are all good size shrubs.

There's one other I didn't list because he's a climber - Wollerton Old Hall, a creamy white. I'm growing him as a large shrub. I think he would be great in a pot with an obelisk to wrap himself around. Something like that might give you the bulk you are looking for without adding a lot of weight .

Marble: Re-post what you wrote "I am in zone 5, and will be planting in containers. I am thinking of two large containers, with 2-3 roses in each one.

Which two roses should I select? I am very confused. I love larger blooms with a strong fragrance and repeat blooms throughout the season if possible. White is my favourite but open to any colours!"

From Straw: I'm in zone 5 with 140+ own-root roses (35 are Austins). Agree with Floweraremusic (zone 5) and Diane: NO to 3 Austins in a pot. Nearby rose-park's Abraham Darby is 7 feet tall and 3 feet wide, same with Jude the Obscure (theirs are grafted on Dr.Huey). Own-roots are 1/2 the size of grafted-on-Dr.Huey, thus more appropriate for containers.

Now 6/29/21 my Abraham Darby as own-root is too big for the pot (got as tiny rooting the size of my finger this April). Jude the Obscure is the smallest as own-root, but it out-grew its pot. You would need a HUGE pot just for one Austin as own-root (1/2 the size of grafted-roses).

Own-root roses are much smaller than grafted, and live much longer. Most of my Austins are 10 to 11 year-old as own-roots. The late Rosarian Karl Bapst, zone 5a, was less than 3 hours from me. He advised me to winterize roses in pots in unheated garage, covered with a thick thermal blanket, and water it once (during extreme cold), or twice a month (warmer temp). He winterized many own-roots in pots in his zone 5a. He grew 200+ roses. I followed his advice and was able to keep tiny-rootings (3 inch. tall) alive through zone 5 winter, if I remember to cover them with a thermal blanket in my dark & unheated garage.

Same with RoseCanadian (zone 4). She winterizes 20+ roses in pots in her garage, but her roses are grafted on multiflora (shorter-life-span than own-roots). My garage is crowded with tiny rootings through the winter, so I plant Austins at least 5 inch. deep below ground outside, and they are cane-hardy (at least 1 foot of green cane after zone 5 winter), except for Jude the Obscure.

I agree with Floweraremusic for Bolero (own-root) in a pot, it's smaller than Austin roses, fragrant & continuous blooming. Below is my 2nd Bolero in partial shade, less than 4 hrs. of sun, it's a 5th-year-own-root. My first one died due to dry winter with no snow.

Below is Mary Magdalene, 11th-year own-root, it's VERY THORNY, full of thistles so I don't recommend that for pot, it's continuous blooming & fragrant. Pic. taken early this June.

For light pink, Evelyn is continuous blooming & amazing scent, most winter-hardy (at least 2 feet of green cane after zone 5 winter). It's small as own-root, but I WOULD NOT get it as grafted (too big). Below is 10th-year own-root Evelyn, pic. taken this June:

Below is close-up of Evelyn:

LongAgoRoses sells many Austins as own-roots. Her price is $15 for regular roses, $19 for Delbard, $22 for Austins, and the shipping is cheap $11 per 4 roses to my Chicago area. Below is the link where I posted pics. of own-roots bought from that nursery.

https://www.houzz.com/discussions/1709358/what-about-long-ago-roses#n=27

Both Bolero and Evelyn have the LARGE BLOOM that you ask for, they last long in bouquets, up to 5 days if cut as buds. Below whites are Bolero (smell like an expensive perfume), Large pink is Sweet Mademoiselle (too big for the pot), Evelyn is right light pink (smaller bloom since it was from a cluster). Normally Evelyn's bloom is just as big as Sweet M., at least 4" across. Menards has HUGE pot (16" diameter) for only $11. One own-root Austin needs at least 10 gallon-pot. Two thermal blankets covering the pot will ensure winter survival in unheated garage for Austin roses (more winter-hardy than other roses).

Marble,

I just noticed this thread so I thought you might be interested to know that in England, at David Austins garden, they do plant 3 roses to a large pot.. the one you have shown in your picture, may well be 3... the large pots they use are just under 60cm x 60cm. For e.g. they planted 3 bare roots of 'Princess Alexandra of Kent' some 8 years ago, and it's still going in the same pot - 3 roses..

As others have said, you cannot translate this to another country or climate... this is England, it's very different here.. and of course DA have staff to deal with these things, but all they do is replace some of the top of the compost each year... if showing for the Chelsea Flower Show they prepare their potted roses especially for that..

I do think it's very misleading the way they show photos of their potted roses - from their English garden setting - without explaining that to get this full effect, they plant 3 the same... however, some roses are planted singly, in smaller pots.. it just depends on the rose, the pot, or how quickly they want to achieve the effect..

They are in the business of selling roses, so taking the photos at just the right time is very important..

I know this from the Instagram pages I follow, from various DA accounts..

Another question is whether or not your garage is attached or detached. I think a detached garage and zone 5 might get too cold. A poster in Michigan does keeper roses outside

thirding Bolero--it has Sharifa Asma as a parent and people just rave about it. You could also try Rose Marie (a sport of Heritage), but it can be hard to find these days. Also, Iceberg seems to get a lot of flack by its name's association with iceberg lettuce, but it's undeserved.

There is a large wholesale grower in southern Ontario, J.C. Bakker and Sons, who supplies many local retailers. They do offer Rose Marie, so it may not be that difficult to get in Ontario.

Here's their 2021 Austin list, all grafted on multiflora: http://www.jcbakker.com/product-category/roses/austin-series/

Your local garden centre may be able to order from them.

Lichfield angel is my best near white Austin

it fades to white when they age or temps warm up

My Roses and clematis 2018 · More Info

Desdemona

Tranquility gets the most blackspot but blooms well. Fades quickly to white

Thank you everyone for the advice and beautiful pictures!

I have decided that I actually want to attempt potted tree roses instead of the shrub. My garage is attached and somewhat insulated, so I hope they can survive. Does anyone have pictures of david austin tree roses (easiest for me to buy). I was almost tempted to buy clearence sunny knockout trees, but i had my heart set on nicer roses.

Unfortunately their selection right now is limited to a few:

Carding Mill,

Tranquillity,

Molineaux,

Darcey Bussel

I really liked the tight bushy shape of the knockout rose, it seems the david austin ones may be harder to maintain in a more globe shape

Marble, I’m in 4b Ontario an hour outside of GTA and have no problems with growing DA roses in the ground without winter protection. This is a picture of my 3 yr old Heritage. It’s next to a public sidewalk. I also have tranquillity, but it’s only in its first season so I cannot assess how it does through winter yet. I’ve overwintered potted z3 roses successfully in an unheated attached shed (Morden Blush and Chinook Sunrise), but I think they may have survived outside just fine. I’ve also buried Abraham Darby and Iceberg in pots in the ground and they did fine. Roses pruned as standards are riskier for dieback, depending on what kind they are, but it should be ok in your attached garage. I wouldn’t leave any potted roses outside in the winter above ground unless it’s a zone 2 or 3 rose and I’d put it against a south brick wall. I say give it a try! Worst case scenario is it doesn’t make it through winter and you learn something!