Hi ! I grow 5 of them . I have life of the party , silver linings , Roald Dahl , bolero and state of grace . At one point I had scepterd isle as well . I quickly learned you can’t just let them grow Willy nilly , they don’t really keep shape nicely and eventually they get too big and you can’t reach the blooms to dead head ! While I enjoy them they definitely are a novelty to me. I’m lucky they aren’t expensive here ($40 for the weeks ones ). So I don’t mind if I have to part ways after a season or two of fighting the growth patterns.

Bolero has been amazing and perfect for a tree . Roald Dahl is pretty good and life of the party as well . My scepterd isle wanted to grow in so many directions snd had no intention of looking tidy so I had to part with it . Honestly, the rose wants to get as big as it would in the ground and that just gets ridiculous here ! Ha .

I keep mine potted but my zone allows for that . I enjoy planting the bottom with some nice annuals to compliment it .

I’ll be looking for some pics to share . Would I do this again ? Maybe not .

I've grown maybe 15-20 roses as standards over the past 20 years. The main thing I'd advise is to choose a smaller rose like a small FL or small shrub, definitely not a big HT. You want something that's not going to send out big canes. My most successful rose trees were two Gourmet Popcorns, which I had for many years, and received many wows from visitors. When they were doing well, I loved the look. That said, I eventually got rid of all of them, b/c they're hard to keep the trunk straight, and sometimes you get suckers from the bottom graft. As Lilyfinch said, you have to be vigilant with the pruning. The only standard I still have is Shockwave, which I bought 3-4 years ago, and I have it next to a clematis that winds up into it (spectacular). I guess I like the idea of rose standards better than thier reality.

I can't seem to find them locally, nor do I see them o fortuniana root stock for nematodes.... but I guess that is all and well because I do not know how well they would actually hold up in my tropical gales and hurricanes.... but I certainly do admire them.

I would have them in a heartbeat if I they would actually work in those conditions.

Pretty pics Lily. They are similar to why I have LimeLight trees here and there. LOLLYPOP accents - and the huge white blooms glow in the night....the white radiate from ambient night light.

As I hem and haw on this, I think it's boils down to the more leaves during summer, some blooms and then quick fade, back to more leaves until the next flush. This is not the Look I want flanking the doors. For those in more tepid climates, I suppose the blooms may last longer during the summer months . Regardless, I do like the LolliPop Tree Look just to mix things up .

I think floribundas look best on tree roses. Here are mine: the red is Preference, the lavender is Love Song, and the yellow is Julia Child. They all have excellent repeat. Helen

BAG -

Lovely pic. Granted your location, if the username is accurate, weather helps. That 1st pic - thriving well in what I would call the hellstrip -sandwiched by 2 heat soaked mediums- but that gutter downspout must be keeping it happy

a1an, the location is correct. We have great weather in California for roses. However, the gutter is just for show because my roses survive on hand and drip watering. We have no rain from April to October, lol. Helen

a1an, I agree with Helen. Floribunda or shrub roses form better standard rose trees. In general, the shape of the tree will mimic the shape of the bush. Many tall hybrid tea will look tall and narrow as a tree and blooms only on top. That's why I don't get Mr. Lincoln as a tree. In addition to the above shown, I think Bolero and Violet Pride will form a nice tree shape.

Also if the rose blooms most heavily in the spring and only sporadically later as a bush, you will find similar pattern with the tree, provided the same sun exposure, soil and other growing condition. For example I have Julia Child as a tree and also as a shrub. They both blooms continuously.

Also I find I have to fertilizer more regularly and prune more often standard rose trees. They are best maintained in zone 8 or above. Below zone 8, there may be winter die back unless you will protect them (or they are in a protected location) due to the exposed graft.

Violet Pride: it is now onto its 2nd flush, with hundreds of buds. Below was from the spring. It bloomed for 6 weeks non-stop.

In contrast, Scepter'd Ile does not form a nice tree shape. You can tell by the bush: very tall, quite narrow and tend to be more sparse at the top. It is exactly the same as a standard tree, except you will need to add 3 feet to the support! I prune SI very aggressively for it to not reach to the sky. It responded to aggressive pruning very well. After 3 years, I think it has improved in shape, and it blooming regularly. During the first year it is a very awkward, lanky rose. Here are SI from this spring:

Below is SI during its first year. Notice the awkward, long cane coming out in different directions.

I have mary rose and love it. she does wants to get a little tall. but is ore i dont mind

Second flush

First flush. they are now planted and kuch happier. i cant wait for next spring! i also want to get a bolero or earth angel tree. it would be so beautiful

BTW, I am terrible with pots....

Plants in ground. I'm out there, tweaking, composting, mulching, hand pulling weeds out of flower beds, the works.

Pots - aside from setting them on drip (set and forget), AS MINDFUL as I try to be on a feeding schedule for them, I'm never really ontop of it. I'll put down some slow release if I happen to remember (which is usually early in the season) but I have soooo many liquid fertz (dyna grow, fox farm) that are more full than empty as I'm just not proactive when it comes to pots

if you all don’t mind me asking, whats been the life expectancy for a tree rose in your area? I presume most are grafted on Dr Huey.

Own rose standard tree is uncommon though in existence. I got mine from Regan and David Austin, which are all grafted on Dr. H.

My oldest standard trees are only 4 years old. They have not declined and only got better.

My neighbor has 10 Double Delight standard trees lining both side of the entry (5 on each side) of her front yard for > 10 years. 3 of them looked bad and seemed half dead. the other 7 appears to be fine, with no detectable changes in foliage and bloom ability year after year.

On this forum you will find people who dislike grafted roses and some favored grafted roses. They all have their reasons based upon individual experience. I am not sure there is a straightforward answer, in particular in zone 10b which does not have winter die back.

Thank you for sharing your view on this, Rose Lai!

I remember someone on Houzz had a beautiful deck with a standard in a pot in front of every post--it was really pretty

I have 2

Pope John Paul 2 which croaked and Love Song which is doing great.

I am going to replace the Pope with Twilight zone.

My sister has Julia Child and Moo dance, both 15 yerars old. Zone 8

Jen do you still have Road Dahl ? I saw it at the nursery and now I want it but want to know if it's a good one or if I should pass.