Good question. I don’t know.

Every time I see mention of this rose, I think of Carrie Louise - of They Do It with Mirrors.

The Joan Hickson version.

AL is a 1999 hybrid tea rose hybridized in Germany, and said to be (my HMF) cold hardy to zone 6b. However, Palatine says it is cold hardy to zone 5b, which sounds likely given that it was hybridized in Germany (HMF's hardiness numbers are frequently incorrect). One thing about roses on their own roots in cold areas - if they die back to the ground in a harsh winter, they will come up as the same rose, not whatever the rootstock is if they were grafted.

Hybrid teas can be fine, or very weak, if growing on their own roots. It all depends on the specific rose. So, what I would do if I were you is to find a Rose Society or Garden Society near where you live, and ask them if anyone grows AL on its own roots in your area. I would also call the nurseries you mentioned on the phone - since they have sold it on its own roots, they may have info they can share with you about their experiences with AL. I think both nurseries are in zone 6 or so. If it was me, I would try to get it on its own roots because of your zone, unless you get very negative feedback from someone who has grown it in your area.

Jackie

I would try it, Chris. Plant ASAP to get well established before Fall.

I have an own-root AL that I got in November from Peter @ Freedom Gardens (after waiting over a year and a half). It's still very small. I put it in a 3-gallon pot to grow it a bit bigger. Peter said AL is very difficult to root. I also have AL on multi-flora rootstock from Palatine -- planted last year as bare root. Not very big at all. Ask me again in 2 or more years!

Freedom Gardens is in z5. Probably b.

Back in 2013, I got AL as a bareroot (two year old) plant from Hortico. It took off like gangbusters and bloomed the first year. This is a very vigorous plant when grafted. I don't recommend it own root, and I even wonder about Palatine's plants. AL is a hybrid tea and I think needs to be grown in zone 6 or warmer. Just my opinions. Diane

I'm glad to hear it should be grown in zone 6 or warmer. Now I will scratch it off of my pining after list, once and for all, and move on with life.

I bought a grade 1.5 plant from Palatine one year as that was all that was left. It is a strong , tall plant now and gets part sun. All the canes are healthy green and look great. I don't see any winter damage on it at all in zone 7b. I have rooted it easily. It does seem, so far, that own root plants of it don't grow especially fast. So own-root it might be slow but eventually gain a good size.

Thank you everyone for sharing your thoughts and experiences. I actually already have own root ’Augusta Luise’ from Long Ago Roses that I obtained late last summer. I have kept it indoors under high powered LED grow lights all winter and was concerned that it wasn’t growing at all. But then I had the realization that I wasn't watering it enough. Once I remedied that, it began shooting out new growth and buds.

Here is the first bloom today, growing in a one gallon pot, with a lovely sweet fruity-tea fragrance:

Chris: I love that glowing orange color. How do you fertilize it to get such marvelous orange color? Thank you.

My roses turned black to the crown after freezing rain this March in my zone 5a. I chickened out of hybrid teas on my Roses Unlimited spring 2022 delivery. Pat Henry was very nice to let me swap Elle for Kiss Me Kate climber, Libensauzer for Crimson glory climber, and Buxom Beauty for Ardoise de Lyon (hybrid perpetual hardy to zone 4).

I grew Crimson glory own-root before and it was hardy for years despite being tiny, so Crimson glory climber should be better.

Straw, own root ’Crimson Glory, Cl.’ actually does quite well as a die back shrub in zone 5. It will get stronger every year so just be patient with it. It will never really climb per se but has no trouble blooming on new growth. Truly one of the most magnificent red roses ever.

I wouldn’t be so quick to ditch ’Elle’. This one seems to be hardy for a lot of cold zoners. Although theirs might be grafted… I will be growing mine in a pot at first.

I don‘t do anything special for ’Augusta Luise’. Since I have increased the water, I give it regular doses of Kelpak and Dyna-Gro Grow. The glowing orange color is probably just due to lack of UV light under my grow lights.

Cl Crimson Glory is truly gorgeous, and the "old rose" scent is one of the strongest of all of the roses in my garden. I got mine from a cutting I took from a rose climbing up a tree in an old garden which had not had any care for over a year, as (sounds like a story, but true!) the lot was about to be paved over and turned into a parking lot. That was decades ago, and it is still going strong. I do not garden in a cold climate, but since Chris says it does well as a "die back" shrub in zone 5 (!), I am just chiming in that it is a WONDERFUL rose.

Jackie

Chris: Absolutely gorgeous form and color !! Thank you for the desc. of its scent. How tall is your Augusta and how many months it took from a band to now? I'm checking to see if it's possible to grow Augusta as own-root in my zone 5a.

Tiny Annie L. McDowell survived its 3rd winter, much better than Pretty Lady Rose.

Straw, my plant is in a one gallon pot and is currently about 12 inches tall by 18 inches wide. It has doubled in size during the past month. Prior to that it did not grow at all, which I now know to be my fault. I wasn’t checking for moisture in the pot properly and therefore managed to severely underwater it, keeping it semi-dormant in a state of drought. (That is why some of the foliage looks spotty brown and pale in the photo.)

This is only the maiden bloom but this cultivar seems to have lovely bloom form, bloom size and fragrance. If I have a criticism about it, it is that I find the color on this first bloom to be surprisingly garish. It is definitely no shrinking violet. But we will see what the summer brings.

Thank you for the info. Please keep cold-zoners like me updated on the progress of Augusta as own-root.

Chris, get ready for the colorful ride of your rose gardening life. Diane

Mine, from Palatine, on multiflora, is still very small but seems to be growing, just slowly. The few blooms I've gotten have looked like I'd hoped, but slow repeat. She's 3 yrs old, maybe 4. This is a dry climate, and I noticed last year that drenching her helped. Diane, I'm not giving up. I will do whatever she wants to keep her happy. This rose takes my breath away.

Flowers: Gorgeous pic with so many petals, and best colors too. It's good to hear that Augusta survived a few zone 5 winters. Here's a comment regarding Augusta L. from HMF: HonzaPM

Czech Republic, 15.7.2011, zone 5b, rose with exceptional fragrance (lemon), needs protection against black spot and also winter protection is very helpfull. two young plants on the picture, better plant in a group of 3, but the third plant died during the winter (2010). HonzaPM

Chris: Could it be the kelp fertilizer that gives deeper colors in your Augusta?

My Mary Magdalene is always white, unless I give it trace-elements like Kelp or biochar .. then it gets pinkish.

Straw, you might be right about the kelp. This bloom is screaming neon coral, huge (5 inches) and deliciously fragrant:

AL's blooms are always huge. I don't think kelp has anything to do with size or color. Your AL bloom shows one of her "normal" colors, and her colors perpetually change. That's part of the fun. I've grown her since 2013 and I've never figured our just what brings on what color. I don't think it's the temperature, either. It's her many mysterious color moods. If she feels like pale pink, then she blooms pale pink and so on. Diane

Definitely in a pink mood

Flowers, good luck with this Augusta--did she come through winter OK? Your rose's bloom is gorgeous. Yes,, I get sort of faint when looking at her in bloom. Diane

Diane, I have not had a chance to go see if she's still alive. Snow only melted recently and the addition going in inside has kept me on my toes. I hope to get out there this week and start pruning and feeding. I hope it's not too early. It snowed today!

I had no idea you were still dealing with snow, Flowers. Ugh. Here, it hasn't been especially warm, but I'm going full bore pruning. I swore I'd only prune 10 roses this year, and compare them to the non pruned ones. Well, that didn't happen because if you put me near some pruners, I am compelled to do a full prune. I hate it. The punctures, scratches, ripped up clothing, and wearing that d**m hoodie to protect my head are awful. Then I come inside with a totally squashed hairdo. Plus I look like some alien being in my big ripped up corduroy coat. You can't imagine how awful I look when I prune. OK. Rant over. Are you going to do the full prune thing? We're too old for that stuff. Diane