Speaking of good fertilizers, is anyone using Maxsea? I might try it on some of my slower roses — I already have two different types: 16:16:16 and 3:20:20

I think more time might help our weak plants. I worry if I try special tricks and potions I may do more harm than good.

I personally, also, worry about the birds and bees so only use things that can be used in organic gardening or farming.

I forgot to mention that Twig is 8 years old. He's had lots of time and plenty of good fertilizer. Organic, of course. Whatever that means. All carbon compounds are so called organic, and the word has become meaningless. Diane

I've never had an Austin clunker when it comes to growth, just own root Abe. All my other Austins, some real oldies, are grafted. I have removed PAoK, which was a monster in my garden, and the voles removed Olivia, which was a large rose. Diane

Nosometer - I'm crossing my fingers for you!! I need help too with my Austins. lol I'm hoping for better this year...I have a new Evelyn! I had a Jude once...it died. Rolling my eyes. Oh my!!! Your Abe is fantastic!!

Elena - yeah, let it go and get something that will make you happier. :)

Diane - that sure is beautiful. :) But, yeah, compared to your other roses...sigh...what a wimp, right?

Rose - your Emily Bronte has such romantic and beautiful blooms!! Oh, my!!!

@Rose Paris - beautiful Emily Bronte! The ones that I saw at the nursery were so blah. I wonder if the light/climate here just bleaches out the flowers (as it often does). I'm going to coddle my new Jude for a while, and then try to be patient. Sigh.

@elenazone6 - I agree with rosecanadian that if it makes you unhappy, remove it. I'd have a hard time removing it myself, since I've removed a few roses that I now I regret doing so, and now I can't get them back (Falstaff, Mary Magdalene, Annie Laurie McDowell). Of course there are some that I regretted removing, got back, and then realized why I got rid of them (Sharifa Asma, Windermere). My usual procedure for roses that are growing poorly in my garden is to pot them up for a year or two to evaluate. Then I can control their environment more (potting media, moisture level, sunlight, fertilizer, etc.) and see if it's a culture issue, or if they are just duds in my climate. But you are such a good gardener, it may not be helpful.

@rosecanadian - Congratulations on your new Evelyn! My experience with Evelyn taught me to give her nothing less than full sun, plenty of water (as with all roses), and no acid food (I gave her camellia food and she hated it!).

@Diane Brakefield - 8 years is a long time to put up with the Twig. I don't know if I would have lasted that long. Does he get full sun?

@noseometer...(7A, SZ10, Albuquerque)....One thing I was wondering is how much water you have been giving your Jude? Baby plants need more water than older plants with deep roots. Due to climate change, we have had less rain here than is normal, and before. My Jude always seems to be the first to show signs of suffering when I need to water (which is a lot right now, because the ground is just so parched). What surprised me, when I started learning about it, is how much water a baby plant needs to really get off the ground (see Austin site). It used to rain so much here, that I only would water if it got really hot in the summer (but I also didn't have as many flowers). Jude may need that extra blast to get as huge as it aspires to be and make those large flowers.

@Rose Paris - I grew my last Jude in a pot after it didn't do well in the ground, just to make sure that it had a quality mix around the roots and plenty of water. It didn't seem to make a difference. We'll see what happens this time.

Noseometer - I agree with you about Evelyn and acidity. A no-no. :)

Rose - I always water my baby roses well. I wasn't sure if that was right, but it made sense as their roots could only get water that they can reach, and their roots (and feeder roots) are often short.

I just learned that Jude has Abraham Darby as a parent. So it would be very peculiar (but not impossible) if I was able to grow Abe but not Jude, and if Diane can grow Jude but not Abe.

PAOK just took the first spot in my collection. Just got it this season, what a grand rose.

Nose, I think it's the own root part that is the problem with Abe. I would bet significant $ on that. I don't know who sells Abe anymore, OR or grafted to test my theory. Diane

My Abes have all been own-root, so I can't compare either. But I do know that they did grow much better in the rarefied environment of a pot (until the mix degraded). I'd be curious though, since if I had an Abe that grew much better and bloomed more (like Jerome's or Erasmus'), I'd be excited indeed.

Artist - wonderful! My faves are the 2nd and the last pictures. Mmmmm

@noseometer...(7A, SZ10, Albuquerque), that's interesting about the parentage. But I guess, one could ask how much is anyone like one's parents? Perhaps there are variations in any family or species? Like my dog, for whatever reason, is a specimen, just a giant for his breed, and everyone asks why we have this huge dog,... (Not on purpose but he is super nice anyway). Even if he is menace number 1 to my plants (eating rosebuds, digging holes...LOL). Re: Jude, maybe you just had a weak specimen? Am hoping the new one takes off! I find that my Abe's (own root) are doing better this year... Is it maturity (now age 3), better food, or the fact that it's barely been raining and they like it drier? Abe has these lovely glossy leaves right now, but still not tall. But really healthy, with it's vine-like branches, both of which are face-forward on fences, and meander, but are not really climbers. Here is one of Abes today with apricot buds, and St. Cecilia growing up tall behind it (and looming over it), despite being a less vigorous plant, and a dog hole (LOL).... (If anyone is looking for St Cecilia, fyi is not that different from Desdemona in color, which now has big blooms in year 4. Both fragrant, but desdemona is the only white I have that does not smell of myrrh so you would need to like that for St. C.... ) My soil is terrible, just a dump of hard soil lefter over from the construction of this place and the neighborhood. Hard and with bits of pipe and concrete and rubbish when you dig down... To survive, roots need to drill...

@Artist-FKA-Novice Zone 7B GA, what does PAOK smell like? @Diane Brakefield may have a point about the grafts, my grafted Evelyns are stronger than the own-root one for sure.

@Rose Paris

Seems like a classic rose fragrance but I cannot tell much since I am a bit anosmic. If I detect it, others may find it quite intense.

Diane -- You are probably right about grafted versus own-root Abe. It's one of the DA roses my mom planted in her garden in the 90s, and in that era, it must have been grafted. It did well for all the years we lived there. I remember picking its flowers and mixing them with stems of a white DA rose, which my mom recalls was Fair Bianca. I knew very little about roses then and just thought they looked pretty together. I'm realizing now that my mom was quite trusting to let me go clipping away at her roses...

Rose Paris -- Your Emily Bronte blooms are divine! I didn't realize that variety could be quite so pretty. Your Young Lycidas is what everyone dreams will arrive when they order a rose through the mail :)

Elena -- I use Maxsea 15-15-15 for my houseplants and indoor potted roses, and I do like it. I particularly noticed how it gave my houseplants a boost when I first started using it. I occasionally give my roses Great Big Roses liquid compost, as well. I figure I need to keep my roses fed pretty frequently since they are growing in less than ideal conditions (indoors, in small-ish pots). It's unclear to me if Maxsea is organic, as there are conflicting descriptions online, but I'm less concerned about that since all my plants are indoors. And I can't get away with using anything with too much of an odor in my apartment.

@Artist-FKA-Novice Zone 7B GA, thanks for your answer! I have never seen a PAOK but maybe the next one I try? @windowsill_gardener, Emily does get pretty, but for me, it took a couple years for it to start producing the literal masses of healthy, fragrant flowers it has. now.. Seriously, it had like 20 blooms total the first two years, some of which were tiny, and now has like 10-20 decent resplendent blooms on each stem, uncountable number, so fragrant... Here is Abe today, just "hanging", with its now super glossy leaves and it's giant perfumed flower... for those who are curious, a second shot of Emma Bridgewater... In sunny, SW exposure, it has so far been very similar to Eustacia Vye in color but a better grower -.. In the NE exposure, in my bad ground, in a shadier spot, the colors are more interesting and it gave me this today...

Abe...

Emma B.

...

Your Emma Bridgewater is such a pretty pink with a tiny bit of orange and the yellow stamens....mmmmm

PAOK performs very well in my high shade backyard. Her blooms are about 6" in diameter and look very plump. LOL.

The most brilliant rose in the full sun front garden is Molinuex. Its bright yellow flowers are very eye-catching. It and Garden Delight (not DA) are the two most frequently asked roses in my garden.

The most fragrant DA is Sharifa Asma, a healthy and vigorous shrub; the second place is Young Lycidas. The large deep purple flowers seem to declare its unshakable position in the garden.

@Feiy (PNWZ8b/9a), love the pics! Interestingn to know that PAOK works well in very little sun, definitly on my list now! What does Sharif Asma smell like to you?

Anyone here from the Midwest?

I need some emotional support—or at least confirmation—that David Austin roses can actually thrive here. All of mine are always behind my other roses. Every year I solemnly swear I’m done with DAs… and yet, somehow, new ones keep showing up in my garden. Hope may be the last to die…

Well, I don't know what my comment counts for but I have many David Austins that have done really well here and continue to do well. Specifically munstead wood, pretty Jessica, molineux, And Jude the obscure.. Heathcliff, Tess, and Falstaff have done fair To middling Depending on the winter. Falstaff has more die back. I don't know what happened to Windrush. Septer'd Isle succumbed to Herbicide damage. I'm crossing my fingers for Abe Darby. He is just a small cutting and I hope to learn grafting with him. My neighbor had a Rouald Dahl which did quite well and also lady of shalott which did very well. LOS also does very well in my friend's garden where I planted her Along with the generous gardener and Bathsheba. I am also impressed with teasing Georgia. The jury is out on Malvern hills And even Darcy Bussell. I've had the ladder for years but recently moved her to a friend's garden to see if His black spot is less harsh. Normally things that struggle in my garden do well in his.

What is the issue with your roses, Elena? All of them seem so beautiful.

Thanks, Vaporvac! Maybe I just have high expectations—or not enough patience. So far, I’m only truly happy with Olivia and Eustacia Vye (2). And since Abe is on her own roots, I don’t really count her.

My second-year DAs—MW, Boscobel, and BMS—aren’t exactly vigorous. I did buy a few more this season, and while they’ve started off well, who knows how they’ll develop. Maybe I’m just expecting too much compared to how other second-year roses are performing.

But it’s really encouraging to hear that DA roses can thrive here. Thanks again

Which is BMS? I think it does take longer for own roots, althouh many of mine are grafted.

Feiy - incredible roses and other flowers!!! Your PAoK is my favorite...my goodness!!! My next fave is your YL...your roses are spectacular!

Elena - I'm exactly where you are with the Austins. I keep trying new ones. They fail to thrive and some just outright die. I've tried so many. Right now I have Gabriel Oaks (leaves have PM, but there are lots of buds), Evelyn (new own root, growing and looks good) and Harlow Carr...small blooms and the canes aren't very strong, but that could improve. I would suggest you try Bishop's Castle if you want to try another one. These 3 roses are the last Austins I'll get. So, I hope these work out well. :)

@Feiy (PNWZ8b/9a), Echoing others you have a beautiful garden!

@elenazone6, if they are only two-years old, you might to wait a bit... Many roses, especially DA roses,really need three years to really thrive. A couple of mine were scraggly and poor bloomers the first two years and now they are large and floriferous.IOlivia Rose Austin is definitely steady-as-she goes in my garden and only gets better (and a bit more fragrant with age). When I lived in the Midwest, we were advised to plant roses with the bud union well underground, and covered roses with special cones in the winter to prevent them from dyring,, but that as that was zone 4, it didn't always work.

So Emma Bridgewater (same flowers five days later), faded down to a beautiful mauve (as seen at night), @Diane Brakefield might find it interesting to know that it is pushing Jude out its way, like a pushy little sister. Sort of falling love with this one....

@Rose Paris, thank you!

I got the first bloom of Jubilee Celebration , planted just few weeks ago. This rose looks very promising!

Rose Paris - that's a very dramatic color change on your EB rose. I may even love the softer color better. Mmmmmm

Elena - that's the most beautiful picture I've ever seen of a Jubilee Celebration bloom!! SWOOOOOOON!!!

All that talk about Jude the Obscure and his fragrance, I had to give another try. I found him at Rogue Valley Roses.

First bloom today. There is the fragrance of guava, but very citrusy today, like grapefruit also. I'm so excited.

Nose, oh, no. I hope Jude can take your heat and I wish you luck because he can be truly glorious. Your beautiful first bloom is a little more colorful than my Jude produces. He is grafted from DA and has grown for 21 years in his same spot, a true geezer like I am. You have harsh sun like we do, so I don't think that makes any difference in Jude's color. This spring was disaster for the picky Jude. He was nine feet of solid bloom (I will show pics when I get my album fixed). On May 31, we hit 100F, and Jude dropped all his heat shattered blooms--just the petals in two days. He's blooming some again but we hit 101 on July 1, so I'm not sure if he'll persist in blooming. Again, I wish you the best with Jude. When he is good, he is worth his trouble.

Rose Paris, Emma has an intriguing look I like, but I don't think she's available in the US at present. Keep us posted on this roses. Poor Jude, he's just a huge, picky wimp. Diane

My late and non lamented PAoK. I've shown this pic before to prove what an aggressive rose she was. Munstead Wood didn't stand a chance growing next to her. Now I have a monster Boscobel to take PAoK's place, but he grows in a different spot.

Diane - yeah, we've already had a week of 101-102F, which was awful. It's been in the low to mid 90's since (supposed to be 99 today). I have Jude in a pot in afternoon shade right now. I have absolutely nowhere to put him in the garden, and his color doesn't work in my garden AT ALL, so I'm not sure what to do about him. But that glorious fragrance! Nothing like it.

@Diane Brakefield I know you describe PAoK as a garden bully but omg that picture of her is stunning! She’s one of my favorite roses but I have her in a pot, which keeps her contained. She’s my 8-yr-old’s favorite rose.

@noseometer...(7A, SZ10, Albuquerque). Congrats on your new plant! My Jude is not as large as Diane's, but definitely, quickly outgrew the pot. Quite tall, with many branches (and is barely three). We have had 90s-100s, and almost no rain this summer (which is not normal--the city trees are dying), and it's holding up better than most .I think there are quite a few DA's that are happier with shade/cooler/moister conditions (May/early June is always their best month here). Jude must have 30-40 buds or blooms on it right now, and has just been a real goer this summer, and with all the sun, the varying tones on it have been quite interesting, as it is usually really yelkow in my climate but the sun has washed it out to look even a bit creamy/apricoty (but now I just wish it would rain because it is a real struggle keeping the garden alive!).The blooms are also a bit smaller than in rainy times. Hope you enjoy!

Some random Jude pics showing a little color variation, but not much. Diane

Nosometer - that's a beautifully soothing bloom of Jude. Mmmmm :)

Diane - Nine feet of solid blooms. What a rose!! But what a fall from Grace when the heat blasted in. The bloom color on your PAOK is stunning!!! Oh, Mama, :) :) Oh, Diane...your Jude pictures...SWOON!!!!!

Rose Paris - I wish you rain. And not just a little, I wish you sufficient rain. Good luck. :)

My Evelyns are giving me blooms in October for the first time ever--perhaps it was the heat this summer, but it is a happy surprise to see how they take off as they mature (they are between 1-3 years old)! Hope everyone searching, found one! A rose that is gaining ground as a fave for me is Othello, so much so that, I acquired more than one--just started growing it own-root, and it is giving me some amazing colors today at dusk in October:

Yellow, purple, magenta, pink... Sigh..... While The Prince is also giving me some Fall love today (although I have seen it bloom in December), a literal representation of "born to the purple":

Both smell awesome! Love the deep or unusual colored ones.... Hope they come up with new ones! Sometimes my DA's perform better when not grafted.... So if one frustrated you before, perhaps worth a try...

Well.....If I could only grow one, I would pick Sharifa Asma

Gertrude Jekyll on fragrance alone. I had the pleasure of sticking two perfect buds of GJ up my nose and now my brain chemistry will never be the same. Love Munstead, Spirit of Freedom, St. Cecilia, Jude, Mary Rose... but if I had to erase all but one from my memory, I would keep my experience with Gerty. David Austin rose fragrances are so deep and complex. Love!!!!

@Sunny Mississippi 8a, how is the repeat on GJ? I have been curious about it, wondering if it were over-hyped or not.

Sunny, I had a similar scent experience with Young Lycidas a couple of years ago. I never cut his blooms for bouquets in the house or tried to smell his scent. Then late in 2023, I needed to bring in a lot of blooms because a hard frost threatened, so I made my first bouquet of Young Lycidas, and his perfume wafted all over my bedroom and made Rouge Royale seem like a scent slacker.

Rose Paris, your The Prince bloom above is just the kind I love--dark and sexy. My Prince blooms early and does well, but when he's done in fall, that's it. He stops blooming quite early compared to many others. Diane

Still thinking on my best Austin. I know it's been mentioned that a favorite rose is not necessarily a "best" rose. I'd say that Munstead Wood is both favorite and one of my best Austins, and lots of others feel the same way. She's one of Austin's greats, I think. Other Austins are favorites of mine, but not the best when it comes to rebloom (Evelyn) or ability to take heat and weather vagaries (Jude the Obscure). One rose I dearly love and have grown since the 1990s when she first arrived here is Eglantyne, my second Austin rose. I've grown several, and she outblooms Evelyn and is every bit as gorgeous as Jude. David Austin , Sr, mentioned several times in his catalog years ago, that Eglantyne was, in his estimation, his most beautiful rose. That's debatable, but she's up there at the top. And very dependable, too. Diane

I forgot to include these two photos. All photos are of Eglantyne.

Not bad for late October around here.

Oh, Diane!!!!! SWOOOOON!!!! The 2nd and 3rd photos are my faves!!! Glorious!

Carol, do you see Morden Sunrise all covered in blooms in back and to the left of Eglantyne in the third photo down? Thank you about Eglantyne. Did Austin revive her for sale this past year? I thought someone posted that. Diane

Diane - oh yes, I see her!! The coloring is so beautiful!!

Just found this pic of Evelyn at her best from last summer--can't wait to see her come back! That fragrance!