Oursteeler, this is my first year with Marianne (from RVR late last year) blooming and (assuming she is the right rose) she has had everything ranging from pink to yellow for me so far with the most recent being entirely yellow. I am pretty confident she is the right rose since there is no other that would match. My Alchymist also started off entirely yellow this year and I would have questioned it was the right rose if I hadn’t had it bloom last year.

My Marianne before her recent yellow phase.

My yellow Alchymist, this was early May when temps were still very cool.

I’m in love with both of them and am happy to have them both in my garden.

I would prefer if people stopped trying to create drama on our threads and let others decide how and where to purchase their roses.

If anyone would prefer and would like to reach out to Paul to check if he has Marianne I can share his email in private. I purchased Mel’s heritage, Allegra and Marianne from him this year so he may have some available. He also sent me some very rare roses as gifts with my order. Mine hasnt bloomed yet but I cant wait.

I also have Marianne AND Alchemist! Marianne is a baby band for me this year so no blooms yet, but Alchemist bloomed for the first time for me this year (year 3) and it's so beautiful! Not much fragrance so far though.

My Alchemist

A

Here are my pics of marianne today

Ok, I have a few minutes to comment. My Alchymist is growing up and through a photinia so the lack of fragrance surprisingly doesn’t bother me. I adore this rose. Just beautiful coloring. At this point I’d pick it over Marianne but that’s cause my Marianne looks more like The Pilgrim but doesn’t rebloom

It seems like I need both roses now.

@oursteelers 8B PNW I wouldn't panic yet. My first blooms on Marianne this year were pure white...and I did panic, even though I know it's the correct plant (it came from Paul), AND it has bloomed before. But never had it been pure white, lol. Marianne is just very variable, and I think it takes her a few years to settle down. The bloom form on your first pic looks absolutely correct for Marianne, though the ones in the middle photo don't look like any of mine, lol. I'll go check the leaves on my Marianne later, and report back.

Here, they are both great. Marianne has fragrance and a lovely bush shape.

Alchymist below is lovely too. More octopus armed.

No wonder Paul left this forum.

@User

Care to expound on your nasty snark? Marianne was introduced in 2001 and never patented or trademarked as far as I can tell. I did once ask Paul how royalties work if there is no patent or trademark , but did not receive a response. That said, I’d be happy to give him any due royalties for the purchase of my plant.

Much better price (especially for shipping) and a reputable vendor. https://roguevalleyroses.com/rose/marianne/

Sheila, that' s a stupendous, glorious rose you grow there. I'm trying to think of superlative adjectives for this beautiful work of nature and you and Paul Barden. Diane

btw Paul has mentioned that Rogue valley pays royalties to him even when not legally bound to do so, definitely a good reputable business.

Sheila those roses are magnificent!

Sheila,

Your Alchemyst and Marianne are equally amazing specimens

Magpie

Those are some great first bllooms!

Someone messaged me in private and In case my previous comment was misleading in anyway I want to be clear

. I purchased my first Barden roses from Roque Valley, and all other since directly from Paul. I will continue to do so because I feel strongly about him getting the reward from his creations. I do not however like how often these threads turn into negative things with people pointing fingers in all directions. Even Paul has stated that the only business that has always paid royalties is Rogue valley. So no matter how reputable the business, if anyone has ever purchased a Barden rose from any other than Rogue Valley or Him is likely in the exact situation as purchasing it on Etsy, just under the illusion that they are doing better. If anyone has ever purchased a non-patented variety without asking if the creator is getting royalties is in the same situation. I personally choose where I want to buy my roses but I would never try to impose it on others.

The pictures of these 2 roses here are gob smacking!!! (Sometimes you have to go to the English for just the right words, lol.) Utterly amazing!!!

No, I don't care to elaborate, Ben. Furthermore I certainly did not intend it to be a "nasty snark". Sorry you took it that way.

I very much appreciate your thoughtful reasoning, Dianela. I would certinaly prefer to buy from Paul or Rogue Valley too, had I known Marianne is in stock. All my other Bardens are from Rogue Valley.. I don‘t think what this seller is doing is any different than what Long Ago, High Country, ,Northland Rosarium , Burlington or any other own root seller is doing….selling rooted cuttings from their own mother plant of a non patent rose., using their own pics.

Ooh, Sheila. Your bush of Marianne is the most beautiful picture I’ve ever seen! I have so far resisted the temptation to buy that one because it’s a once bloomer and my summers are so long that it seems a pity to have a big green bush the rest of the year. But maybe it’s worth it for such a fabulous display every spring.

Judi, thank you. Marianne has been blooming more than a month, too. She is so healthy she always looks good too, even when not in bloom.

Sheila, your Marianne and Alchymist are both stunning, and I agree completely with your assessment of them both. When I noticed buds on Marianne this year and told my husband, he commented that he would want to keep it even if it never bloomed. You know no one has said this about Alchymist.

@dianela7analabama - I’m unable to send you a PM. If you could send me Paul’s email, I would appreciate it. I had to leave my collection behind when I moved and would like to see if he is propagating a few RVR has not had in stock for quite a while.

Sheila, agree with others thar your Marianne is outstanding!

@Dave5bWY I messaged you his email. Let me know if you dont get it.

Oursteelers

Mine was peachy when it first bloomed in the cool weather, but the moment we hit 80s it turned white almost immediately after blooming

Carla in Sac

I think apricot, yellow, and white could be Marianne’s color range. It's interesting to see her act like two completely different roses. :)

5/18

Yesterday

Feiy,

Those pictures are beautiful, like you have both Marriane and a really beautiful yellow Austin in one plant. I love the magical color variations.

Oursteelers,

I think we have a match for your Marianne! Hope you get some blooms like Feiy’s 1st pic, too!

Judi

I also was concerned about buying a once bloomer, but I figured since most of my roses completely shut down during the heat   of summer anyway I'm not really missing out on much.

Marianne does bloom  a month or more.

Carla in Sac

Feiy, that makes me feel SO MUCH better! Maybe next year I’ll get the peach coloring.

I was able to cancel my Etsy order for Marianne, and place one with Rogue Valley. As a bonus, Umbra was available so I got that too! Rogue Valley’s plants semmed significantly bigger than what the Etsy seller was shipping out as well. Thanks Sheila and Dianela for all the great information!

Ben, hopefully your roses from RVR will look something like what I got from them in February :-D

What size blooms are Marianne’s Heather and Dave? all the photos on this thread are absolutely gorgeous

My largest blooms were maybe 4-5 inches? I didn’t measure but some went in a vase with Abe and I did measure him at 6 inches and Marianne wasn’t quite as big. The ones now at the end of the flush are quite a bit smaller, probably 3 inches.

Wow thats amazing

Marianne arrives from the Rogue Valley! Elon performs ceremonial yoga pose in front of the box

Rogue Valley’s packaging is terrific, I think they must’ve improved recently?

Marianne, Elon, Umbra. Pardon the mess, we had roses to liberate from boxes!

Very into the carved wood furniture you've got there.

Magpie,

It is a handcarved chest handed down from my grandfather, he got it from an official in China pre WWII

The top is a war scene, men on horseback fighting

The side is a peace scene, a lady in waiting being attended to and admired, on a picturesque bridge nestled in pine trees.

A summer pic of Golden Zest, which can also turn from yellow to apricot sort of reverse color change from Alchemist.

Ben, what a beautiful heirloom piece. You're very lucky to have it.

Oh my goodness Ben! I know there are people that collect this style of carved furniture but I’ve never met (I will consider our interactions here as a kind of meeting 😊) someone that actually has one. I also have one of these chests, though we have always assumed it’s a high quality knock off since my grandfather bought it qhen he was in Taiwan in the 50’s but honestly we have no idea. Now I’m inspired to do a bit of research 😄

Also, RVR has really upped their packaging game! My last order with 16 roses was bomb proof, everything taped tight to the box and no shifting at all. I’m currently contemplating an order with Umbra, Allegra, and Pam’s Choice.

I want Golden Zest. Can’t find her right now.😫

I can't remember how my order of two came from RVR in December 2022, but my order of three in February 2024 came in exactly the same box and packing. Spectacular. Looks like you got a couple of good sized plants. Love the chest and its history :-D

Agree with all above. Great looking plants and chest and Elon doing his yoga.

So do I !

Thanks for the nice words on the chest. Elon is always happy to demonstrate his yoga skills. After yoga and rose unpackaging, a well deserved chill-lax in luxury.

Susan,

I have never been so impressed by packaging as RVR’s. The box fit the bands perfectly, they were taped tight and secure, paperwork, instructions and a postcard were placed perfectly in the middle of the box. Rogue Valley must’ve hired Apple or Dyson’s packaging geeks. i can’t decide whether to keep the box as a souvenir, or send it to Grace Rose Farms so they see how it’s done.

Heather,

What a coincidence on our the carved chests! I asked my mom, she said it was from Taiwan in the 1950s too, mine was a gift from Chiang Kai-shek to my grandfather. After WWII many very skilled wood artisans fled from China to Taiwan . These days you’d be hard pressed to find a handyman to fix a wood fence, much less make such a detailed and timeconsuming product. It is made from camphor wood that has resins to resist rot and bugs.

Sylvia,

RU might have Golden Zest. I’m sure J&P plans on reselling him next season, since they sold out in like 2 days.

Ben, that’s very interesting about the woodworkers fleeing to Taiwan and makes sense with the story I got from my grandfather. My chest is still so incredibly fragrant when opened, I use it to store my mom’s quilts.

I pulled the trigger and now have Umbra, Allegra, and Pam’s Choice on their way! It seems now I need to keep an eye out for Golden Zest as well 😄

Ben - what a great influencer Elon is ; today is the day Amara and I increase our activity other than energetically foraging for food . Amara's Dr diplomatically said she's a little overweight. None of the online exercise gurus have motivated us until Elon's inspiring show of flexibility.

On a furniture note, my neighbor showed me her exquisite antique carved chairs from China that she inherited from her Chinese parents. The chairs have a lower storage compartment , I've never seen anything like them. Craftsmanship never goes out of style.

I still want to make a planter like one at a yard sale years ago . The base was a planter box with an attached wooden trellis back embellished with carved Mackintosh roses.

I saved this photo example of a chair for a possible future project , anyone that sat in it might appear angelic.

Well if we are showing off our chests. Mine is from China as well. My grest Grandparents were missionarys ti China and my grandfather and my mother were born and raised there. The chest along with several other pieces were brought over right as war was breaking out around 1938

The vase is about 3 ft

Berry, cool chair !!!

Showing off our chests!? I'm not. Sorry, bad joke. Kristine, your vase is stupendous. Do you display it? I think I remember you putting it away to make room for Christmas decorations.

Berry, where do you find photos of such treasures? That chair must have dropped from the heavenly skies. I wonder who it was meant for. I've seen some neat chair planters and would love to have one. I think Elaine had a chair planter at one time. I'll have to ask what she did with it.

Ben, your chest is marvelous, and the story of how it descended to you is fascinating. Being of advanced age and a lifelong political junkie, I remember Chiang Kai-shek well. The US backed him to the hilt against the Chinese Communists. As a six year old, I followed that war closely. Yes, I did. Dean Acheson was our Secretary of State at that time. Elon should have his own forum thread. His smile is wonderful. Diane

Amazing heirlooms Kristine !

Many years ago I had a box of family antiques my young sons mistakenly put out in our yard sale instead of the box of sale items. A guy bought the whole collection for a 10 dollar bill - my sons were so proud of making big money !

Diane, I don't remember where I came across that chair photo,. I've searched the internet for decorating ideas and mostly stumble across what I wasn't looking for.