I have all of those as well. WBY is more of a hotter color and not as blue for me, Neptune is a perfect lavender w/a good vaselife, smells wonderful, and readily available. NCM is a GORGEOUS rose with BIG blooms.. instant bouquets!

Wild Blue Yonder


Neptune


Nicole Carol Miller


Some more suggestions:

Babara Streisand


Sterling Silver


Stainless Steel


Tardi Gris


Angel Face


And my absolute favorite, if you can find it 'cuz it's NOT easy to find, Blue Bayou



My agastaches don't volunteer seedlings but I'm guessing I'm NOT the norm.. almost everyone else does!!

Great collection of lavenders! How do you protect them in winter? I typically just plant deeply so that the bud union has a few inches of soil and mulch over it, but have never done any caging to protect canes...and don't anticipate that I will, LOL.

I noticed the helpmefind pics of WBY look more hot pink than lavender or mauve.

Black Adder is sterile, no reseeding.

We have lots of photos of these roses in our own database. No need for links to HMF.

Rose (Rosa 'Wild Blue Yonder')

Rose (Rosa 'Nicole Carol Miller')

Rose (Rosa 'Neptune')

Well um, I LOVE your lavender house!!!
I think all Hybrid Tea roses are prima donna's that love their food, chemical sprays and booby coddling.
If you have time for it they are lovely.
Have you tried the Buck roses? Many of them are HT and a bit hardier.
Why not English Roses instead? They seem a bit easier to grow.
I never found any true lavender or "blue" roses. They always seem more pinky in real life.

I always loved Double Delight.



I love Dr. Bucks Freckles.
Waxy petals and lovely stripling!


Tournament of Roses did pretty good for me for awhile

Thanks Vicky! Oooohhh...I love Tournament of Roses! Double Delight is one I grew as a teen, and I intend to get that one again, the fragrance reminded me of Peonies. I have had a couple of Buck roses, and still have Folksinger- it rebounded beautifully when I got the gardens back in shape, and it was my fondness watching it unfurl last year in that classic HT fashion that got me wanting some hybrid teas in the garden again. Freckles exemplifies that HT form beautifully, love the coloring too.

I love the English roses too, but its been very hit and miss with Austins- some perform well, but most have been kinda wimpy in our hot, humid summers. Come to think of it, I halted buying roses before I got a chance to try several of the Austins I had wanted. May need to try a few others again. I do plant to get Graham Thomas this spring- I've read good reports on its growth from around the country. I've also been looking at Meilland's Romanica series and finding some that are reportedly hardy here, and have been finding some Kordes roses that have that English rose look.

Well now you guys have gone and done it. I just ordered my first HT. The choice was Fiji from Chamblee. Really have to find something else to do besides cruising the forums. To much time on my hands.

Its winter....it happens! (AKA Cabin Fever)

Patty, I have Fiji on my option list too

Am I doing something wrong, not pulling up a photo in the database of Fiji?

I don't believe anyone has uploaded a pic for it yet. Here is a link to Edmunds picture:

http://www.edmundsroses.com/dp...

Ooooh, that's niiiiiice...

Pretty, but no scent, so off my list.

Toni, my recipe for that is "no scent" roses go in the middle of beds, where they can just look pretty. The scented ones gotta be where I can bury my face in them.

Neal - Running out of space, so have to be very fussy as to what I buy. No scent, off my list.

I understand, and if I had any sense at all, I wouldn't keep expanding. Space can be a double edged sword, it makes me bite off more than I can chew sometimes. I've slowed down a bit on making more beds, but those I have are already too big, and thickly planted, so that's where I'll put non scented ones, in the center, where it's hard to get to, LOL.

No scent is sort of plus here if it is also short all the better as the hordes of JB's tend to leave them alone. I like a nice mix some for the beetles and some that are left to flower. Darn beetles start in July and go through August. If September is hot enough they'll stay longer. Some poor bushes are without flowers, buds and half their leaves. We need some JB predators.

Perfect topic for me!

Tough hybrid tea roses (or hybrid tea style roses) that perform well on their own roots would be even better!

I realize that most hybrid teas perform best grafted. I will have to buy some grafted, preferably on hardy root stock from a Canadian nursery unless I find exceptionally healthy specimens at local nurseries (with good return policies for the ones that don't survive the winter)

I am adding roses to my new garden. I plan three circular plantings with groups of hybrid tea ( or hybrid tea like roses) with matching decorative trellis in the center holding clematis.

The plantings start with a core of four hybrid teas symmetrically planted around the center sculptural element. I managed to dig four symmetrical holes big enough and with adequate drainage for hybrid teas in the first planting. I live in the mountains. I can't install a Shepard's hook without hitting at least three rocks in separate places until I find a spot deep enough to sink the hook. I typically put hooks within shrubs or groups of rocks to circumvent this problem. This is a bigger undertaking than gardeners in other locations realize.

Previously, I work around the rocks too big for me to move, even with help, in my cottage plantings. I cover the rocky spots with stepping stones or forgiving annuals and perennials.

I started a warm pink/warm pink-yellow bicolor planting with Tiffany (to be ordered from a Canadian nursery because the cheap body bag one died.It is my favorite pink hybrid tea rose. I want to try one on hardy rootstock), Yves St Laurent , Chicago Peace. I have room for other pink or yellow roses here. I have lavender clematis in the center of this group. Although she is a gradiflora, I am tempted to add Queen Liz to this group (or elsewhere in the yard if she is too vigorous to keep company with the divas)

The second grouping is red roses (an maybe red and white like Love or Double Delight). White roses would work in this group also. White clematis will grow in the center of this group.

The third grouping will have purple clematis in the center with coral/apricot roses. I will replace Honey Sweet (many of my favorite roses didn't survive the move, actually two moves in a year separated by the worst winter in recent memory). I realize Honey Sweet is not a hybrid tea, but it has a form and vigor that I wish that my hybrid tea roses had. I like it so much that I am tempted to put two Honey Sweet there! It has a light fragrance, but it is strong and beautiful.

I was tempted by Toni's beautiful lavender roses to have a fragrant lavender group, but they are such fussy divas for me. So far, they have behaved as annuals for me. If I found some to survive the winters, I suspect they may still struggle. I may try some in the cottage plantings so that they and be masked by other plantings. Looking at a group of four dead sticks every spring will be too depressing.

My goal for this first year is to plant four roses in each grouping. There is room for expansion for up to 8 more. If the hybrid teas are problematic, I can surround the groups of 4 hybrid tea roses with florubundas.

I am going to add nepeta in the center of the planting and allysum around the edge this year.

The rest of the garden will be cottage style plantings (featuring roses), a veggie garden and an herb and salad green garden. I am very excited.

Andi - Just be careful if you add nepeta. Some catnips go insane.. mine's a friggin' weed in my yard & is taking over everywhere!

Regular catnip is terribly weedy for me, but cat mint, like Walker's Low, have been well behaved and look nice with Roses. If you use Walker's Low, don't let the name fool you, it isn't low growing, mine reaches at least 24". Paired with larger Roses it works well.