This is Own Your Own Home Day. The Rose of the Day is Ideal Home, also known as Idylle. In view of all the rain we're having here, this photo of it seemed particularly apropos.

This is National Polka Dot Day. The Rose of the Day is not polka-dotted, but it is called Polka.



Polka is a sturdy climber with beautiful blooms. It's one of the Meilland Romantica roses.

This is also the Dance of the Seven Veils Day. I can't provide seven, but I do have three roses with "veil" in their names.

Misty Veil is a pretty pink rose that ages to a light lavender.



Reveil Dijonnais is a striking climber.



Veilchenblau is a magnificent rambler.

Zuzu, that first pic of 'Veilchenblau' is just stunning.

I was so tempted by just this sort of picture to acquire 'Veilchenblau'. I hesitated though, because of it's size and that it is a once bloomer. I opted for the next best thing 'Perennial Blue' which is a little smaller and repeats. 'Perennial Blue' is a cross between 'Super Excelsa' and 'Veilchenblau' and the colour is sort of a mixed of both. I planted mine in autumn 2015 and it was a little slow to take off last year. that it does better this year.

Veilchenblau is one I grew at my previous garden and have yet to replace, but the photo of it on the arbor renews my desire to grow it again! I had considered looking for a repeat blooming alternative, but I think its hardiness and knowing it grows well in this climate makes Veilchenblau a better option. Also Japanese beetles really like mauve roses, so a once bloomer would work well (JBs emerge in mid summer after it blooms).

Neil, no JB's here (so far) so mauve isn't a problem and if we ever should move to a bigger garden, Veilchenblau would be at the top of the list - it is just gorgeous!!! In this garden, with limited space, I would like to get the longest possible bloom time. That said, I do have Lykkefund which is a once bloomer but that is the only one.

At least they're most active here during the hottest part of summer when the roses either aren't blooming as much or the quality of the blooms isn't as good. Hopefully the milky spore I applied last year will impact the numbers.

Sharlene, Perennial Blue sounds like an excellent plant. I'm going to keep it in mind in case my Veilchenblau falls victim to the gophers. I used to have three, but the gophers killed two of them. The one in my first photo is the only one I have left, and it's much too large to dig up and replant in a gopher-proof cage.

I love the options we have now to replace once-bloomers. I wish I could find a reblooming rose resembling Alchymist. I've replaced most of my once-blooming Dorothy Perkins roses with Super Dorothy, which reblooms and isn't prone to the powdery mildew that plagues Dorothy Perkins. I say "most" because one of the Dorothy Perkins plants has refused to die. This is a picture of it two years after I cut it down to the ground and dug up all the roots (I thought).



I won't try to kill it again. That degree of resilience has to be appreciated.

This is Measure Your Feet Day. Regrettably, although 'Paws' is in our database, we don't have a photo of it, so the Rose of the Day is 'Tootsie.'

Zuzu, your mention of Alchymist reminds me I need to replace that rose and give it another try. I ordered it from Palatine in spring of '15 and it grew relatively well and appeared to survive the winter, but in early spring the canes turned black and the whole plant died.

This is Talk Like a Grizzled Prospector Day. The Rose of the Day is Forty-Niner, a pretty hybrid tea that was introduced in 1949 and is still being sold today. That's quite impressive in view of the number of roses that have disappeared from commerce in that span of almost 70 years.

Its beautiful color blend earned the continued popularity, perhaps.

Neal, you comment about having to replace Alchymist makes me wonder if I am going to have to replace any roses this season. The last time we had temperatures this low over a longer period was in the winter 2011/2012 when I lost 5 plants.

So, because there is nothing better to do - haven't ventured outside for over a week except to go to the office - I decided to have a look and see if there are any roses I would really like to get if I have to replace any.

Currently, my 'official' HMF wish list of roses that have tickled my fancy somewhere along the line shows the following:
Berolina
Beverly - pink is not my favourite but I have read such good reports
Ferdinand Pichard - a real big maybe ....
Butterschotch (climber) - probably a no go because of the space required but I think it is a gorgeous rose
Karen Blixen - (https://www.helpmefind.com/gar...) white HT in lieu of JPII
Colour Wonder
Maestro
Marco Polo
Charles Aznavour (Pearl of Bedfordview) - saw this while visiting my folks in SA and just loved it
Mister Lincoln - forever reading good things about this rose, don't know what I haven't got it yet????
Red Intuition - another real big maybe ...

Since making that list, I have been wondering about mini-flora's so I checked out a German supplier where I have previously ordered and he had ...

Michael Mander - http://www.helpmefind.com/gard...
Dr. John Dickamn - http://www.helpmefind.com/gard...
Incognito - Rose (Rosa 'Incognito')
Winter Magic - Rose (Rosa 'Winter Magic')

on top of that he has ....
Hocus Pocus - I know it is reported to sometimes revert and does have some health issues but...

AND BEST OF ALL he has 'Pope John Paul II' - up until now I have only seen it on some French pages.

Now I really have a dilemma - to order or not to order ' THAT IS THE QUESTION'

Not to order? Is that a realistic possibility?

Hooray! It's National Irish Coffee Day. The Rose of the Day is Irish Creme, which is a changeable rose. Sometimes it looks like this:



And sometimes it looks more like this:



My favorite picture of it, though, is this one because the center looks like a hedgehog's face (only in the thumbnail; not when it's enlarged). It's Mrs. Tiggy-Winkle in a very fancy ballet costume.

Wow! It really does look like a hedgehog face! And that is a really special rose!

Sharlene, I sure hope you don't see losses; has there been snow on the ground during the coldest times? I was lucky when we had our record low a couple of years ago of -18F because we also had about 2 feet of snow at the time. No canes standing above the snow line survived, but they were all perfectly fine below.

Losing Alchymist was puzzling. It appeared to survive winter after its first year, but as weather warmed the canes gradually blackened. It was near an arbor where snow drifted and most of the plant was under snow, so I don't think cold is what killed it.

Zuzu, don't quite see the hedgehog - might be due to lack of imagination - but it is a gorgeous rose. I would not be able to pass by that one if I saw it here!

Neal, we have had snow but not that much so I don't know how well it has been able to insulate. Suppose only time will tell.

@porkpal realistic possibility? I prefer fall planting.
BUT If I wait till fall I will only see them flower in 2018 NO, not a realistic possibility!

This is Spouses Day. The Rose of the Day is The Poet's Wife, a fairly new David Austin rose.

Before she became she must have been caught up in and landed up which turned out to be and so today might be their

DH is away in Argentina for a week but I am going to send him a little message in celebration

Wonderful, Sharlene!

Outstanding! A rose-illustrated narrative! It reminds me of the little children's stories that combine words and pictures.