Hi Lizzie,

I should've updated my experience with Shocking Blue in Fremont, CA. Mine also gets 1/2 day sun facing southeast, but hasn't done as well as I'd hoped. It is not a strong grower and the flowers are disappointing. The color is more medium magenta than lavender, the form is more rounded with slightly ruffled edges, and the scent is NOT pure lemon and stingy at that, only slight to moderate. I suspect that it doesn't like the alkaline soil here, but Regan's Nursery told me that it's almost impossible to correct that unless done at the time of planting. I wish I had better news for you. But bare root roses do take up to 3+ years to really hit their stride, and I assume you are fertilizing regularly.
I've found that my favorite roses in MA/MD smell different here, and not for the better. They have more of an anise/black licorice undertone (like Yves Piaget), although on the plus side, the fruity roses which I don't care for, smell better/sweeter. Like the rose, Secret (white shaded pink at edges) which in MA/MD had a hint of fruitiness, here is pure sweet, and one of my top all time picks for Fremont, CA - ridiculously strong grower, disease resistant, moderately shiny leaves, beautiful form & great scent. I haven't found a lavender I like as much. Memorial Day comes closest, scent is lovely, but the pale lavender (a litttle too pale for my ideal) fades to almost blush pink/white as the flower opens. On the other hand, if you like bicolors, Sheila's Perfume (yellow-peach edged pink) is my other top pick for Fremont. Also ridiculously strong grower, shiny leaves, disease resistant, great hybrid tea-like form, flowers like crazy and scent to die for. If you had to fault it, you could say if the flowers had a few more petals, they would open a little slower and last longer, but with so many flower, who cares!
Hope that helps, take care, Mich (aka Michifur)

Where are they planted and how much sun do they get? My one was kept in a pot for about 3-4 months when I bought it and kept in full sun and the flowers would open beautifully (see my photos of it here) but when I planted it in the ground against the house it gets morning sun till a little after noon and the flowers now don't open properly and tend to ball and go mouldy. I will be digging it up this winter and moving it into full sun on a tripod to see if it improves.