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'Summer of Love' rose Reviews & Comments
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I bought this as part of the J&P Hybrid Tea Test Rose Panel in 2008. It really did well the first year and the blooms were beautiful and the bush was healthy and vigorous growing and blooming. It overwintered in my garage in it's container and came through fine. This Spring 2009 I have transplanted it to my garden bed. It is really struggling and is down to a one cane wonder and mostly defoliated now this Fall. This is very disappointing for me and especially when I see the beautiful photos others have shared of their blooms.
I will give it one more year next year--if it survives the winter--and if it doesn't improve I will have to replace it with something else. I may even try another of the same rose if the mood strikes me because I have seen what beautiful flowers this rose can produce.
UPDATE12/2010 Well, for this year it made good improvements and began to grow again and actually gave me some Fall bloom that though small were quite lovely. Whatever stresser hit this plant when it was transplanted from the pot to a very good spot in the rosebed after overwintering in the garage I think has now cleared. I think it is just a matter of rebounding the rest of the way and once again being that extremely beautiful rose of both bush and flower it was the initial year I got it. Spring 2011 should tell the story of how this rose is going to turn out and I hope it has a happy ending!
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My plant was new last spring, and the plant seemed vigorous last year. The winter wasn't particularly harsh, and yet I lost it for no discernible reason. I protected it as well as I did any others, and had virtually no winter losses other than this rose. I'm disappointed because I enjoyed the flowers, and now I don't know whether to replace it. Experience tells me I'd have the same results. Does anyone else in zone 6 or lower have experience with this rose?
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My Summer of Love seems to have rebounded quite well this year. I am getting glorious blooms and the plant looks to be much more vigorous this Spring. I really didn't think it would survive the winter but it really surprised me. I think it is going to turn out to be a very good rose for me after all. I didn't winter protect it at all yet it still has come around quite well. I am in zone 5a/6b and don't normally winter protect my roses in the beds at all and I rarely lose any roses and this year I didn't lose any roses at all in the beds or in containers either one.
I would give it another try if I were you.
John
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Thanks. We've had an unseasonably cool spring, and just today I think I may see the start of some growth, or is it wishful thinking? Last summer was the latest summer I remember, with some of my own-root roses remaining dormant until July!! That in an area that has seen 100 degree temperatures in early June. This year is unusual again, with very few days in the 70's so far, and no blooming roses yet. Summer of Love is a grafted rose, so I thought she was a gonner. I'll be watching closely the next few days! Thanks, John.
Update: July 2012, this rose is alive and doing well. I wouldn't consider it to be particularly vigorous, as it's small for its age, but we'll see what happens. The blooms I've seen are magnificent, and I think it's worth waiting to see how this turns out. I'll post updates.
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