‘Cherry Parfait’ – Patsy Cunningham

‘Crimson Glory’ is the rose Ed and I would choose if we were only allowed to grow one rose, as the heady damask scent and rich velvet red-black color compensate for its faults. I have dozens of favorite roses, though, and ‘Cherry Parfait’ is my favorite 2003 introduction.

New intros, especially AARS winners, get a lot of press and often don’t live up to their ads.  Last year’s ‘Marilyn Monroe’ comes to mind, with its weak growth and some winter tenderness around here.  So far, though, I’m impressed with ‘Cherry Parfait’, a new AARS grandiflora bred by Meilland and introduced by Star Roses.  It has a very large, showy white bloom with extensive and well-defined borders of bright cherry red, with a slight resemblance to ‘Double Delight’.  Unlike ‘Double Delight’, it does not have a strong fragrance, but on the positive side, it appears to be vigorous and very disease resistant.

Where it really shines though, is in the long lasting nature of each bloom.  During the heat spell last month, I had a beautiful bloom stay on the bush in perfect shape for three days in ninety plus temperatures.  I cut it along with some other blooms to show people at work some roses with unusual colors.  It stayed an additional three days in the vase, fully open, and lost no significant substance when it was taken home by a co-worker.  This kind of staying power is worth a lot if you work during the day.  I hate to come home after work and find that a bloom has opened and fully blown in one day, giving me no chance to enjoy it.  So, my hope is that ‘Cherry Parfait’ will winter over well here in zone 6 and remain one of my favorites.

‘Traviata’, ‘New Dawn’ & ‘Royal Bonica’                        

                                                  --Bob Vitale

After experiencing last winter’s zone 5 like conditions, I have a new list of favorite roses. Old favorites, like the climber, ‘Altissimo’, had a terrible time and barely survived. Another winter like the last and I’ll shovel prune it. Other seemingly hardy roses like the floribunda, ‘Gruss an Aachen’ didn’t make it at all. So here are a few new winners.

‘Traviata’: Although we don’t have many hybrid teas, this one is spectacular. Big, glossy, dark green leaves grow on thick, thorny canes and produce huge, long lasting blood-red blooms. The plant is disease free and can be the centerpiece of a garden.

‘New Dawn’: After the ‘Altissimo’ experience, it was a pleasure to see how well this climber over-wintered. Small, shiny leaves grow on relatively thin canes but the vigorous growth is amazing. Just two of these plants cover a large gazebo totally and another one climbs up a 15-foot pergola with ease. It produces zillions of light pink blooms with a very slight fragrance. Again,

fungus doesn’t appear to be a problem.

‘Royal Bonica’: This shrub is truly bullet proof. The plant is large (4 feet high) with medium green leaves. The flowers are dark pink and a grouping of these shrubs is quite dramatic. Black spot free, too.

‘Jeanne Lajoie’ & ‘Outta the Blue’

              -Marion Cafferky

Over the years favorites have come and gone, but ‘Jeanne Lajoie’ has been my favorite for a long time.

‘Jeanne Lajoie’ is a medium pink climbing miniature.  The first time I saw it was at the home of a New England Rose Society member.  It had climbed about 10-12 feet from the ground to the top a deck and spread at least 6 feet wide.  I couldn’t believe that this was a miniature.  At that time I said, “Someday I’m going to have one of those.” Now we have five or six, one being pretty much like the first one I saw in 1990.

Last year we purchased a rose called ‘Outta the Blue’, a mauve shrub and one of the most fragrant roses I have ever had the pleasure of smelling.  We grew it in a pot near the front of the barn.  The minute the door was opened or when you walked up the driveway you could smell it without being anywhere near the plant.