Hello Mark,

There are two Quadra there. This is the third year. The first year it was so bare that I grew a ton of hyacinth beans to fill the empty space - it looked like nothing was there. And one of them struggled so much that I cut it to the ground the first year, gave it lots of compost and waited. Now you can't tell. The one I cut to the ground would be to the left of the picture as you are viewing it.

Take heart! Next year you wil see a much more substantial plant. And in year 3, like mine, you can't hold it back. It's wonderfully rambunctious. I have a ton of stems trained as close to vertically as I can. The new growth has very soft thorns (almost buttery) that you can easily train. In a few days they really stiffen and sharpen, so get it trained quickly. That said, it grows so fast that if a branch is not positioned I can just cut it off and it immediately starts to grow.

In zone 5a it breaks dormancy in April. And it is still blooming in December. It gets no disease. It's our favorite rose.

Donna

Hi Mark,

My Quadras (there are two) are in their third year. Please do not be discouraged by the performance of yours now. The first year my Quadra was so minimal that I actually grew hyacinth beans to cover my trellis. Also, the Quadra on your left in the photo was so weak and sickly that I cut it to the ground and piled compost on it. The following spring it tore out of the gates and hasn't stopped since. There is no difference between the two plants - the hacked down one may be stronger.

This is an amazing rose. It starts blooming in April in zone 5a and continues into December. There is no blackspot and no disease. It grows VERY FAST! The stems, when they first are produced, have almost buttery soft thorns. I used tomato tape to tie them horizontally, and then they harden and I can remove the tape. I recommend that you train it as horozontally as you can, because the growth is very rapid. But if you do not like what it is doing, just cut off the stems - they will be back quickly.

I leave this rose on the trellis all winter. I just pile up some compost at the base to discourage rabbits from nibbling the stems. Please just give it some time. It's our favorite rose - just amazing.

Donna