Weather Update - we've not had more than one inch of snow on the ground thus far this Winter. I actually like snow. What I don't like is bone-chilling cold. We are about to get 6-8 inches of snow over the next 36 hours. And just in time for some serious cold weather on the way. Snow is the best insulation for those sub-zero temps. We are looking at 0F Friday morning and negative 8F Monday morning. After that it will be single digit lows for another 5 days or so. Having 6+ inches of snow on the ground will be great. It always feels warmer to me when snow is on the ground.

My one tree rose in the unheated garage has started budding out. Just like it did last year at this time. I am going to prune it much more severely this year when I put it outside in late April. The other tree rose succumbed to Rose Rosette Disease last summer. On balance my tree roses (both double budded - Julia Child and Ebb Tide) have been disappointing. I won't order any more standards.

I always think of Winter as being about three months' duration - December, January and February (March is no picnic but I wouldn't exactly call it Winter). As I write this, we're just over 80% of the way through Winter. Spring pruning will be right around the corner!

I briefly toured my rose gardens yesterday as temps got up into the low 50s. A year ago, I recall there was green cane right to the tips on many if not most of the bushes right about now. Well, that is definitely not the case this year. Therefore, my expectation is for a more "normal" degree of winter dieback that was the case last year. Spring also came 3 weeks early last year and that is unlikely to repeat. So, perhaps 2025 will be a return to normalcy in these regards. Time will tell.

Not much happening right now with me and roses. I have limited my Spring 2025 orders to two maidens from Wisconsin Roses - Perfectly Red and Clair Elyse. Both are not in general circulation but Steve at WIR can provide them. I have only one of each in my garden and both are consistent top performers for me. I'll have to figure out where I will place them – perhaps there will be some winter kill or plants weakened by old man winter that will need to be replaced. We shall see.

About 10 days ago we did see temps of about minus 7 at the lowest, and with very little snow cover on the ground. At this point I am not expecting the roses to come through winter with flying colors like they did last year. But that's ok - "normal" is just fine by me.

Time for some lists.

When deciding on a new rose to purchase, one typically will see a picture of a nice bloom online or in a magazine or catalog. But how do you find out if it's a good rose? The Comments here on HMF can be invaluable, but the experience of others can vary by geography/location, specific garden traits, as well as grower dedication, skill level and knowledge. Consequently, I find myself reverting back to the rose's rating in the ARS Handbook for Selecting Roses.

What follows are two lists - one for Underperformers vs. the ARS rating, and the other for Overperformers vs. the ARS rating. This is reflective of my experience, in my own gardens over the past 4 growing seasons with the plants that I have. To me, "under" or "over" performance means that I would rate the rose at least 0.5 LOWER/HIGHER respectively compared to the ARS rating. Here goes:

Underperformers
– Lavaglut - ARS rating is 8.6, for me it's more like 7.6. Not a bad FL but an 8.6 rating implies greatness. This one is good rather than great.
– Julia Child - ARS rating 8.3, not a bad rose but nowhere near an 8.3 for me
– Tropicana - ARS rating 7.7, mine is own-root and it just won't take off - 7.0 rating for me. Perhaps needs to be relocated to a spot where it's more isolated.
– Barrone Edmund de Rothschild - 8.5 ARS - not a bad rose at all but more like 7.8 for me. Started to show some fragrance in 2024.
– Peace - ARS is 8.0, for me it's 7.5 at best. I have two plants, each planted in 2023. Perhaps in third year they will leap?
– Bliss Parfuma - ARS 8.4, many people love this rose but for me it's more like a 7.7. Maybe I have not seen its best yet.
– Plum Perfect - ARS 8.4 - this is a good FL but it's not 8.4 good.
– Black Magic - ARS 8.1 - good for exhibitors but for me it's 7.5 at best. Needs to bloom more.
– Chrysler Imperial - ARS 7.8 - I value vigor highly and CI lacks vigor. Have not noticed as much fragrance as advertised either.
– Electron - ARS 7.8 - just doesn't bloom enough for me
– The McCartney Rose - ARS 8.2 - like Electron, not enough blooms even though good grower with fragrance
– Silver Jubilee - ARS 8.3 - no more than 7.3 for me - I suspect my summers are too hot for this rose bred in England. Short stems are the main drawback.

Now the Overperformers:
– Oh My! - ARS 7.8 - this can be as good as it gets in roses, one of my favorites. Upon seeing the bloom visitors typically remark, "oh my."
– Royal Welcome - ARS 7.8 - one of my best - another underrated Keith Zary HT
– Rainbow Niagara - ARS 7.8 - good grower & bloomer, in cooler weather the vivid color of the bloom is unsurpassed
– Voluptuous - ARS 7.7 - for me, this may be my best hybrid tea, worthy of a rating more like 8.5 - another underrated Keith Zary HT
– Apricot Candy - ARS 7.5 - perhaps my strongest grower and one of my best bloomers
– Perfectly Red - ARS 7.8 - as good as any red - yet another underrated Zary HT. Why isn't it more available? I have another maiden bush coming this spring from WR.
– Malibu - ARS 7.1 - can't understand why this is rated so low - great garden rose - color of the bloom is to die for
– Red Masterpiece - ARS 6.9 - low rating almost caused me not to get this one - so glad that I did. This is a keeper in my garden.

What have I learned? ARS Rating is actually a good predictor of the quality of the rose - but there are exceptions, both to the upside and to the downside. You never know until you give it a try.