This is one of my favorite plants in the spring. The flush of unusual blooms in red-violet, purple and occasionally white with a white and bright yellow center reminds me of Veilchenblau but in a small, compact form. As the summer goes on, it does get blackspot and some defoliation and I vow to tear it out the next year--but next year, it's beautiful again.

I'm at the northern edge of zone 6 in central Indiana, where a lot of roses get blackspot. I've planted salvia and sage by Christian J, hoping they'll help.