This is my fourth year with Golden Melody. It is sparsely foliaged, but whatever leaves the bush produces are very large, leathery and beautiful. Unfortunately they are prone to blackspot in my English climate. The problem is that if you remove spotted leaves as soon as you see them, like me, your bush may be left with only a handful of leaves, as there are never many leaves on the plant to begin with. The flowers are very large and glorious, both in colour, form and fragrance; but the bush has proven itself to be gangly, throwing up a few very straight and tall canes, which may be good for cutting but clearly do not make for an ideal garden plant. If blackspot is not a problem where you garden, then grow this variety by all means, and surround it with other plants so as to soften the angularity of the bush and still enjoy the peerless blooms.

The scent of Golden Melody is very powerful, with base notes of strong tea overlaid with other complex aromas, difficult to describe and variable.

The maroon stems and large, somewhat drooping, leathery, dark green/blue foliage are very attractive.