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'First Edition' rose Reviews & Comments
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Initial post
10 DEC 06 by
digger
First Edition is one of our 'no problem' bloom factories. I am surprised I don't hear more about it. First Edition isn't cane hardy here and starts each season 6 inches to a foot tall. FE shoots up to 3 feet tall for the first flush and doesn't get any taller during the season. It does get wider. Our 7 year old bush crowds its neighbors by the end of the season and is at least 5 feet in diameter. I quit trying to count blooms on the rascal in 2001 and just say it has well over 100 per flush. Turnaround time is good, about 5 weeks. Fragrance is moderate. It seems more fragrant with all those blooms but when we get a single flower away from the bush, FE isn't a stinker. Bloom color looks very different as the light changes on them. Makes for interesting photos. We watch the foliage on all our roses each year and decide who has the best. First Edition is always in the top 3. FE may be conspiring to get rid of Kordes' Perfecta so it can win one year. Blackspot isn't a problem here. Powdery mildew can be a problem and we have never seen a hint of it on FE. I even take photos of the bush without blooms. First Edition is so dependable I tend to take it for granted. Only complaint is that it blooms so much that deadheading can be chore. I like a rose with that as its only fault. Some of what I consider my best photos are of First Edition with its neighbor, Helmut Schmidt. Mom liked the photo on one calendar so much she had me make up a calendar with FE and HS photos on every page. Deb took out an iris bed this fall so she can plant 3 FEs alternating with 3 Icebergs. She has been talking about doing that for several years. I told her she would have to deadhead them. Excellent rose Dave South central Montana - zone 4/5 |
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Well, I'm sold! Great comments and very helpful culture information. I always enjoy reading your comments here. They're entertaining, enlightening and full of enthusiasm for roses. They keep motivated to be a better grower. Thanks!
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#2 of 6 posted
4 MAR 09 by
digger
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Thank you very much Jeff. Perfect timing too. I sometimes wonder if I am wasting my time commenting on how roses perform for Deb and I. We have actually been told we are doing the rose public a disservice by describing tender roses grown in Montana. We spend a LOT of time tending them and roses seem to love the area. Complainers point out that few if any will spend the time we do caring for roses and we are in such a remote spot that rose performance here will lead others to make a mistake. Staying motivated to post comments is sometimes a chore. I started to review Livin' Easy yesterday and thought 'what is the use?'. A reply like yours reminds me what. Please excuse the rambling. Thanks again.
Dave - wishing I had saved the start I made on Livin' Easy
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As Jeff has pointed out in the past. Experience isn't beginner or expert; good or bad; right or wrong; it's just plain experience that we all can learn from.
No one should be discouraged from sharing their experience. Those new to gardening often think their experience is of little interest to others and that is completely false. Many, many other beginning gardeners greatly appreciate and can best relate to the experiences of people like themselves.
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#4 of 6 posted
4 MAR 09 by
digger
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I agree! I have been growing roses over 45 years and wish new growers knew how interested I am to read how roses do for them, especially ones we grow too. I hope they realize that performance for them does not have to equal ours. I like reading how they do in other areas too.
Perhaps I take things differently than most. I see comments that Kordes' Perfecta is a terrible rose. It makes me feel lucky that it is such a glorious rose in this area. It doesn't make me think another grower is flaming one of our best roses. By the same token, I've seen great photos and reports about Europeana, King's Ransom etc that put our bushes to shame. They just never get a long or warm enough season to show what they can do here. The pics of those 2 make us keep them around just in case.
I do hope more growers start posting how roses do for them.
Dave
Edit: to get this back to First Edition... I have heard from a couple growers in the southeast that FE is a very good rose for them. They have thanked me for bringing it to their attention. FE gets some blackspot but not as bad as many.
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All of your comments have been a huge help to me Dave. Keep up the good work!!!!! Nate
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I just planted this rose. I loved it the minute I got it. It is grafted on Fortuniana, so I am wondering how large it will get in my Zone 9b Florida. Any idea? Love your photos and description.
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