I've got John Cabot doing well with a half day of sun, but that's probably more than what you have since I don't have any trees to block it. Another issue is that John Cabot is a very thorny rose and not the best if you're going to be anywhere near it. If you're willing to take a trip to the Madison area, Jung's Garden Centers have several of the Explorer roses as well as the Radler roses (Ramblin' Red and others). There's a couple of good nurseries around Milwaukee but you'll have to call them in the spring and see what they get in. Expect to pay about $20 to $30 locally, and a bit more online due to shipping costs. Check any online site with Dave's Garden Watchdog website to see how their feedback is before you order. Jung's doesn't have the best feedback but the plants in their outlet stores are usually healthy and you can see it before you buy it.

Jen, keep in mind that even if the rose is getting the required number of sunshine hours, you will have more disease issues with a rose that is shaded all morning. I had another nice conversation with Mike Shoup from the Antique Rose Emporium yesterday about finding a suitable rose for a spot such as yours. He told me their weren't any roses that would do very well with morning shade. He felt they all need sunlight in the morning and actually tolerate the reverse better (a morning sun afternoon shade situation). Most cases the rose does best in sunshine for most of the day, if not all day. Paul Zimmerman from Ashdown has told me the same thing. My personal experience has born this out, but I was hoping Mike would tell me otherwise. In other words, I wanted to hear what I wanted to hear. I was truly hoping some kind of rose would thrive in that situation. This does not mean a rose won't grow in that situation. Many do. It just will never look as nice or be as healthy as one that gets sunshine on it first thing. Sandy

Thank you everyone! :) Jim, honestly I do not know if it is a rebloomer, but now you've got me thinking..usually I prune it hard after it flowers, maybe this year I'll let it go awhile longer and see if it does rebloom. I can't wait till my NBJ's bloom. Got any pix of yours in bloom? Anyone know if they will bloom 1st year from seed? Karyn, and Jim..have you guys tried the Knockout roses? They are the easiest rose to grow in my opinion. They bloom from spring till the first killing frost here. DH's uncle couldn't believe I still had roses blooming at the end of November last year, he was absolutely amazed...was the good ol KO's! I know the KO's are all the rage in Florida, they bloom year round there if I remember corectly. Yes Shawn, the KO roses are a carefree rose, you don't even have to prune, but I am constantly removing the spent flowers and trimming off the hips. I only leave the hips over the winter. And they are disease and black spot resistant as well. But my reds have some kinda lil white spots on the leaves this year..don't know what's up with that, otherwise they look healthy, blooms are nice. I WISH my whole yard was one big flower bed! DH and kids are ready to kill me as it is, lol. Yes, the Snow on The Mtn is a groundcover, supposed to be only 12" tall, but mine is over that, how about yours? It's so pretty isn't it? I need more.. I wonder if I can seperate that? I love variegated plants. I wish everything I had was variegated. Karyn, yes the passi seeds, mandevilla laxa, and the night blooming jasmine are all from seeds you sent me that I started in Jan. Oh, and the KMOTGG which I absolutely LOVE BTW, it hasn't even flowered yet, but I am SO in love with the foliage..so pretty, and o soooo soft!!! I could sleep on that plant, lol. Thank you! :) Theresa, lmao, I need to surround my whole dang yard with it! Thanks again everyone :)

Thanks for the responses... interesting to see everyone's experiences. Most years we avoid a freeze where I am at (near downtown st. pete, close to tampa bay) so I'm curious to see what happens over the winter. I suppose, worst case, even treating it as an annual isn't bad since you mention, Sally, some other common annuals can't take our heat. It seems likely that this might be one that truly lasts from early spring to late fall (which, lets face it... in FL is almost the whole year.) One thing I am also learning about plants is not all cultivars are created equal. Actually, what I really have learned since getting into gardening is how how many cultivars there actually are for any given plant! Of course the big boxes rarely label the plant with the cultivar name... local garden centers seem to do better but still aren't 100% perfect in this regard. Also a good tip on rooting.. will have to try. Even if I don't need them myself, a nice simple pot with some purslane flowing over would make a nice gift.