Floribunda Rose, Climbing Rose 'Joseph's Coat'

I've had this rose for two years and in both it bloomed beautifully. Very fragrant and the color changes from sunlight exposure are stunn...Read Moreing. Sadly after the two years a terrible wind storm came through the area, the rose was broken at base. I didn't think of digging up the remaining root system because I figured it would have died. A couple weeks ago after almost a year and a half of the rose being destroyed four new shoots have re-grown. I can't believe it and am so exited to see them growing again!

I bought two of these in the spring of 2010 and decided to train them along the side of the staircase leading up to the front door of my ...Read Moretownhome, on the west side. They planted at about 18 inches tall, and were several feet by fall. In 2011, they grew well over my trellises, and in 2012, some canes easily reached the top of the bannister at the upper landing of the staircase. They are obviously trying to reach the longer days of sunlight... mine grow heavy at the top where they are exposed to sun all day (the parts at the bottom on the western facade of my staircase only get afternoon sun).

I can confirm everything that's been posted elsewhere. These roses have outstanding curb appeal, even in winter with the deep green, glossy, abudant foliage. Yes, people are astounded by the number of blooms and the variety of color. I ALWAYS get compliments when people see me working on them.

Blackspot is the troublemaker. This year, I plan to spray with sulphur at last frost. Once it gets growing, I'll spray after every rain with an antifungal. It should do well as long as we have lots of sunny days. The drier the climate you live in, the better this plant will do!

The bugs seem to prefer other plants in my garden, so it's not too difficult to keep the joseph's coat pest-free.

Here in Virginia, I covered the plants for the first two winters. This year, I didn't cover them at all, and was surprised to see several buds and even a few blooms in the middle of winter. They will bloom from early spring clear through fall if you prune diligently. An amazing plant!

We have had trouble finding this rose for sale. Maybe due to some of the problems a few people have mentioned??

For the pe...Read Morerson who's Joseph's Coat was broken down to ground level and it grew back bright red - I can only assume that it was NOT an "Own Root" rose. Many roses are grafted onto sturdier root stock and will revert in these circumstances.

Even with the problems mentioned, we still want to give it a try.

I had this rose for years and loved it. It's a very abundant bloomer and has gorgeous blooms. It got broken down to the ground and sprout...Read Moreed from the roots. When this plant got big enough to bloom, the blooms were blood red and not the colors of the joseph's coat. Can anyone tell me what happened?

This plant is a bit challenging, but worth it for the gorgeous blooms.

I had to move it from a spot where it wasn't gett...Read Moreing enough sun--to where it now is, in partial sun. I (unwisely) transplanted it in the heat of summer. It took about 2 years to really get its roots established (during which time I had to baby it with frequent watering, trimming off blackspot affected leaves, and fertilizing.

After 2 years of this, and very little above-ground growth, I wasn't expecting much, but this spring I was amazed!! It was just covered with a multitude of beautiful blossoms and its growth has really taken off!

As far as training it, this is not a variety that can simply be woven in and out of a fence. The stems are stout, very thorny, and even the newest growth is very brittle. It is quite unforgiving of being bent. You'll have to work with it to learn how it responds. I have had the most success by tying it up frequently, as it grows, because as the stems get older they really harden and hold their position.

Joseph's Coat is my favorite climbing rose due to the range of colors. However-for those colors I fight black spot constantly, never quit...Read Moree winning the battle. And the thorns, Lord God Almighty, they are thorns of the devil. The leaves on this plant are quite light green, more so than most roses.And if you prune it more than just removing the spent flowers, it stubbornly refuses to rebloom for a year. Knowing this,I would not recommend this rose bush for beginners. If you love Josephs's coat for the unique colors and you are a beginner rosarian, give Rio Samba a shot. You get the same colors, and you don't need a trellis for Rio Samba.

This is my first climber and BOY AM I HOOKED!!

I love all the different colors all on the same bush! How does it DO THAT?...Read More!?!

I was a little worried because the leaves seem to be a little lighter than my hybrid teas but, after speaking with a friend, it seems to be normal. Well, I hope.

I got it two months or so ago as a bare root. After several weeks, it, bloomed like crazy... I just cut off the last spent bloom and I am already seeing some more buds. Now I live in S. Florida, it's humid, of course right now we are in the thick of the rainy season, and it's hotter than Mercury (it's perpetual Summer around here)! This climber is still popping out blooms and isn't showing any signs of slowing down.

I have been doing disease control treatments and haven't seen even ONE sign of blackspot yet. I have hybrid teas that get the same treatment and they have blackspot... go figure. SO, the blackspot isn't as bad as some other roses. Trust me... I live in an urban swamp and KNOW blackspot!

The only complaint I have is the stems are VERY thorny... there are times I am messing around in the garden and my clothing almost always gets caught when I pass too closely.

Spectacular grower, prolific producer of flowers all season long. We bought 2 of these from directgardening.com (which I DO NOT recommen...Read Mored!) in 2004 and planted them.

One is on the end of a 3 foot by 8 foot concrete pad which forms the central point of an arched garden around it. It quickly became a nice bush, nothing to climb on after post-hurricane winds blew through and destroyed our rose arbor. It's continued to fan out nicely and always gets comments.

The other was planted out by a pasture gate in basically poor clay soil, watered a few times the first year and basically forgotten and ill-cared for. It's actually bigger than the one in the arch garden! It also has a 4-foot high farm fence to climb but it mostly shrubs out and looks gorgeous.

I have seen my St. Joseph's Coat grow up to 15' tall, up the gutter pipe to the roof-line, and it just kept on going! Impressive specimen...Read More. Gorgeous blooms, very mind scent. Continuously blooms, colors may change or fade in a single day. All of my roses benefit from my horse's composted manure - I've noticed that the flower's smell become a little more pungent when you use a nice, soft, rich horse or cattle manure (but avoid nitrogen burn - make sure it's composted). It is "that rose" that everyone comments on, people are amazed that such a variety of color exists on one single plant.

I grew this rose for many years when I lived in Alabama. If pruned correctly (prune each stem down to first set of leaves below expired ...Read Moreflower) it will bloom abundantly, grow rapidly and hold it's leaves from spring to fall. I used miracle grow a few times a week and sprayed it with soapy water now and then to deter insects. It had full son all day long. Prune to six inches and mulch heavily in winter.
Joseph's Coat is so beautiful that strangers would stop to ask what kind of rose it was. If you're an attentive pruner this rose will surpass all your expectations. I think many of the problems people mention about legginess and loss of leaves may be due to poor pruning and fertilizing.

This was a healthy and vigorous rose until it reached mature height (around 12' in 3 years) and then began to die. After nursing it for s...Read Moreeveral years I gave up and removed it. It was stunning while it was thriving.