Morden Sunrise is beautiful, but...

Gorgeous, ain't it? It's pictures like this that made me buy Morden Sunrise in the first place. I wanted orange, and THIS was ORANGE!

I mounded used potting soil around it for winter protection, seeing as this area under the eaves doesn't retain any snow cover. (Talk about a pain - literally - to remove it in the spring, but that's another story!) Only one stem that stuck out above the soil came back, and it's been very anemic in its growth. But thick healthy canes grew up from below the soil's surface, so all was not lost, although it's hard to see how the bush will get much bigger from year to year.

But there is a little issue of the fading blooms. You see, Morden Sunrise is not really orange. It's a yellow rose with pink overlaying it on the outer part of the petals, which creates an orange effect. Briefly. Very briefly. Especially in the summer heat, the yellow fades out, leaving a pink rose with a white heart. Not too terrible, I suppose, but when you wanted an orange and purple border, it doesn't fit too well. The blooms are pink a lot longer than they're orange, although that's not too long, seeing as they decline quickly. And worst of all, you will get both colours on the bush at the same time, and in my insufficiently humble opinion, they clash.

Seeing as I have it planted in a rather hot location, the fading happens very quickly, except during cool weather. Seeing as there are repeated flushes of bloom, from late May till frost, some of them are in cooler weather and I can enjoy the orange a little bit longer. Still, I think this one is better planted in a polychromatic, informal border in somewhat cooler conditions. And although it's part of the ultra-hardy Morden series, it would probably benefit from some winter protection, although reliable, fairly deep snow cover would probably do the trick nicely.

I would love to give an unqualified recommendation, but I can't. This one is a good looker who reveals her character flaws all too quickly.