Jim, I think these roses are fabulous. The color of the original is pretty intense so I think you need to spend a bit of time thinking about where to put it. Mine bloomed from April to January last season so it is likely to be in bloom at the same time as almost everything in your garden.

Both of mine( I have a pink Knockout too) are in full sun and are thriving. I have had very minimal black spot and no powdery mildew or bug problems. Even if a Japanese beetle hops on to chew a bud, it is covered with hundreds of other buds so I just flick it off and forget about it.

I like the look of the double since it just seems more "rosey" to me but I don't know about its growth habit so I am letting my neighbors experiment with them and I'll keep an eye on them.

My favorite thing is the scent. I stick my nose in a bud or two every time I walk outside.

Hope others have some good info for you about shade tolerance.

Meredith

Jim I got mine at Lowe's for 5 bucks, although I think they usually run $15-20. I have mine in full sun so I can't advise about shade, but Knockouts are carefree.

I love roses, one of my favorites!! Sounds like I need to experiment with a Knockout since I'm in the process of putting in my little rose garden.

Thanks for the input folks. I'm still interested in knowing if they will exist in partial shade.

Many parts of my yard are sun most of the day until around 1 or 2pm, and I'm starting to run out of full sun areas. I would think they would do okay with about 6 hours sun and dappled after that, wouldn't you?

I have several different varieties of Knockout around the yard and the conditions you described should be fine. They only look like divas.
Another amazing rose is Nearly Wild- pink single flowers and they thrive in almost any conditions.

I have a Blush Knockout in my side yard which is partial shade. It's getting less sun than you're describing and it's doing fine - it's blooming it's head off right now. It was here when I bought the house and the only thing I've done to it is a bit of pruning.

Good news about the partial shade thing. I want to get a few, and from what y'all have said they grow fast so the small ones are fine (1gal?). I guess since they are "registered" or whatever, the price is pretty much set, so the bigbox stores would be fine...like Lowes, right? How about immediate planting needs like fert, etc?

Will these things get really big? Big is okay, but I would like to NOT have any mounding on the mulch from any plants. Much rather have an open portion from bottom of plant to the ground. I have snakes come out of the woods a lot, and the more I reduce places for them to hide, the better that I feel about the world in general, if you know what I mean.

Jim,

Knockouts are the easiest shrub rose to grow. You don't need to baby them. I planted some on the hill in my backyard that was basically slab stone with a layer of dirt pushed over it. I figured the KO would be my best short at growing something other than those ugly juniper the builder put in. I found that MANY roses can handle tough SC heat and humidity.

Here is the before picture of the hill (when I moved in):

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Here it is 3 years later. All the hot pink up there are KO roses.

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If you want a list of other roses which are basically carefree, let me know.

nice change, ronda! Kudos to you- beautiful work.

Dadgum, Rhonda. I could use some of that talent at my little place. Great work.

I haven't gotten the first rose yet, but I intend to very soon. I'm looking at prices now, and any thing you want to throw out and add to the mix would be appreciated. Thanks.

I will throw out there, intending no offense to anyone who loves them, that Flower Carpet roses have been real stinkers for me. Black spot of epic proportions.

Iris, I gave away all my flower carpet roses! They were awful.

Last month I bought a 1-gal Rainbow and it's in a container in part sun, mostly shade. It's getting some kind of dusty whitish stuff on the new buds... powdery mildew, maybe? I don't know anything about roses, Knockout or otherwise, but I heard that these were almost no-brainers! Advice, anyone?

Knockouts prefer sun. Move it to full sun and it will be fine.

Wow Rhonda..what a great spot for lavender. That's about the pitch of the front yard at my other house. Everything seemed to grow great on a rocky,south-facing hill so long as it got regular watering.
Your efforts will reward you for many years. Knockouts seem to need less pruning than carpets.

Thanks, bumblebeez... will take your advice!

I think the lowest maintenance roses for me are:

Knock Out
Carefree Beauty
Carefree Sunshine
Country Dancer
Blush Noisette
Julia Child

See link below for pictures and retailers

Here is a link that might be useful: Help me Find

Do the Knockouts generally only come in the Rose red color locally? That's about all I've seen.

I thought all of the colors were available just about everywhere now.

I've seen ads for other trademarked roses with all the same attributes as Knockout roses. Not sure if they'll live up to the hype (time will tell). The first wave of Knockouts did only come in a hard to place color, the newer pink ones are much more appealing to me.

I took bumblebeez's advice last Sat (5/3) and moved my Rainbow Knockout rose (growing in a 12" container) from part shade (mostly shade) to full sun. It's still got the whitish stuff on it, and now it's looking a little limp. It's blooming, but nothing like what I'm reading about here. This is a really nice plant and I don't want to lose it... hope someone here can help!!

Claudia, I think mostly your rose needs a little time. One week isn't very long after a plant is moved.

I would plant it in the ground too. I have kept the very small, young knoockouts in a container for the summer then planted in the fall but you'll have to plant it eventually anyway (or root prune). If you get it in the ground now, you'll gain a season.

Hi,
I bought 2 KO Roses, rainbow pink, to replace 2 small evergreens. One of those had died and the other looked healthy. Will KO roses grow well where these evergreens have been living for 4 years, or should I add some pelleted lime to the mix?
Thanks,
Betsy K

Why did your evergreens die? How much sun does the area get?

I also am considering planting a Knock-Out in what I'd call part shade in NC. I get good hot sun until about 1pm and then really HOT afternoons. What do you all think?

Should be okay, but they like the sun. Mine are already blooming like crazy.

We love our knockout roses. Planted them in the fall and now blooming like crazy. Ours are in the full sun but summer months are still to come so we'll see.

I am new to posting so I do not know how to add photos but my red Knockouts that I planted last year are shaded all morning by my house o only get afternoon sun and they are doing well. I would be glad to email photos of the roses.

I have the deep pink red and the light pink KO roses.Have had them several years and did not prune. They were about 7 feet tall and wide! Pruned them had this year and they are just as beautiful as ever. They bloom when tall or short! I do not spray them and I am in blackspot big-time country. None on KO! They are the way to go! They make such a statement!

We planted 4 small KOs in a center island (over 6 hrs a day, full sun and alls well) at our new home 3 years ago - yr#1 we had good blooms, average growth. Yr#2 same thing. This year they are something to behold! They have gone nuts! I swear they have doubled their size (w and h) just this spring! They are stunning - full of blooms and I truly have not done a thing to them. No pruning, spraying or feeding. I am a novice gardener so truly - I am a very bad "rose" mom. They are such wonderful plants! I was not into having roses (b/c I thought they were touchy) but my husband liked these - well he picked some winners. They have been attracting numerous fans in the neighborhood who just love the wash of color in out yard. But I have some ?s- since I know I need to prune them, when can that be done? Is now ok? Do I have to wait until fall? Can I trim spent blooms to help shape them up and do major "choppage" later in the year? Any advice would be appreciated - Thanks!

Studies have shown that knockouts bloom better/more without removing spent blooms. However, sometimes I clip a limb back to improve the overall appearance.
Knockouts may be cut back to 18" or to what height you want in December through April, preferably during the cold dormant season. Gardeners have differing opinions as to what month is best.
I have some ko's I keep small and then I have a large billowy hedge. I use hedge clippers on all of them.

I am also curious if they will grow in partial shade. I have planted them as a border with hostas between. They get full morning sun until about noon.

How high do these grow? They sell them at Costo and the tag says 3' -- I wouldn't want them any higher because they'd block the view out my window.

My Knockouts have grown as tall as 9 feet. They respond well to cutting with hedge trimmers.

I only have one, I don't even know the name of it. I picked it up 2 years ago at my local hardware, paid $9.95 for it. I was very attracted to it because of the color. It's a hot, hot pink, almost looks neon. It's also a double. It's one of the prettiest roses I've ever seen in bloom. I just had it took out to move it, and it's shoulder high on me in a 5 gal pot. And loaded with buds. These are profuse bloomers!! I will be getting more of these for the new landscaping!!

I have mine in partial sun. It does not get a good dose of direct sunshine until about 2PM and then it does not last long. In general I didn't really like my knockouts but last year when we went through a heat spell it looked like someone put a match to a lot of my plants and they burnt up. The knockouts were blooming like crazy. I trim them down to about 18" each year and they come back huge and full of blooms. I also use the Miracle Grow fertilizer stakes for shrubs. So no matter what I have felt about them in the beginning they have been proven performers. I have a black thumb so these are perfect for me.

Do watch out for RRV - Rose Rosette Virus.
I have lost 90% of my roses in just two years.
Knockouts are prone to develop it and it is a serious problem in Upstate SC.
On the Rose Forums here on GW you can learn about it.
Here is just one link. There are many more.

Here is a link that might be useful: Knockouts RRD

I am positive that KnockOut
Roses are genetically modified roses. William Radler is the man responsible for
breeding, these Franken Roses. He must have taken genes from the noxious weed Rosa
multiflora to create roses bushes, that people can just plant anywhere, ignore,
and not spray so the mites can run wild. This is what pushed Rosette Virus from
an obscure condition that has been around since 1941, to a dangerous plague
threatening everyone’s roses. According to the link below, mass planting of
KnockOut Roses which were planted close together to control uglier weeds. Moreover
Knock Out Roses are super susceptible due to the Rosa Multiflora or other
unknown genes that were added. I have a pet peeve against neighbors who try to
save money on landscaping and fence building by planting ivy or bamboo. Ivy and
Bamboo spill over into my yard. How do I know my neighbors have not planted KnockOut
Roses. If I now fail to not spray twice a week, which is completely too much (maybe
the sprays cause cancer,) I can worry that mites are wafting in the air towards
my roses, all summer long. And this is if any of my roses survive to be planted
outside or if I have to destroy and burn them all now before I can even get
started to appreciate the hot weather in Ukiah’s summers.

Clemson University Article on KnockOut Roses

excerpt from the article list above

The Knockout rose has become a staple in the landscape. When
introduced to the market in 2000 it was named the All-American Rose Selection
Winner. They were marketed as low-maintenance, drought tolerant, self-cleaning
roses that were resistant to powdery mildew and black spot. It is no surprise
that this new rose took the market by storm, with record-breaking sales for a
new rose and becoming the most widely sold rose in North America. Since then,
Knockout roses have been used in mass plantings in multiple landscapes. Having
many plants of one variety planted close together makes it easy for insects and
diseases to spread, and that is particularly true for this disease.”

I am year 3 (or maybe 4?) of my KO roses (3 of them). They are finally the size I want; I have not found them super fast growing but I live in SE Mich and we had two brutal winters in a row and I had a lot of dead cane to cut off come April.

Last year, I was happy with the size but not the performance. They had a great first bloom. I went on vacation and came back and the leaves were Swiss cheese. There were tiny wormy bugs on the undersides of the leaves. I bought a spray and got rid of them but the shrubs never bloomed much after that all summer. Mostly, just a green leafy shrub.

I will try to be proactive this summer and check for those bugs every week.

Other than that -- anything I can do to promote blooming?