Seil, my Elle finally is putting out almost correctly shaped blooms, but they are smaller than usual. Right now she has about a dozen or so blooms.

I've never seen my Elle turn the shades you show in the first three pics, and the next three are maybe a bit too pink, but they are closer to one of Elle's "looks," depending on the temps. Sometimes she picks up more apricot, like your last picture shows. What I'm not seeing in your pics is Elle's "pastel look"--much paler blend of pink/peach/hint of apricot/touch of yellow at the base. At such times, she has a delicacy of color that sometimes almost reminds me of the colors of a lightly pink blushed Peace rose.

I think Elle's resistance to BS will improve with maturity. My plant is quite vigorous and may have a few BS problems at the height of BS season, but it has never been a serious problem.

And, of course, in this heat, not even the evil BS can possibly survive anywhere in my garden--the only thing good about the heat!

I'll see if I can get a pic of Elle tomorrow morning. She's a good rose!

Kate

She is a weird rose. Mine is very healthy. The bush is about 4ft wide and 6ft+ high if I let her get there. The blooms are different in every flush. Sometimes she's a salmony pink and apricot, sometimes pink and yellow, sometimes pale pink and cream, sometimes all of the above. Sometimes she's even orange! Last yr, she shot up a massive cane that bloomed totally different from the rest of the plant's blooms. The form was different too. I actually thought maybe it was a different plant altogether! But no, it was just a weird new cane that did its own thing! She's an interesting rose, that's for sure!!

Thank you! You are reassuring me that this behavior is normal for Elle. Looking forward to that picture, Kate!

That's an amazing array of colors!! I'm lucky here - no rose here ever does that quick decay!! All of my rose blooms lasts for weeks. I've never had Elle. Do your other roses hang in longer? Is this just an Elle thing?

The first pink picture is amazingly beautiful. Wow!!

Thanks for showing us your beautiful Elle.

Carol

Thanks, Carol. I think that first bloom just got cooked because that was right when it got really hot quick. The second bloom cycle it had been hot for a long time already. Don't know what caused this third one to be so small.

Is elle being contrary? Hopefully elle straightens out for ya.

Thanks, Jim. I think she's settling down now that it's cooled off some, lol!

Oh, seil, I've been trying to capture Elle's "pastel look," but my camera skills are not up to the task. The camera either emphasizes the pink too much or bleaches out nearly white.

Here's the best I could do--her "pastel look" is about halfway between these two pics. Part of my point was that there are times when Elle displays no hint of apricot at all--which is the stage my Elle is in right now.

Elle--a bit bleached out

Elle--the pink overemphasized

Quite a difference there, huh? Same camera, both shots taken within 10-15 minutes of each other. At least now that the heat has dissipated, Elle has got back her center petals anyway. : )

Kate

Oh, Kate, those pictures are really beautiful! Mine hasn't had that pale a color yet. And I seem to get a lot of the peachy tones in mine. Maybe as it matures I'll see some of the other colors come out. I really do love that every bloom is a surprise!