So much hype has been made about the unusual coloring of this one, but for me it’s a rather ordinary reddish-pink, indistinguishable from the ubiquitous Double Knock Out. Like many Knock Outs and all plastic plants, Benjamin Britten also has no discernable scent. There the similarity ends, since Knock Out spends its energy producing flowers, while Benjamin only makes octopus canes. It produces many blind basal breaks, which if trained horizontally, will in turn produce a prodigious number of blind laterals. Perhaps it was named for the wrong historical figure…Benjamin Britten is not known for ‘blind leading the blind’, that would be Helen Keller.

Jackson & Perkins site says it has a strong pear fragrance. Your post says none to mild. I'd like to hear from growers for their comment on the aroma.

We had one Georgia rose bush when we lived in Stockton CA. It was planted with a southern exposure in full sun, and did marvelously well. Gigantic and beautiful blooms on a 6 foot tall bush. Flowers were actually much more than "mildly" fragrant. We found them in color and fragrance to be similar to "Abraham Darby", but definitely a HT form. The one negative, and a big one, is the thorns. I've NEVER seen anything like them! Huge downward pointing hooks that were extremely thick on all canes, thiick or slender. A real danger to clothes and skin. Truly the most difficult thorns I have ever encountered, including Pink Grootendorst! Anyway, if you can find it (we cannot) and can possibly brave the thorns, this is a healthy, gorgeous rose in all other aspects.

We found Waihiki in a sales barrel as a "body bag" 1 1/2 grade at K-Mart. It is turning into a beautiful plant, and it has gorgeous, fragrant flowers. Had never heard of it prior to stumbling upon it as described above. So glad that we did. It has lovely foliage, too. It is starting to take off, and looks like it will be quite vigorous. Will keep all informed if interested.