Despite quite a bit of negative comment I love that stunner of a rose! There is talk about her bloom frequency being just fair, disease resistance not so good, susceptibility to heat, wind and rain, or weak stems and dropping heads.
I don’t find any of this to be true. I have Summer Song in a large terracotta pot on my south-westerly patio in full sun from 11 to 2. Dappled-shaded by my neighbour’s beech trees from the worst of the afternoon heat, before she is in full sun again come 4 in the afternoon. The patio is protected from strong winds, which she seems to like, too. I heard from other gardeners who keep her in a large pot - and by large we’re speaking of 1 meter deep and 1/2 meter wide - that she seems to like it there very well - this and the constant supply of a good organic liquid fertilizer. I always recommend Recht’s Vitanal Rosen, but I’m sure you gardeners abroad all have their special brand that their roses appreciate very much. Regularly sprayed with Recht’s Vitanal Sauer, or any other organic foliage nutrient, she has not showed any signs of foliage disease to date.
So, give Summer Song a bit of protection from the worst of the summer heat, and strong winds, put her in a pot if you like, wooden or terracotta, plant her somewhere with trees near but not too close - she loves the humid microclimate that leafy trees provide -, and she will surprise you with an abundance of her amazing blooms throughout the whole season. In spring, prune her deftly in colder climes and about 1/3 off of the top if you live in warmer regions, and after 2 to 3 years there will be no more drooping or sprawling. It’s just the way with the older Austin roses - I don’t mind that at all. Patience is a gardener’s virtue - one of the many we have ;-)
Summer Song gives me those wonderful old-rose cupped blooms that unfold into a huge irregular twirl of beautifully orangey, burnt-brick coloured petals that are just stunning. People literally stand in the street infront of my patio trying to look in and get a glimpse of her. She is a show stopper! And then there is the scent. Truly amazing! Strong, deliciously fruity, with a hint of tea, and, believe it or not, banana! I had to smell her again and again when she opened her first bloom, because I couldn’t believe it. So surprising!
As to ‘not easily combined with other colours’, I don’t find this to be true either. I have her next to Brother Cadfael’s slightly corally pink that goes great with orange, on the porch across are pale orange ‘Bridge of Sighs’ and yellow ‘Crépuscule’, in the background whitish-orange ‘Ghislaine de Féligonde’, and right next to her, believe it or not, David Austin’s ‘Falstaff’. I find the combination of orange and red roses irresistible, and I adore the deep burgundy hue of 'Falstaff’s cabbage-big blooms next to the burnt-orange of the only slightly daintier ones of ‘Summer Song’. What a pair of show-offs in the best sense! Add some blue and white perennials, and a lot of luscious green leafy stuff like day lilies, forget-me-nots and irises, and you will have your very own piece of paradise.