All my roses are in pots for the reason that I'm a renter and that I like to rearrange roses periodically. I'd echo many of the points already made. I agree growing roses is generally easier in the ground but can be successful in pots. I'm not personally familiar with Austins. The one I recall growing years ago, Graham Thomas, was a sprawling monster not suited to being in a rose bed with bedding roses, let alone in a pot. It also blackspotted horribly, but that's an issue only of concern is some regions and climates. Selecting compact varieties certainly helps. Drainage and good potting medium are key. As already mentioned, lots of tap roots are not helpful in pot culture. I'd just add that this is precisely why I try to avoid roses grafted on Dr. Huey. I don't know what Australia's roses tend to be offered on as far as rootstock. But Dr. Huey rootbounds for me after 2 years. Growing roses on their own roots is my preference for pot culture. They seem to adapt more easily to pot life. If I can only find a variety I'm looking for on Dr. Huey, I'll get it but watch it and plan on root pruning every couple years, or, when appropriate, rooting a cutting from the grafted plant to replace the original. Occasionally a rose doesn't grow well on its own roots. I either give up on it or get it grafted on multiflora or fortuniana. Both have plentiful feeder roots and few to no sprawling taproots. Sometimes I procrastinate about root pruning, but usually by at least 4 year intervals I will do it at winter pruning time and partially replace the soil at the same time. That seems to rejeuvenate the roses. If it doesn't, I replace the offending rose. There are always new varieties on my wish list eager to take the spot. Though potted roses are more trouble in general, one advantage is I can control and ensure good drainage much more easily. Another is that I never struggle with invasive tree roots, which often happens in the ground. Mike

Very nice! Everything I plant in pots seems to wither away, unless it's a cactus. You've done a great job! Evan

I have a cutting tentatively IDed as H meredithii or vitellinoides which behaves similarly. I've had the cutting for a yr & it's done nothing other than drop 1 of its 2 leaves (I'd cut a 2 node cutting in 2 pieces, lost the other piece). The woman who gave me the cutting & for whom I've tentatively IDed it bloomed it once, then gave me cuttings. She recently said her does nothing after a yr. either -- frustrating! She'd given me cuttings of this once before, 1 w/ a spur that bloomed inside the plastic cuttings bag. Unfortunately, it did so while I was away when my Dad died a yr ago; I cam home & found the end of the bloom. Wish I knew what to suggest to make something happen!

You said "new house" so does that mean you're the first occupant of a new build? If so, there's probably nothing yet needing to be done after 1.5 years but it may be a good idea to contact a servicer or the installation company for a look-see. My (aerobic) system is 14+ years and has not yet needed a pump-out, although I'm a one-person household and take appropriate usage care. It has needed repairs but the system has an alarm buzzer that triggers on a malfunction. Does your county/city jurisdiction require recurring inspection of septic systems? Mine does. I have a yearly contract with the installer for 3-times-per-year inspection which includes adding chlorine tablets when needed. I'm curious how you weren't aware of it. Sewer is normally a charge/line-item on a city services utility bill. Do you have a private water well? If no city utility bill for water service, then it goes along that you'd also have a private septic system.