22,795 Garden Web Discussions | Roses

What hasn't been mentioned is the rest of the pruner, beyond the blade. It's easy for resins, etc. to accumulate on the blades. They need to be cleaned off and they need to be so smooth that nothing accumulates there.

Then the blade (for a secateur) needs to be sharp, as sharp as you can make it. And the side it moves past needs to be equally clean. Clean of everything from plant gook to rust because rust can hold and then spread microscopic problems.

To me, the most important to stop and clean secateurs is when you're working on a rose that has a problem. It's bad that that rose has a problem, what is worse is rushing through and spreading the problem (and I have spread fungi and worse from one rose to the next by rushing stem cuts in spring.)

I do the same thing, Emily2002, except that I use methylated spirits instead. Wd40 is a staple in our house :-)

Karen, I'm glad your roses did well! Queen of Sweden is one of my favorites, and Lady of Shallot is newly planted in our gardens.

Well -- I did it again. After three months in the hospital I was so revved up to create beauty (and also had a 25% discount code), I ordered a number of David Austin bare roots, mostly own root, and they arrived a few days later. I was still too incapacitated to inspect or plant them myself, but they're leafing out and one has even bloomed -- Princess Alexandra of Kent. They were planted in April with temps in the 90s, and I figured if they failed it would be a learning experience.

I had another bout in the hospital last week, and since I didn't get my fingers burned with the first round of roses, I ordered again after I was dishcharged (I suspect David Austin's marketing team has taken control of our hospitals here, and they hypnotize patients into uncontrollably craving their roses). Last night I found the bare roots on my doorstep, and with help, I inspected them and bucketed them in pond water. I thought they looked fantastic -- lots of green canes, good, long root systems. I'll post a picture later if I can. At Humpty Dumpty House we get donations of plants other people don't want -- roses that don't bloom, puny bare roots, and this year we even got my dream plant -- a bare root David Austin rose tree with a big greenstick fracture. So I'm used to looking at things that don't look so good. Our philosophy is to take take things (and people) that are considered broken and useless, and give them a new life; a chance to be beautiful and to serve a worthy purpose. Not saying that anyone who pays good money should have to accept an inferior plant. But reputable companies will replace it, and you can send the bad one to us (big smiley face symbol) because those ugly ducklings really can become stellar swans. I find the challenge bittersweet, and it makes me love these gardens and plants all the more. Plant donations are tax deductible, and your facebook likes are helping us reopen the gardens in June, after my lengthy hospitalization. Lots of pretty pictures, design ideas, garden advice:

https://www.facebook.com/HumptyDumptyHouse

http://www.humptydumptyhouse.org

. . .

Princess Alexandra of Kent. Planted from a David Austin bare root early April with temps in the 90s. I know David Austins don't do well everywhere, and feel sad for those who can't grow them 'cause they're magical here -- at least the ones we've planted so far. All our roses get fertile soil which we've been amending several years, and drip irrigation. Hot, blazing afternoon sun with morning shade. Many are planted against a white wall with a great deal of reflected heat. No spray. Great soil and adequate drip irrigation seem to overcome the negatives, because the roses are heartbreakingly beautiful. Many came from bad looking bare roots. Please see our website and facebook links in the post directly above.

I have the three Austins mentioned. Two will not do well not sprayed. Teasing Georgia won't defoliate, but gets spotty. Plus it's a monster. A friend has Julia Child and it does get spotty. The other yellows I have are Golden Showers, which is a climber. It gets blackspot. I have Kordes Caramella Fairy Tale, and that also gets BS. I just bought a bunch of yellows, but I plan on spraying them. It depends on what your tolerance for spotty leaves is. I haven't tried Carefree Sunshine, if Michael says it's good, maybe that should be the one you try.

I am growing Sparkle & Shine(The Golden Child) here in Australia for the first time and have found it good in my climate, I thought it might suit, here is a link to it,

http://www.helpmefind.com/gardening/l.php?l=2.65798.2

That was the cane. They are just starting to grow so it came out that way. I was thinking it may have been hit last fall. I'm just starting to replant roses after a hard three years with rrd. That was maybe 7 years ago.

Buford, these things are strange to me. I was just checking for rose slugs the day before that and that wasn't there. Then yesterday it's the first thing I saw when checking the rose.

Reve d'Or is bullet proof in my yard. I think it would be a nice contrast to Crepescule, which has a more intense color. The thorns are manageable. I have it on an arbor over a gate.

It was full of BS here. I gave it three years then removed it. Beautiful flower thou I must say.

It's not the soil or mites, but remnants of roots that are still alive and carrying the virus, I think, is the problem. Calling Dr. Huey, Dr. Huey, Dr. NotSoFein.

The virus by itself cannot survive in the soil. The last lecture I went to they recommended waiting 7 days for the virus to die. But yes, the roots can carry it if it got down that far. I dug up a Reve d'Or last year and I'm waiting to see if any roots survive before replanting. It was own root, but in a confined spot so I could not get all the roots. I have had luck killing Dr. Huey sprouts with RU for woody vines. If you have RRD, I think that would be a good idea before replanting.

And honestly, the woman making that statement is a Parks and Recreation spokesperson, not an RRD expert.

My rose is planted near a flowering plum tree.

Nice bike!

May be something to do with the tree? I'm not sure. The bike is cheaper than a horse, it doesn't eat much, 100mpg. :-)

One of the two Sir Lipton Thomas's is dead after just 2 weeks. I also bought a Mister Lincohn, it is doing well so far. It's worth the try since they are so cheap.

Ryan, sorry to hear you have lost one. I only got one Sir Lipton Thomas, it's doing ok. I went crazy with Therese Bugnet this year, saw some at HD too, picked more there, now I have 12 of them. :-) Hope they have good fragrance. Good luck with your other SLT and Mister Lincohn. I got 2 Mister Lincoln from Aldi's this spring.

Well, I feel silly, yes I can, I just did!, so I'm Sara-Ann again! Kentucky, all my olds posts are still here.

Great! Glad you are the name you want to be :)

Yeah, populations vary with the weather from year to year. I understand that it's caused by temperatures differentially favoring early development of thrips predators as opposed to thrips themselves. But don't blame it on the one rose plant.

The rose came from my friend's spray garden, so there probably were no thrip predators. Hopefully, I talked her into using something less toxic like Serenade when her roses get mildew instead of the stuff she used this season.

I found this interesting article from Paul Zimmerman: Got Thrips on Your Roses? Get Aphids? It talks about how aphids are food for the thrip predators. I used to reach for a bottle of soap and water to spray on aphids, but now I think I'll leave them alone so the beneficial predator bugs will have something to eat early on. A few aphids aren't nearly as bad as thrips and the good guys like the hoverflies will soon follow :)

Thanks, again. Hopefully this rose will look better next season. It looks terrible now.

Wow, what a dramatic change. I like the "clean" look. I would probably add low growing companion plants. Not too much, just some to add to the fuller look.

I agree. I'm sure the weeds were smothering the roses. Now the roses can flourish.

This might all be moot. A day of rose shopping netted nothing much that might work. I think I should have tackled this project a month ago. And the narrow space and the tracking of petals is a valid concern. I am thinking it ove. Meanwhile, I do thank everyone for the good advice.

If this was my house, I would add shrub roses instead of the climbing ones. If you live in a warmer zone, I think vigorous climbers will hide the beautiful architectural details of your house. At least low climbers, I would say.

I should have specified, but I meant they never get OGRs in pots. I assumed this rose was purchased in a pot.

Yep, it was sold in a large pot as a huge plant for $10.Definitely worth the gamble, whatever it turns out to be.

Cynthia