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Kathleen, this is too much my story! I didn't really like roses but then I was given the one from my great grandmother's side yard. A Dorothy Perkins it is, and I loved the memories, but not the rose. And it has thorns, and it grows wildly free, untamable, and without mercy. And after all these years I would cry if I lost it.
But roses have made their way into my gardens now, by one means or another, the newest one being a start from one of yours, of course. It has 3 new leaves, by the way...or did you even know Mel gave it to me?
I told Mel to give you a piece. I don't know why I didn't think to bring a couple down, but I was out digging it the morning we left so it wouldn't suffer out of the ground too long. Had my head around other things, I guess.
Glad the rose is coming along. It didn't look too happy when I gave it to you.
Lisa was out here the other day and the scent was quite heady. She was thrilled to see a shoot coming up off to one side. The blooms have about all done their thing, but I should have a very nice crop of hips to do something with later this fall.
that alba is a good one. We're just starting here. If it wasn't raining I'd go out and look at the really fat buds, but I guess I'll pass for now. Tomorrow is supposed to be better.
Ho ho ha ha how would it like mostly shady Massachusetts, do you think? The roses which we feed "rose food" to and plant in "rose mix" soil are withering but the ones we planted before we knew about such things are doing okay (but they wish the durn Norway maple would leave them some sun). DH's father always had a thorny rose hedge to protect them from the neighbors so I think he is amenable ... Lovely article, by the way.
Actually Melody, I need to be truthful. It dwindled, the rose did, and it swooned, withered and I thought it had died. So I went out and looked at it with a touch of sadness, of course, and mumbled a few words about giving it another week. The next time I looked, it had the three tiny new leaves. My guess is that it just needs a little time, so it'll be given another chance. If my others are any indication, it will be rambling through my yard this time next year.
I came home from a week in Chicago on Monday and I thought I was going to have to take a machete to get inside my front door...and out the back. The rains came, and with them the sun...and if I don't keep a huge knife handy, I could very well find myself woven into my own house. I felt like Jack and the Beanstalk.
A great way to revive roses is to give them some Alfalfa tea. Add about 5 handfulls of the pellets to a garbage can of water, cover and let sit for several days. (Be sure to cover as it gets smelly). Then water your roses and they will thrive. Tomatoes love it also. You can also toss in about a cup of Epsom Salts to speed the process but I don't find it necessary. Some people just add the dry pellets as a mulch but I find the tea works much better.
I've seen in books that there's a rose that is native to Kentucky that has beautiful fall follage. Anyone know what it is and if it is hardy? Where I'm at in Denver, CO.. roses here are a hit & miss. This year, it was a miss as we had a butt-kicking cold snap in the middle of April after everything started to leaf out.. it went down to -14 F and I lost many roses, including almost every single bareroot that I had planted due to the fact that it was sooo warm already! :( And trees. And everything else! The only roses that survived that cold snap (we had two bad cold snaps this winter.. one in December when it went down to almost -20F.. then it was in the 80s 2 weeks later! and then the one in April right before a very wet, sloppy slushy snowstorm. We got about 2' of snow out of it, but it was so sloppy wet, it actually translated into about 5" of rain!) were the ones I had left buried in mulch (I always uncover when the forsythia bloom.. and that lost a lot of flowers, too). Oops. :( I lost my Neptune, Julia Child, Party lights, Trumpeter, Gentle Giant, Topsy Turvy, Gizmo, and a mystery rose from my neighbor. My Memorial Day, 5 mystery roses, Gingersnap, George Burns, Mardi Gras, JFK, Oranges & Lemons, & Acadia Sunrise survived. I've put in for replacements a Dolly Parton, New Day, Olympiad, Oktoberfest, Europeana, Lagerfeld, Arlene Francis, Tuscan Sun, Charisma, Blueberry Hill, Picante, Pascali, Fire n Ice, Redgold, Barbara Stressand, Mr. Lincoln, Outta the Blue, Shockwave, Blue Girl, .. oh fudge, I cannot remember the rest, but there's about 10 more that I have put in!
If anyone can let me know, I'd love to be able to get some! (about the rose that is in Kentucky)
