Nik, I know that Americans farther South than my zone 6a do plant in the Fall but I have had no personal experience with warmer zones. However, from my zone North (and that's a lot of territory), Fall planting is not a viable option. In August it is too hot to plant, getting in the high 80s and then the first frosts come about the first or second week in October. Four to five weeks is not enough time for the roses to get established and prepare for the hard frosts soon to come. Our last frost date is May 15, so that is about 7 months. Usually we have snow cover then it melts, then more snow cover and on and on through the winter. This is especially bad because repeated freezing and thawing cycles heave plants out of the ground. A constant snow cover, which we do not have, would prevent that and in addition would be protective insulation, keeping the plants near 32 F instead of the -10F air temperatures normal for this zone. It may be difficult for most Europeans to sense the degree and duration of cold that we experience, Scandinavian countries and Scotland excepted. When I read English gardening books that say a plant is cold hardy, I have to remember they mean that it will survive in a zone much warmer than mine. Most of England is zone 8! Compare the Hardiness Zone maps on Garden Web of Europe versus The United States. The color of the zones give a more intuitive feel for the difference in climate. Cath

Kansas girl, agree you should get on the phone with Customer Service asap 800-328-8893 with your order number & receipt in front of you for reference. (Saturdays 8 am - 4pm Central Time.) A personal conversation by phone is usually more productive than email, though an immediate email to follow up your call, detailing what was discussed, is also important. Explain your problem - you've received the Wrong Rose after indicating you'd accept no substitutions without your authorization. See how they offer to correct the mistake. Acknowledge that you understand how busy they've probably been getting out orders for Mothers Day & that mixups can happen, that you ordered it for yourself & you'd be even more disappointed if it had been a gift to your mom, how fabulous David Austin's reputation is, that sort of chat. You want the service rep to be kindly inclined to help you, so be sure to convey that you're not unhappy with them personally, but with the situation, which you're sure they want to correct appropriately. Take note of the names of anyone with whom you speak. Personally, I'd want the rose I ordered sent at no additional charge to what I'd already paid. If the rose was unavailable, I'd want a full refund. I'd expect to keep the wrong rose sent in any case as apology for the mishap, unless they sent their carrier for pickup with a prepaid return label. I might mention at some point that the soil was knocked out of the pot of the wrong rose, assuming they'd want to know that as well. (The bit about the mildew & blackspot I'd keep to myself, as it can indeed be brought on by the stress of shipping, and will usually right itself. However, if the Right Rose arrived that way, I'd call to let them know the condition & that I'd be expecting a replacement if it didn't shrug it off.) I expect they'll apologize for the error & get this straightened out graciously. On the offchance that the service rep is not helpful, nor their supervisor, my aces would be letting them know I'd take it up with my credit card company and mention of Gardenweb & Dave's Garden Watchdog membership. Sorry you got this mixup on your first foray into mailorder roses! Something similar seems to happen to us all eventually. Better you're aware from the get-go that it's not what you ordered, since with roses that don't bloom until a later season, some have only discovered the mistake after nuturing a Wrong Rose for months. (Thought I'd linked DA's contact info & hours - here it is.) Here is a link that might be useful: Contact info This post was edited by vasue on Sat, May 10, 14 at 13:58

The roses they were selling in Canton were the leftovers from the huge Tyler Rose Festival in October. The ones I bought from in front of the Tyler store looked great but they were full price....I guess they lowered them to $15 because I saw them in Canton in November and they were full price. Mine still look great. I havent had any virused ones from DA and I have ordered from them for a number of years. I had a few in full all day sun and this summer did the young ones in but Mary Rose, a large DA I got for $2 a few years back from Teas Nursery in Houston [yes, $2! They made a mistake but honored the price as thats what I was told] It is one of the handful of roses that survived in that bed in this horrible summer we had. I have just sent in my spring order with DA. I decided to not get any own roots as I just wasnt sure enough of how they would perform. Maybe those of you who are trying the own roots from DA will let the forum know how they do. Judith

Where are you located in MI? I think you should be able to find campanula at a local nursery. I live in MI, about 30 minutes north of Detroit. There are a few nurseries close to me with nice perennial selections. You could call a few to see if they have the plant you’re looking for in stock. I’ve purchased plants from Bluestone, but the plants are pretty small and expensive. I usually purchase from them when they’re having a sale or if they have something I can’t find locally and have to have.