Congratulations on your bands! I bought two at the Celebration and potted them up when I got home. For bands, I use 1/2 Miracle Gro potting soil (NOT the moisture retention kind - be careful) and half perlite. I put them in 1 gallon pots. I don't move to two gallon until I see roots on the sides of the one gallon. Takes a few months before they get that far. Then I go to two gallons. When I see roots on the sides of the two gallon, I put them in the ground. They're big enough to withstand the dogs then. For me, it's usually a year between when I get the band and when I put in the ground. I live in Livermore - quite hot. Since they're in those one gallon pots, most are black, unfortunately. I treasure the times I can buy a one gallon in a light colored 1 gal container and use these for bands so the roots don't bake as much. I also keep them in shade after about 2pm so they don't cook. In high summer, I water daily. Right now, it's about every 3-4 days. I have rotted out roots by putting in too big a pot and also by using too heavy a soil, so I'm careful now. Good luck!! It's worth the wait once they get going. I keep mine on my patio so I can see them when they flower. Who needs petunias? I have my baby roses! Debbie

Thanks for the compliments and plant ID. Ok so it is a siberian iris? Thanks, I don't need to know the particular one, I just wanted to know the type because I like the foliage even when it isn't in bloom and I may buy more of this type. Would you believe these ones were free, I just dug up a clump that was growing along the road a few years ago. Shawn

Oh, I seem to remember the name of your shrub from a visit I made years ago to one of my local plant nurseries. Pinkish mix? (obviously) an early fall bloomer?They had several similarly named (October this and that?) back then but I did not see as many this year there though. Part of sasanquas being sold under the series name of "October". Here is some info on growing camellias in containers: https://www.americancamellias.com/care-culture-resources/general-culture-requirements/container-grown-camellias

gardengal48 and Perma n’ Posies , Thank you so much! I feel so much better now! I'm glad you told me about the vermiculite because I am not an expert gardener in any shape or form. When I bought it, I heard vermiculite was good for airing out and lightening up the soil and for helping the soil hold onto the added nutrients and soil amendments. I figured it would help potted plants so that the added plant food and nutrients don't drain out of the pots and can stay in the pot longer so the plants can uptake those things more readily when needed. I read so many different things on the internet about different kinds of soil amendments that it confuses the heck out of me sometimes, lol. I have bone meal, blood meal, earthworm castings, Down to Earth Organic Rose & Flower Fertilizer Mix 4-8-4, 5 , garden lime and something called Tank's Green Stuff 100% Organic SuperMix Fertilizer which is very expensive and gets rave reviews from gardeners. I really like the ingredients in Tanks Green Stuff! Tank's 100% organic compost has: Heat Treated Chicken Manure, Bat Guano, Calcium, Zeolite, Gypsum, Biochar, Soy Meal, Feather Meal, Blood Meal, Kelp Meal, Trace Minerals, Seaweed Extract, Humic Acid, Worm Castings. ( N: 2 P: 2 K: 1 ) If the soil mix is heavy and not light and fluffy, I'll add some peat moss and perlite in to lighten it up a bit. Besides the peat moss and perlite, Is it ok to mix a little of the stuff I mentioned above in the soil too? If yes, how many cups or teaspoons should I mix into the soil and add to each 15 gallon pot? I want the soil in the pots to be light and fluffy and filled with lots of good stuff for the roses. I found the ingredients that the soil has: aged fir bark, fir bark, sawdust, composted green waste, peat moss, redwood sawdust, alfalfa meal, fishbone meal, bone meal, feather meal, kelp meal, kelp flour, dolomite lime, gypsum and wetting agent. My guess is that there isn't a huge percentage of those ingredients in the soil. It's probably mostly sticks/wood. Thankfully, I also found a write up where the company said this particular planting mix is also "designed for Indoor and outdoor containers". After I read that I felt relieved. Thanks so much again for your help and advice. I appreciate you both so much!