It sounds like mealy bugs. Alcohol on a cotton swab will kill individuals, dish liquid and alcohol and water, equal parts, as a spray. You will have to soak the medium too, because eggs lurk there. You will have to treat every few days as they are hard to eradicate.

Greetings, Neighbor. Sorry to be so late to the party ... I just saw this. Your order now stands at 2 Reve d'Or 2 Cl. Eden 1 Cl. Pinkie Abraham Darby Carefree Beauty Double Delight am I right? I grow all of these except Cl. Eden. Reve d'Or is a baby now, and is going to be planted on the south wall of my house where it can get some heat. My friend in Lake of the Woods grows Reve d'Or brilliantly. (that's one plant) I am trying to contain Cl. Pinkie on an 8' arch. I think it would be happier, and show better, if planted on a fence where it could sprawl a bit. I love the foliage, and the thornless nature, and the flowers make me smile. Abraham Darby wants to get tall and it's self supporting. The one Olga grows in her yard is the best I've ever seen. I thought I had a photo of it, but I don't. Carefree Beauty is a large, lax, self supporting shrub. Double Delight grows like a typical modern hybrid tea, thick canes, straight up. I grow 800 roses, and I spray fungicide every two weeks. Bayer Advanced Disease Control (available at Lowes or specialty garden centers) is my choice. I do not spray insecticide in the garden! I let the birds and the good bugs strike a balance with the bad bugs, and it works for me. Make plans to come visit. I'm planning an Open House, and all GW friends are always welcome. Connie

Well--I've gardened where it's much colder, and I've gardened down here where it's some warmer, and I gardened in about your zone in Washington State where zones can be the same as ours but gardening is wildly different, so you must take what I say with a good handful of salt. I think a lot of bulbs can be grown right in your flower beds, but be careful to mark them so you don't dig into them (as I did!). A good way is to plant something beside or even on top of them that will cover the dying foliage but not be too vigorous to crowd them out--maybe just something that comes up later. If you're growing bearded iris it would probably be as well to have them in a dedicated bed as they prefer to bake in the summer. I remember the better iris growers in Nebraska had their iris beds 'out back', as one said 'where I can just shut the gate and forget them'. I'm not sure if you'd need to pre-chill--probably not. We do, but I think you'd be enough cooler in the winter. You could ask at the Extension Service if you don't know local gardeners. I always try to make the acquaintance of good gardeners when I move, because, as you say, local gardeners have the best information. Well, except for the ones one place I lived that said I'd better learn to like plastic flowers, since that was all that would grow there. I found lots of things that grew there, and I still don't care for plastic flowers.

It isn't true espresso but pretty close. Really hard to get that at home without spending some pennies. I don't think you would ever regret having one. You will have it for years and always have a good very close to espresso cup. Look at the brikka 4 cup. Spend your money on a good burr grinder and experiment with quality beans. Might need to fuss with it a bit the first few pots. Medium heat and bring it up slow. (a sloppy house guest actually burnt the gasket on mine and it got so hot it nearly exploded when the coffee came up...i was not home but guessing she also must have left it on the gas burner after brewing). She burned alot of things. Here is a link that might be useful: bialetti brikka