Thanks MichaelG and Jerijen... MichaelG your explanations also added my feelings that I triply compounded my mistakes when I planted my Frederick Mistral with a plum tree as its neighbor (I have this completely empty lot that begged for roses but then there's that stupid dappled sun issue and I was so stubborn about having more roses-sigh!)... Granted I hacked off chunks of the tree roots to make sure they didn't get in the way of my Frederick Mistral, but I worry it may take too long for my Frederick Mistral to develop a strong root system that it can compete with the plum tree (2 years lag/wait time is very worrisome) It's super tall like a fully developed rose except its stems don't have bulk, another indicator to me that it has baby roots and no anchor roots yet ...I think in March 2010 if it survives with my winter protection, I'll transplant it into a regular pot and stick it near the tree so that it still have the same light conditions but not the crowded soil until it gains that bulkiness that indicates the anchor roots have set in... What do you think of this idea? As for my own root climbers, Jerijen, what are their shapes like? Do own-root climber roots develop faster than regular own-root hybrid teas? or do they all develop at exactly the same rate... Thanks all!

Matters of scale: Grafted roses: fields are tied up for two years plus time for rather lethal fumigations. Grow rootstock Harvest nodes for grafting Talented propagators? employed by the company or imported. Timing for the rootstock to be right to take the graft or bud Irrigation Two years of irrigation Harvest (wish they would clean the choppers above and below ground), label bag and ship. Is the rootstock used right for all parts of the country? No, but producer doesn't care as his job is to produce plants to sell. And he can do this in bulk. Own root: take cutting root and grow out cutting sell.

lizzieswellness I have been growing roses for 30 years (I'm 60) and I have been rooting roses for a decade. I grow 150+ varieties of OWN ROOT roses. What you wrote fit GRAFTED roses that are grafted on ONE PARTICULAR ROOTSTOCK, but DOES NOT APPLY to own-root roses which are vastly different from each other. Like Bayes Blueberry is a long rope root, or shallow cluster-root of Baby Fauraux, or thick & woody & chunky root (like a tree) of French Romantica roses. I dug up plenty of dead own-root roses that don't survive my zone 5a winter at -20 F below zero. And their roots are DIFFERENT from each other, just google "StrawChicago and HMF" and you'll see I posted plenty of pics. of roots of roses: Even grafted roses are different from each other (Fortuniana, Multiflora, Dr.Huey). Below is multiflora rootstock (pic. from internet): Below is Dr.Huey rootstock, dug up from my garden of rock hard clay: Below is a pic. of own root rose that a friend sent to me. NO WAY that such a tiny own root can handle rock hard clay. One size DOES NOT fit all when it comes to own-root roses.

Carol: Khalid in Pakistan grows Augusta Luise since 2014 & he posted lots of pics. in Organic rose forum. It blooms well for him at 115 F, he mentioned that it likes high-calcium fluffy soil & alkaline pH. He fertilized it with wood ash & chicken manure in a pot with loamy and fluffy soil. Leaves of Augusta Luise is glossy dark green, but smaller in size. Glossy dark green means it prefers alkaline pH, and smaller leaves mean it likes fluffier soil. For Augusta Luise: SKIP GARDEN LIME (22% calcium and 12% magnesium). Pelletized lime without magnesium is a better choice. Garden Lime has 12% magnesium which is "sticky glue" and makes my clay dense (my black-gumbo clay was tested exceedingly high in magnesium, and multiflora-rootstock hates my clay). Garden lime makes "concrete" out of any soil. We have 3 days of rain & high humidity and the bag of Garden Lime dust (inside 2 plastic bags) turned into sticky-putty .. that would kill any cluster-root like it killed Felicia. The pale and dull leaves own-roots absolutely hate Garden Lime. The tiny-leaves own-roots also hate Garden Lime. These prefer gypsum (fast calcium released by its 18% sulfur). Note below pale & small leaves of St. Cecilia in my dense high magnesium clay: Below is with acidic rain: Below same St. Cecilia, without sulfur in acidic rain (gypsum and sulfate of potash also has 18% to 21% sulfur). Note the pale leaves in high magnesium clay get worse WITHOUT rain: The glossy & dark-green & large leaves can handle Garden lime and my thick & dense clay better, such as Betty White: