Megan, I admire your determination and enthusiasm! But if I may, I'd like to offer some advice gleaned from 40 years of gardening experience. The early years were a financial challenge, but resulted in great personal satisfaction. To save yourself and any plants that MAY (very iffy!) result from your seeds the stress of caring for them indoors and then the not-inconsiderable chore of moving them to a new location, growing them on until they become large enough to bear fruit, hardening them off (getting them used to the outdoors), etc.--I would strongly suggest you nurture your gardening spirit with little more than a few herbs for now--or just to see something green and growing, even start an avocado or citrus in a pot on a sunny windowsill. These are fairly forgiving, at least for a while--and it is not hard to leave them behind eventually! Many people just trying to grow herbs in a south-facing window in winter do not realize how little sunlight actually is reaching their plants. Not only are the days about half as long, if there are window screens, that cuts the light down radically. Most culinary herbs are Mediterranean natives, so they want LONG bright sunny days and balmy nights, not the short dark winter days on a windowsill where the temperature may drop nearly to freezing at night through the glass! The thing about growing under lights is that light is effective only at the top of a plant. For a mature plant to do more than barely survive indoors under light, and especially to get things to bear fruit, you'd have to just about have lights surrounding the plant vertically in order to provide sufficient light to all the leaves, and leave them on at least 12 hours a day. (I usually leave mine on 16 hour days for seedlings that I start.) Actual greenhouses are all window, so light is pouring in from all sides. In the meantime, Megan, until your own spot of ground is a reality, find a way to put some money aside against the day when you have a garden spot prepared and at that time buy plants that will be ready to bear within a year or two. No matter how strapped for cash you may be, I expect that you, like pretty much everyone, have little indulgences that you can afford to (or will yourself to!) sacrifice and can put aside a few cents-- daily if possible, but weekly for sure-- in order to make your dream a reality. Here are some examples of ways I have been able to save: clip out store coupons for things that you are going to buy anyway (that's important!--it saves you nothing if you buy a brand name you would not ordinarily purchase if it still costs more with the coupon discount than a generic item!) and then as soon as you get home from the store, put the cents you saved into a special bank just for YOU. Also when you come home from any shopping trip, immediately put any coins you have into your bank. Oh, yes, that reminds me--cut up credit cards! Pay cash! If you smoke (hope not!!), QUIT or at least cut back & put the savings aside. Same with anything--cut back on that beer, fancy coffee (or chose plain brewed instead of a latte!), a candy bar, donut, etc.--cutting back even a little bit will start seed money growing (pun intended!) and your health will improve, too! Do you drive around campus when you could use a bike in good weather? Save gas money! Anyway, you get the idea. But you must have the will power to save the money & not break into your bank for any reason! Cut out pictures of the plants you want and make a notebook, plan your garden, do whatever it takes to keep yourself inspired so you do not touch your plant money! Finally, when you do get settled in your new place, find out about local garden clubs (online, Chamber of Commerce, library, etc.), go to the extension office for free how-to handouts on all aspects of gardening, talk to people at farmers' markets, find out when & where plant sales are or just who likes to garden. Most gardeners are happy to share extra plants and seeds or sell them for a minimal cost AND share their expertise. Just look at the resources at Garden Web! We all are out here, all over the U.S., as happy to help in person as on line. Hope this was not too long or preachy. Just that I remember how badly I yearned for a garden 40 years ago --and now I have gardened in 4 states and in Belgium and learned so much. I still am on a tight budget now that we are retired, but I have LOTS of plants and have made so many gardening friends. Good luck, Megan! And stay tuned to GW for encouragement!

Sherry, The two biggest offenders are Ducher and Marchessa Bochella. IÂve had Ducher for 6 seasons (5 ½ years) and MB for 5 seasons (4 ½ years). Both are BS prone in my garden and lose most of their leaves. Ducher responds a little better to spraying (but this year I had a lot going on and couldnÂt keep it up on a regular basis) JBs like both and Ducher is a thrip magnet. I used to have two MBs but dug one out but decided to keep the other to give it more time. Ducher almost left this spring but he was bushing out so nicely, I decided that he deserved a second chance. I like that Ducher smells like grapefruit to meÂI really like grapefruit and itÂs decidedly not a typical rose smell but IÂm just underwhelmed and would like to use that spot for something that might do betterÂitÂs in the VERY front of the yardÂclose to the street. I love the fragrance of MB and when she blooms, I want to forget the UGLY foliage (and lack thereof) but sheÂs in the front garden, too. Of course, this year wasnÂt a stellar year for my garden. When IÂd fertilize, (just basic 10-10-10), the weeds seem to love it and the roses seemed to just take it in stride and sulk. I know the drought was a big factor but there was very little I could do about that until later in the summer when I did increase their water. To be honest, IÂm a little discouraged (but that isnÂt stopping me from buying a few new plants while theyÂre on sale). My wife doesnÂt want me making the garden biggerÂI can mow the grass in a little over 30 minutes but could never weed that quicklyÂweeds have been a big problem this year. I ask the question because I donÂt want to rip out some plants that typically take a while to get established and then they are stars in the garden. (IÂm giving Perle dÂOr more timeÂshe is still so small but seems to want to bloom. BS isnÂt a big problem and neither are thrips or JBsÂat least not as bad as others). Abe Darby is moving to the back garden. I love his blooms and the fragrance and will just live with the defoliation when he is hidden in the back. Sorry for the long answer to the short question. Jeff

Most Lowe's stores in the south should already have their Christmas displays in order. However, near the front door, you should see a seed rack still in place with perennials and next year's annuals. Some veggie seeds are still there too. Those are great stocking stuffers for those of us who like to toss seeds out into the 1/2" of snow we get. There's also gardening tools on aisle 28. And of course, gift cards that can be used next spring when the weather warms up. Just ignore the Christmas stuff. It'll be gone the second week in December and we'll start stocking the shelves with garden hoses again. Me, I plan to do what I always do, spend Christmas eve at the parents' house shooting fireworks to make sure Santa can find us. My nephew is 11 this year and still professes to believe in Santa but we all know he's just worried he won't get any gifts if he says otherwise. There'll be lots of food that night, some visitors from their church, our huge extended family, and maybe a single gift from each of us opened. I'll bring home 12 new pairs of socks, some underwear, a couple pairs of pants, and a few shirts. I'm hoping for a new pair of work boots too. I've worn the bottom off last year's already and that was in April. I could buy a new pair for myself, but I'd rather spend my extra cash on plants. For my family, I tend to make presents. Last year, my mom got new picture frames. My sister got a couple shelves for her endless supply of nicknacks. My dad, he got peg board for his new "shop". My nephew got a couple video games with learning as its focus. My sister's husband, he got lottery tickets and a bit of cash. I think he won $2.

If you pinch the tips they will branch and be bushy but as the canes get older the thorns get worse. They can get thick so picking berries can be like a dangerous easter egg hunt.... sometimes you get too eager going for the fruit and get a sharp stab. I currently have them in those blue water barrels cut in half. The ones cut length-ways are in wood frames to keep from tipping over and sit on cement patio fruiting for 2yrs+. Another barrel I cut width-ways so about 17in deep 24 wide also survive winter snow on cement patio. Just make sure something blocks the wind. I know it can get brutal especially further out Long Island, that can cause tip burn or if you're closer to shore you may have a bit of salt in it so you can cover canes with tarp but you need rain and snow to get to soil during winter so mulch or frost blanket over ground at bottom.