Hope everyone is having good luck with their J&P's....I have been a J&P customer for over 20 years and have never had a problem with their roses or service--until this year...I even used to grow Test Roses every year (back when it was free in the 1980's)for these folks.... Having moved to a new residence in a rural area, I am starting over with a blank canvas....I decided to plant a few of my old tried, but true favorites like Our Lady Of Quadalupe, Black Magic, Outrageous, and ordered a few of the new roses...I have mixed reviews on all of it.... I ordered my roses way back in February and due to poor planning, management or whatever they are doing at the "new" J&P, I just plopped my final rose into the ground about 2 weeks ago (early June)...Like many of you, they could never tell me when I was going to get my roses or provide Tracking info...and, the roses always came later rather than sooner...In the old days, most, if not all, of my roses would have arrived together in one or two boxes...now, they come sporadically, not when you expect them, and some are less than expected compared to what J&P used to ship out....not liking the new J&P too much...I was sent 2 roses (New Generation roses) that were only 4 inches tall....a couple others had canes that had cuts, gashes, peeling on them....another was a tree form instead of the shrub form I had ordered...a couple had cane dieback already which, after pruning, resulted in only 2 healthy canes.....some of the roots were covered in mold when they arrived....some canes were completely broken but still attached to the bush...one had a gaping hole at the graft site....the list goes on......*sigh*.....Living in the country, my options for roses and variety are severely limited unless I want to plant Lowe's offerings (which were not being taken care of properly and were already exhibiting Blackspot, Mildew and some Rust)...I opted for mail order from J&P since I've had good luck in the past... When I called about all the problems I was having, I was told by the "new" people that I should go ahead and plant what I had and to report any problems within 30 days....apparently, the guarantee has shrunk...lol...in all fairness, though, they did send me out a replacement for the rose tree that was supposed to have been a bush and they replaced one of the 4 inch bushes with another bush...I have to laugh though....the replacement was not much better...it was about 6 or 7 inches tall leafed out...and, by the way, my "free due to error" tree rose is puny, puny, puny...60 days after planting, still hasn't set buds and is barely larger than a softball...With 3 more roses still out on the table and waiting, I decided to call and cancel those last 3 because they still were not showing as shipped early June....too hot, humid and brutal to try to plant any later than Memorial Day here...I had to fight with the Rep to get the order cancelled even though their transition of ownership and computer system had already occurred the week before...I just flat out refused to pay if the roses arrived anyway and warned the Rep that I would Refuse Shipment if she doesn't cancel the order....after a few back and forth comments, she finally found a way to cancel the 3 roses... Anyway, report any problems ASAP or I suspect you will have a battle on your hands....As of this writing, I have one rose that is questionable on thriving...it's just sitting there, green but not growing in height, yet the rose of the same variety and next to it is gaining height and blooming just fine....two others are still so small in statue that I wonder if they will make it through the winter....one seems to be finally awakening and leafing out after 2 months of just sitting there naked....90 degree heat helps I guess....All roses have been fed and watered as I have done for the last 20 years, but it just seems that everything I received this time from J&P was much, much smaller, less hardy, and maybe even a little sickly....it appears the folks who harvest the bushes are not careful at all...Very disappointed and will be looking for a more reliable mail order supplier for my purchases next year.....It's a shame because J&P really used to have great roses, variety, and customer service.....Not now! Good luck!

I ordered mine on the 14th-FINALLY got an email yesterday with a tracking number. The tracking number showed that they had attempted delivery Wednesday AND Thursday but there were security issues. Called FedEx today for an explanation and they said security was a code for a problem, but not in terms of a danger issue. No joy there since they said they couldn't answer me until Tuesday. I said that these were live plants and that WAS an issue. Called HD Customer Service and got a very nice young lady who made some calls for me-turns out they had the wrong house number on the shipping label, even though I had given them the right one. GRRRRRRRRRRRR. Anyway, they turned up late this afternoon. They have been in transit since the 20th and rather than the lovely damp muddy roots some folks have mentioned, these were dampish in some cases and dry in others, no surprise with these temperatures. Since we only get 3 days from day of delivery to file a claim, I have to make a decision what to do.

I think the problem may be related to not too much water, but in fact that the water level is not consistant. I know that mature tomato plants can use up to 5 gallons of water a day. You appear to have very small pots and even though they are getting water ever few days they in fact may be stressed because not getting enough water. I have Earth Boxes on my porch and also plant in garden. I put in an Early Girl first week of February with a Water Wall around it and am watering it every other day and I keep a water tray under the pot with water constantly keeping the soil moist. I use Garrett Juice Plus,Thrive, and Plant Wash (all Organic). Been using for several years and the Plant Wash will do away with you pest problems. I mix all of it up in a gallon of water and water all plants with it and rarely have any problems. Even moisture in soil is key to releaving stress to any plant. (If you want a good organic program go to (TheDirtDoctor.com) Has a link to his programs on weekend that gives great Organic Gardening Advise).

Good Morning Everyone! This is the first day that I have had to sit at my computer. Nobody is home and it is a little on the cold side and overcast, so I am not feeling too guilty about being indoors, although it is a great day for gardening! I have been so busy these last few weeks. DS & DIL were here last weekend for an extra long weekend. It was great and once again, I hated to say goodbye. We will be taking a trip to VA sometime this summer. :-) Yesterday was younger DS Confirmation. We had a little party here afterwards and my Mom stayed over so it was a little busy. I am so happy that CCD is over for him. For those of you that are Catholic, I know that you can relate to this. Patti, I hope that you are on the mend. I think that now that you have the "Official American Idol" clapper, you definitely are the "Official American Idol Queen"! Speaking of Queens, my mom and I watched the movie Queen last night. Did anyone else see it? We both slept through part of it. I think it was well done, but she is such a bore she put me right to sleep! I am going to try and rewatch some of it tonight. Amy, good to see you post. I rented "The Secret" from the library and never got to watch it so I put my name back on the reserve list. What do you think of it? Marci, I hope that you are feeling better. When does school get out? We don't get out until the 21st. It seems like forever! Suzanne, loved the picture. My great niece (my sisters granddaughter) horse just qualified for a show in KY. I think she is going. She is only 10! I have been thinking of you lately because we have these 2 beautiful swans that come back in live in our pond every year. Every year that have a litter, batch, clutch, whatever you call it, of babies. Every year a few get killed, mamed or whatever awful fate takes them, but this year has been the saddest. They started out with 7 babies and now are down to 1. I am so sad for them. I don't know what got them. DH thinks either a snapping turtle, coyote or fox. It breaks my heart. How are you healing? What a terrible ordeal for you. I'm very happy that it was not more serious. Hi Lynn! I have the Pfaltzgraff Folk Art pattern that I am going to start selling on eBay. I still love them, but don't use them since I started collecting Fiestaware. I am sure you are enjoying the rain in FL. Raeanne, thinking of you today being at work. I hope that the weather is bad, LOL. Speaking of bad weather, there were some terrible storms that went through here last night. We were not affected, but my sister had a tornado (A TORNADO, not too common in Massachusetts) touch down 6 houses away from her. I don't think any real serious damage other that trees and decks, but serious enough. Alot of people have horses in her neighborhood, so I have not heard anything about that yet. She is so fortunate that it didn't hit her property as she has several of her own horses, and boards many others. Dee, we are going to plant some veggies this afternoon. DH is out fishing right now, and probably freezing! I think I will make an announcement to all the critters around that we have a grill right on the back deck, and know how to use it!!! I laughed when I read what you posted, but I am not above trying it! John, congratulations on the job. Please tell us more! Donna, I'm thinking of you and hope that you are feeling ok. Enjoy the rest of the day! Love, Besh PS - I bumped into my old WW leader the other day at the grocery store. Her first comment to me was "Where have you been?". I am going to her meeting on Tuesday. Never fails, whenever I stop going to WW, I bump into my leader and she lures me right back. It is nice that she offers that service. LOL