Hello there :o) Sorry it took me so long to get back. You are correct, YOUR new rose will be a different rose. For me, that is the fun part, not knowing what you will be getting... climber, single bloom, color... plus you can name your rose. I have had a blast giving my little ones a name of their very own :o) Okay, as for the hips:"they" say you should gather them when they have turned an orange or red in color. Some take them if they are still green and have had germination(s) from green hips. The same day I gathered the hips ( red, orange and even some green: I believe you can gather the hips until the 1st freeze, as late as the end of October, for my zone that is), I removed the seeds. I made a batch of peroxide and water in a large measuring cup: 9 parts water/one part peroxide. I then cut the hip open with a sharp knife, removed the seeds and placed them in the water/peroxide solution. This process took me a little over 2 hours, thus the first seeds were in the water/peroxide for approx. 2+ hours and the last seeds only soaked for about 15 minutes or so,(it is said you should soak them for 12-24 hours, I didn't know this until after the fact.) Next I got out plain white paper towels. I used 3 of them layering one on top of the other. I then used them as a strainer, pouring the water/peroxide and seeds onto the towels. I then folded the towels over the seeds and gave it a good squeeze to remove the excess water/peroxide. You want the towels/seeds to be damp but not soaking wet. You don't want to let the seeds dry out. I then placed the seeds in the towels in a plastic container with a air tight lid. From there I placed the container in the bottom drawer of the fridge. I made up a spray bottle of the water/peroxide solution to use when the towels got a little dry, do not allow the seeds to dry out. Check on them from time to time. In about 3 months you should start to see germination. Not all seeds will germinate. I still have seeds that have not germinated but I have kept them. A germinated seed will get a little white tail. Once you have a tail place him/her in a seedling potting soil with the little white tail pointing down... it is the root not the top of the plant. I found this out the hard way :o) Regular potting soil killed a bunch of my babies, I think it is too heavy for them. You don't want to place too much soil over the top of the seed. I used a pencil to make the hole for the seed, not making the hole too deep. I set my heating pads on med. at night and low in the day, if the day temps got down too cold I left the pads on med. I purchased large plastic planting flats (kinda looked like a plastic cake pan) to set the pots on and then sat the flat on the heating pad. Light: They had approx. 16 hrs of light. I would turn the lights off at night before going to bed and back on in the morning. I purchased all of my lighting from Walmart. I couldn't find bulbs for plants but did find aquatic bulbs. They are pretty much the same thing and worked just fine. Watering: After trial and error, I found misting them with the water/peroxide solution 1-2 times a day worked the best. You want the soil moist but not too wet, the peroxide helps prevent the seedling from dampening off. After they got a little bigger I use a tab. spoon full of water/peroxide 1-2 times a day. Transplanting: After they got around 3-4 inches tall I transplanted them into a bigger pot. With pots hard to find, I found the large plastic pic-nic like cups worked well too: The blue cup in the back: Also cottage cheese/sour cream, containers work well too. I used a cork screw to make drainage holes in the bottom of the cups/containers. They then went back to their spot on the heating pads and under the lights. From there May finally came and out to the garden they went. For your rooted cuttings you might want to post your question if you have not done so already. Let me know if you have any questions. I will try to find an answer :o) Good luck, The Lioness, Cheri

Wow! I'm glad I google this in. I went to take my dog out on Sunday afternoon, and noticed my sliding glass door was shattered! I could not believe that! The outside was shattered and the inside was not and the outside never went down. It looked like a beebee shot. I called the police to get a police report. He saw a spider web and ask me You know that is a dangerous spider don't you? I said that tiny spider he said yeah. I mention the spider cause I saw someone comments about a spider as well. I dont't know what could have happened but, I 'm glad I'm not the only one that it has happened to. I still can't believe it.

Sultry, I wonder if your crazy squash is a natural hybrid that is especially vigorous--do you have a photo? It sounds quite hilarious. I only get the random sunflower, courtesy of the birds and their black oil sunflower seeds I provide. You are so lucky to get those butterfly friendly plants to reseed for you. Wanton, I would love to see photos of these wonderful plants you mention. We just don't have the rain to support such neat displays. Our main displays on the draw below are huge swaths of blue flax which appears again and again if we get the slightest bit of precipitation. I grow a few of these in my flower beds. Katob, how wonderful you get some free hydrangeas. No way would that nice gift appear in my desert flower beds. I am jealous. Campanula, I would love to see photos of the tiny seedlings you describe, and I am utterly unfamiliar with--I know you don't post photos much, though. Below is one of my reseeded Red Rocks penstemon--really looks like a red rock, doesn't it. Also some randomly reseeded snapdragons amidst planted ones, and others that have come back from last year, which is a regular occurrence. And finally another photo of my striped semi double rudbeckia (it makes great bouquets) that has hybrized from my plain ones, along with a second type of striped rudbeckia, a single that isn't so dramatic. Diane

Heather - I favor those reds with blue in them. That's why Blazing Fran and the bicolor are my least favorites. Blazing Fran with its color and that tall scape height would scream out to you across the garden. I imagine it will be quite impressive at clump strength. I do want to be a professional hybridizer, so bud count and branching are very important to me. I probably will keep all these reds around for a few years except the bicolor because of the quick multiplying. In additon to adequate space with full sun I have health issues and must downsize. I simply can't take care of as many gardens as I now have. My focus is on my intros and seedlings that might become intros. Unless registered ones are superb performers or important in my hybridizing efforts, they are moving on. By the way, the first seedling is the closest to a true primary red - just another reason its always been my top favorite. Hybridizers like Emmerich and Salters compost hundreds of seedlings every year that don't have the stats they're looking for. Many have prettier blooms than the ones they introduce but they have less than 10 buds. When you think about it, a plant that typically has nine buds won't even give your two weeks of bloom. That's a waste of space in my crowded gardens. Debra