'Emanuel' is one of the very best Austin's for hot, dry gardens. 'Radio Times' is another good one, as 'The Reeve', 'William Shakespeare', 'Swan' (a magnificent Rose) and -whereas short lived in summer-,'The Alnwick Rose', 'Glamis Castle', 'St Swithun'... Many Teas and Chinas crisp relentlessly here in summer, only a few are still good: 'Mme Falcot' (ex India), 'Mrs Dudley Cross', 'Le V�suve'. 'Odorata'/'Spice' shrink under hot sun, but it's continuousely in bloom. However, some Roses seems to wait for summer to show up their beauty. I can't succeed to see a single open bloom in Spring from 'Tipsy Imperial Concubine' (I use to call her Tipsy Imperial Artichoke'!), 'Clothilde Soupert', 'Leveson Gower' and that big Bracteata Hybrid, 'Alba Odorata'/"Maria Leonida". But they are a magnificent sight in July and August. So I still grow them and enjoy them when other Roses have their bad time. I'd like to add that heat resistance in Roses -as in all other plants- is not only a matter of temperatures and humidity. The kind of soil they grow in is a very important element to consider, as it's able to influence a great number of different aspects in plant's physiology. I saw recently in a garden in Catania, Sicily, a huge 'Felicia' growing in an abandoned corner: she was in full sun, bare earth, no watering, near a orange grove. And it was early June, with average 30 �C. The plant, full of perfect green leaves, showed a huge mass of big, full clusters of fragrant blooms, as large as I only saw in England. The same rose suffered by midday in my garden in May with no more than 26 �C, watered almost dayly, and my blooms where less than a half the size in Catania. So... WHAT it was the "x factor"? The soil! And, overall, a whole different micro-climate. In Catania, they are blessed from Mount Etna influence and that means: to equal day temperatures, lower night temperatures; a rich, deep, ultra-fertile volcanic soil; a typical, very thin "mist" who lightly veil the sky in the afternoon, protecting the plants from being scorched by sun. That 'Felicia' was surely sinking their roots deep into that fertile soil, finding the right amount of water, their leaves protected by air humidity and night freshness, enjoying their settled climate conditions, whereas mine was fighting with a thin, granitic soil, under a sharp sun, and -maybe more important- with jumping climate conditions: humid nights followed by dry, windy days... what -I've experienced- the roses seems to hate the most. Hope, as usual, this should help. Maurizio

I consider it a rite of spring to plant a few seeds in my large outdoor pots on the first sunny day that I can poke my finger down close to an inch in the soil in the pots. My theory is that seeds are cheap, and planting something on that first nice day is worth the risk of failure. I've done this successfully with lettuce, radishes, kale, mesclun mix, and peas (sweet peas too). Depending on the winter, that date can be March 15 or later, although one warm winter I planted a few things on February 15 (I'm in Minneapolis). When it works, I get an early start (peas and radishes) and/or healthy transplants for other spots. These plants (and Swiss chard to some degree) can tolerate cold, even freezing temps IME, when they're small. If my attempt fails, I'm out a few seeds, but I have a chance to repeat the rite on the next nice day. If seed supply and cost aren't an issue for you, try a few planting a few seeds early. Great fun!

If I have another stress test, I will have to leave strict instruction NOT to leave a message at home (they should have called my cell phone, they HAD the number). I had a stress test. The nurses told me it would be about a week before I heard, unless there was a problem. That night, after work, after 5pm when the doc's offices close, there was a message on my phone that I was to see the Dr. the next morning at 8:30. Well, needless to say, I didn't sleep very well. Scared to death! Got in there, my BP was outrageous, of course... Turns out the DOC was going on VACATION and just wanted to close out his cases... My heart was fine. Talk about GIVING someone a heart attack! I told the front desk NEVER to leave someone a message like that after they've had a stress test or at least TELL the patient the doc is going on vacation and wants to close out his cases! Jeepers! An experience I will never EVER forget!

Sultry, I'm so thankful you're okay, and that you checked in. I figured you probably had issues with power and/or the Internetz, but I was a bit worried that your situation might be worse than that. I'm also glad that you're staying away from chainsaws. They creep me out also, and I've never even seen that movie. I can't send you a Golden Celebration, but if you do have issues with other, unpatented roses, please let us know. Someone may have a spare that they haven't decided what to do with. My rooting success is hit-and-miss, but I am willing to try to root anything I have that you might need. I've been playing pick up sticks today, so I found this blog post about oaks automatically dropping twigs rather interesting. Take care, and please let us know if any of your other roses got a bit too much brackish water. Virginia