I had a lot of hybrid teas growing on my window since last summer waiting to go in the backyard. These plants were kind of important to me since I raised them from cuttings from florist's roses and I wanted to give them the best start possible. I was planting them in a place where there had only been grass growing, and although my soil was in good shape, it still needed alot of work. I started adding bags of manure in the early winter along with dozens of banana peels and coffee grounds. I decided to do this in early winter because I know that the manure needs time to decompose into the soil. I added several weeks worth of coffee grounds gradually and they seemed to serve the purpose of attracting a huge ammount of garden worms to the area which I hear are very beneficial. The bananas I added once a week and just kind of shoveled them around the dirt and they gradually disappeared over time. When it came time to plant the roses, I added about 3 banana peels to the bottom of each hole that I dug along with some bone meal. So far, they seem to be thriving and I think everything that I added helped to loosen up the soil and make it much more hospitable:) Maude

Hi NickRose: My 50+ roses here in Chicagoland also love banana peels: I chopped up with a scissors and soak the peels overnight in used kitchen water .... that way they decompose faster. Sometimes I put a tiny bit of molasses in the bucket for its chelating action in drawing out NPK of banana peels 0-3-42. My roses in zone 5a are very small due to own-roots and winterkill yearly, so I use 1/2 cup per month ... no problems whatsoever. Since you are in CA, warmer climate, IF it is a big root & big rose, then 1 cup per month is OK. NPK of coffee grounds is 2.1 - 0.3 - 0.3. Nitrogen of 2.1 is about the same as alfafa meal. I put 1 cup of espresso grounds on my tiny rhododendron (1.5 x 1) and the leaves got pinkish stripe .. that was too much, and espresso grounds is higher in caffeine than regular coffee. Roses, esp. own-roots prefer regular smaller doses, so if it's 1 cup in one shot, that might be too much. But if it's 1 cup broken down in 2 applications per month, then it's safer.

Wow!! I just love the colors of the vases!! And that little blue cup is wonderful. I really like all the pinks you used and how the tones of the colors flow. Lovely and vibrant!! Carol

I don't know how you are creating this paintings, but they are striking! I prefer the cups and roses for the sheer artistry, this one, is so bright and cheerful- I'm sure it could lift one up on a gray and gloomy winter day. Let us know when you start selling them! Brandy