Hi Bart! There IS a lot of mis information around and as much partial information. Research has shown 15 different "populations" of black spot world wide...so far. Each one is different enough that a rose resistant to one, may or may not be resistant to any of the others. Very few roses have multiple resistances. Knock Out has been demonstrated to be resistant to more of the US populations or types, strains, families, whatever you want to call them, than any other rose because it is the first rose to have been deliberately exposed to all five of them then selected for that resistance. I am not aware of any other roses to have been bred anywhere in the world using this deliberate exposure to the different strains of black spot. Not because no one cares, but because there has yet to be the possibility to expose them to the varying types without physically collecting infected foliage then deliberately exposing seedlings to them. That's what Bill Radler, Knock Out's creator, did. There are efforts under way to create the ability to submit seedlings for testing along these lines, but funding is scarce. So, if you have money you want to donate toward that goal, please let it be known. I can direct you to the right people! Even with this deliberate exposure, even Knock Outs aren't perfect, but they have been demonstrated to be the most resistant to the most number of American black spot types of any rose on the market. Notice the word "resistant", not "immune". They will spot under adverse conditions, but they spot less, retaining more of their foliage and flower more in more American climates than any other roses. Of course, your mileage may vary in individual situations, but they are the closest to the "universal" rose for the US of anything bred to date. The entire bottom line of this thread is, the right rose in the right place can be as trouble free as possible. All of us have our 'war stories' about trying to push zones, grow unsuitable types in the wrong climates, the wrong types in unsuitable culture styles, etc. IMHO, it goes to show that just because something might be able to be done, it doesn't mean it SHOULD be done. I CAN grow Gallicas here, but they won't flower well (if at all) and they will never be as disease resistant here as they will be in a shorter growing season with a harsher, longer winter. I CAN grow hybrid Rugosas such as Conrad F. Meyer, Rose a Parfum de l'Hay, etc., but they WILL be diseased, they will NEVER approach what they can be in the right environments and they will eventually shrink back to nothing. In both cases, the only hopes I have of pushing them to approach what they should be is to use high levels of fungicides. Again, the right rose (or type) in the right climate, using the right culture style. Kim

I used to subscribe to Crafts and bought allot of the Crafts and Things magazines. I was mostly interested in decorative painting, so when the magazine went to mostly beading and paper crafts, I didn't continue buying it. Now I sometimes check out Crafts and Things at the library or buy old ones for 25 cents in the little Friends of the library bookstore. I sometimes pick up an issue of Pack of Fun if they have a few designs I'm interested in, but it's mostly kids crafts. I currently have subscriptions to Painting and Quick and Easy Painting--and with prices getting higher I probably won't be ordering any others. Luvs

In the reader comments of the 50th anniversary online articles, I'm struck by how many claim "so and so confessed on his death bed..." I'm getting weary (& wary) of these so-called death bed confessions. They're a dime a dozen for just about any conspiracy theory. Wish we could just mourn for the loss of more optimistic times without sullying the whole thing with [insert your favorite conspiracist here].

I posted a list a while back of interesting websites I found.I added a couple more. http://www.preservationdirectory.com/ Preservation directory. com http://www.nationaltrust.org/ National trust for historic preservation http://www.cr.nps.gov/hps/tps/index.htm Info from the National Park service http://www.cr.nps.gov/hps/tps/roofdown/welcome.htm From the National Park Service, caring for your home http://www.meux.mus.ca.us/ 1888 Meux home tour http://www.cttrust.org/ Connecticut Trust for Historic Preservation, with help for anyone http://www.generalwilliamfloydhouse.org/ Gen Wm. Floyd house, with info about their restoration work. http://www.buildingconservation.com/articles.htm British site but can be very helpful to anyone with an old house. ExÂchimney problems http://www.bricksandbrass.co.uk/design/design.htm Another British site with lots of info about old houses and caring for them http://windsweptsoftware.com/myhouse/resource.html A list of sites http://www.cr.nps.gov/habshaer/habs/habsreco.htm From National Park Service Some of the above sites have a lot of nooks and crannies to peer into, so save them for evenings when you just want to sit and rest. I saw an interesting link in the Connecticut site to a pamphlet on common restoration blunders, things that can steer experts onto the wrong path when trying to restore a historic dwelling. I've got some pictures of old houses from my photos and 19th century paintings that can show you how people used their rooms when your old house was new. You're welcome to browse through them at Webshots. Here is a link that might be useful: my albums