I haven't grown Marie van Houtte (although I do have two Mrs. Dudley Cross and Marie has been called "Mrs. Dudley on steroids". I have two bushes of SdlM and I absolutely adore this rose. At the moment for the first time ever in about three years one of them has a bad case of mildew but even that doesn't discourage me from loving this rose. For me it blooms practically year-round and the blooms are gorgeous and the bush is nice and full, a little more wide than tall. I'd love to see pictures of your pool area after the roses have grown for a while. What a pity that so many landscapers are completely ignorant about the old roses which are fabulous for a romantic and lush garden. And, you'll have roses that probably no one else in your neighborhood has ever seen or even heard of! Ingrid

I bought the same plants from Lowes earlier this spring and planted them in full morning sun til 1, dappled sun rest of day. It's doing great. Flowered beautifully and they are growing wonderfully. I recently saw them on clearance w/the flowers now spent. They didn't look 'nice' in the store anymore bc noone cleaned up the dead blooms but bc I had bought some earlier I knew that it would shape up nice. I now have 4 more ready to go in the ground and I paid $7 each just like you. I know that ppl around here frown on the big box stores but remember to save your receipt bc you can return them within the next yr if something goes wrong. Can't get that guarantee at my local nurseries (although I do support them too). Enjoy your plants bc I know I sure am :)

congratulations. I remember seeing these when I was out shopping but I didn't know whether they were available in textured black so I didn't comment on your question about 10 or 12 days ago. -david

I love kneading the dough and get to that satiney smooth feel to it. Besides...it is wonderful therapy to sling that dough around some...LOL A wonderful website is: http://www.kingarthurflour.com/ There is a bagguette recipe that is to die for!!! And extremely easy to make just takes a little bit of time, but so worth it for a good loaf. I have a recipe for "Soft and Fluffy Sandwich Bread" that is wonderful. It also makes the best rolls I have ever tasted. Soft and Fluffy Sandwich Bread 3 cups unbleached all-prupose flour 2 tsp instant yeast 1 1/4 tsp salt 3 tblsps sugar 4 tblsps unsalted butter 1 1/8 cups lukewarm milk(1 cp + 2 tblsps) 1/4 cp potato flour(or 1/3 cup potato flakes) Combine all ingredients (reserve about 1/2 cup flour) and mix thoroughly in large mixing bowl. Add reserved flour a tblsp at a time to mixture until a soft, smooth dough is formed. You may not need the whole amount or you may need more. Anyway, add just enough flour until dough comes away from bowl and it doesn't stick to your fingers. Remember, the more flour you add while kneading, the heavier and drier your loaf will be. Turn dough out on lightly greased surface and knead for a while, about 10 mins. cover and let rise for about 1 hour, until puffy (dough might not double in bulk) Transfer dough to a lightly greased surface and shape it into a 8" log. Transfer log to a lightly greased loaf pan (8 1/2 X 4 1/2) cover the pan with greased cling wrap loosely. Let dough rise for about 1 hour, until outer edge has risen about 1" over the rim of pan. Preheat oven to 350 Uncover pan and bake for 35-40 mins, tenting lightly with foil for the final 10-15 mins if the top is browning too quickly. Remove bread from oven, take it out of the pan, and cool on wire rack. After 15 mins, brush with butter, if desired; to give loaf an exceptionally soft crust. This recipe makes really good rolls too. Deb