It was very interesting to learn of the pruning suggestions for RdR! I had completely forgotten that this spring I had given it a very hard pruning. This spring, the bush was about 3' tall with a lot of short canes coming up vertically through the middle of the plant. Further, it was extremely twiggy with a lot of little branches very tightly intertwined. I knew it was time for a major pruning and did just that, reducing the vertical canes to 3 or 4 and getting rid of the twiggy growth completely. Right now the bush looks great, including the foliage which is remarkably clean and the shape which is rounded and full at about 3'. I still think that the rain has contributed to the constant bloom this summer.

Where we live, the only remaining wildlife is coyotes, with the occasional raccoon or possum. (We won't discuss gophers!) A few years ago, tho, we were working on a garden restoration at a local historic home. We would go other there and work. We'd come back the next day and find whole mature plants chewed to ground level. Gone. Turned out that as the surrounding (and last remaining) acres of empty land were being bulldozed and built-out, hordes of refugee rabbits and squirrels were flooding into the grounds. There was little food for them, and the roses must have looked inviting. I had no idea, until then, just how fast a few rabbits, operating at night, could completely destroy plants. Jeri

oofasis, I totally understand where you are coming from...so much so that I had to re-read your post to remember what you said...oh yeah, you said you can't remember...I turn 58 on May 22. So.. I hear ya. Sleep has always been a problem but these last couple of years, it has been a major issue. I am sure that menopause and worrying plays a huge part in this. The loss of hormones is key. Knowing and ruminating on how you will feel the next day does not help. No one and nothing I have read has caused me to believe otherwise. It's always "fun" to be one of the older folks at work anyway, and the effects of insomnia night after night only reinforce and highlight that. Not a good thing for those of us who need and like our work. I know younger people have insomnia, as did I, but I believe it is tolerated better when one is young. I was always able to make it up. Now I am not. I sleep 3-5 interrupted hrs each night now for the last couple of years. If I get the 5, I can function. If I get less, well, you guys know how that feels. Irritable, loss of desire or ability to go beyond the simplest activities, (guess I really don't care what movies are playing after all...a new picture of my great/grand nephew...maybe tomorrow I'll have a look). This is not me. I eat right, I exercise (40 years now) regularly, I weigh 110, take vits and calcium, etc)..I am so very sick of living like this. Drs today don't give a hoot. All they think about is "Herd em in, herd em out." So forget it. They shove prescriptions across the table for Ambien, Lunesta, etc. I try none. Too afraid of having an anxiety episode. I have a restless mind, am a realist and therefore, unfortunately, not a real positive thinker. I am sure none of that helps my sleeplessness. I have taken Klonopin (a benzo) for about 15 yrs at night for help. It takes the edge off but doesn't do a thing to help me sleep thru the night. Certainly I am addicted to. it. My husband and I have both had job losses thru the years due to offshoring and it has taken the starch out of us. We have a 17 year old daughter (our only) and I have done a piss poor job with her due to my personality and mood issues due to menopause and sleeplessness. Can you imagine menopause vs puberty and PMS? It has been rocky. I try but am so tired all the time, I can't give her my best..she has seen ugly sides of me. I am always concerned about health care, money, etc. I used to have so much energy and a better attitude. Now I just feel like a zombie. Sure I feel depressed. I don't get any sleep. OK, I am rambling. My daughter is here and wants me to come upstairs...It is Mother's Day. It would be nice to have some emotion about it. Thanks to all of you for the suggestions. I have printed a lot of them and won't give up trying. HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY!!

marcia, I am so sorry to hear this! I didn't have a lot of luck with the Morden roses (Morden Blush and Morden Sunrise) before, but the John Davis that I planted last year had NO die back whatsoever and is growing very well already! The Hope for Humanity rose had some die back but is doing fairly well. However, the Morden Belle is something that I am thinking of getting rid of.... over the last 3 years, it had significant die back every year, and also the new branches tend to flop a lot. The roses were not spectacular either. So, in the end, it just survived but not thrived. Since these are all in my yard, I think that it's more to do with the species than me... LOL! Wayne, I am curious to hear about your Double Knockout, as I had a hedge of it in my zone 5 garden before, and it grew as tall as 5 feet and it was an unstoppable blooming machine! Do they really survive in zone 3 then? Marcia, I think that your theory that it was the cold weather after the warm temperature had a lot to do with it. Isn't it such a pain to garden in our FAR NORTH location!? Sigh.....