You've been given good advice. It's a rampantly invasive spreader that will take over vast areas rapidly. It's extremely hard to control, and will be even moreso in hard clay, as the roots are very thin and delicate and break easily. It also spreads by seed that are ejected forcibly through the air, so they land some distance from the mother plant and start new colonies. Also, the sap is caustic and any weeding efforts need to be done wearing gloves - and be cautious not to touch your skin while you're at it, to avoid blistering or even eye damage.

Ho, well, I am replying in a good mood (I have intense mood swings with this project). Couple of weeks ago, during the rat invasion, I was quite a bit less sanguine and to say I am on a steep learning curve is the understatement of the century. But yes, as it happens, all well on the seed front.....although inevitably, I have (again) been forced to admit that all the rest of my family were right and I was wrong. The preppers and clearers (all of them) have been smirking - particularly when a felled tree landed in the centre of a massive newly planted bulb colony........ Nevertheless, there are many foxgloves, hesperis, campanulas, myosotis, welsh poppies.....and other common, but tough and prolific plants, in various parts of the woods....and 25 Crown Imperials. The soil is amazing - it really is. True, it is a bit stony and tree-rooty, but it has also been fallow for over 50 years with a lush cover of weeds and leaves. The narcissi were the stoutest plants I have ever seen.....and the foxgloves are going to be head-high Hugely limited by having crap machinery (used to gardening in tiny spaces, we spent all our money on beautiful German knives, Japanese secateurs, Swedish axes - yah know, gorgeous stuff but hopeless for the task ahead).......but hey, adaptability is surely a gardening byword.....I have spent my entire gardening life in a fever of insane ambition which inevitably means crashing and burning on a regular basis. Yeah, we are enjoying ourselves....and I have tree seed germination too. The teapot is sadly depleted.

I've been interested in mycorrhizal associates of plants for decades now. Very generally speaking, most studies I've reviewed where an attempt to "inoculate" soils or media with specific strains of known mycorrhizal species have been disappointing. Notable exceptions were in cases of extremely depleted soils, mine tailings, and other essentially "sterile" media. Now this is not at all intended to cast doubt on the importance of mycorrhyzae. Just the opposite, they are indeed being proven to be everywhere, in every type of plant community, and in virtually every geographic region. What I am saying, is that so far, man-made attempts to duplicate what nature does every day in this regard have been decidedly unspectacular. It seems that two effects are in play: One, if the soil and associated plants have been in association with one another for a good length of time, very likely such mycorrhizal associates are already present. Adding more, in the form of supposedly viable propagules will not effect the balance. The other aspect is, nobody really knows exactly what species is associated with a given landscape plant. True, there is such knowledge in silvicultural studies, usually associated with coniferous species, but to simply extrapolate what is know there to your average garden situation is extremely unlikely to work. Additionally, we do not know what is happening when a soil already colonized by such organisms is having another strain, or an altogether different fungal species, introduced to it. Are we accidentally ruining a good thing? Are we just wasting money and effort? I find such matters of immense interest, and I don't think the book is closed, just that perhaps it needs to be set aside for a while and taken up again later when understanding has increased. This is complicated stuff, especially in a world where very large acreages of land are given over to just two plant species-corn and soybeans-where the parameters of nutrient requirements have been pinned down tightly. In other words, mankind's largest horticultural enterprises are vastly more simple than what is likely happening in that little wood lot that didn't get knocked down for more development near your home. We're rank beginners at this...may as well face it. +oM

Patty - they are not grown at the same farm. Most of the on-line own root nurseries root their own roses then direct stick in bands. They do get some stock from Greenheart at times, but many do their own propagation from stock plants they have on site. We restocked Greenheart with all new cuttings this spring from our stock of Kordes. The reason to do this is to make sure the genetics are still fresh and to make sure we have clean stock every 2 years or so. We and Greenheart spend a lot of time and $ on the project. rifis yes I mean roses. We grow about 5 acres of stock and research roses. We do harvest plants to send to growers that need the genetics, to introduce new varieties and to send for testing and/or to botanical gardens. This is when we are looking for the galls. We also have had materials tested at Oregon State for crown gall in stems too. Patty I do not know how you received so many plants. I am still not clear on where you bought the plants with gall. Sounds like it was pretty variety specific. Please understand that crown gall exists in a very wide range of soils in N. America. The contamination could of happened anywhere in the chain of production. It can also exist in garden soils. It has always been a problem in roses. That said producers need to use the very best clean plant techniques to minimize the problem but I do not believe it can always be 100% prevented.