Yesterday I went out at 10:00 and came in at 6:00. I don't know when the weather has been so nice. I have lady bugs and bees all over my garden. I did not see all three stages of lady bugs, just the red ones, and I did not really examine the roses well since I have cut back to far. Since you are probably a couple of weeks ahead of us, and you do not have enough good bugs, I agree with others, buy the larvae and clean off the aphids. Do you have landscapers who automatically use spray in the lawn? It could be in a product that they use to fertilize, and you would never know it. Have you seen the Earth kind gardens? Is Dr. Stephen George still the horticulturist, and isn't the entire project in Dallas? I forget which Texas University it is, but I met Dr. Stephen George once when he came to Tulsa to speak to our Rose Society. He is a very good resource if you care to study roses. I was very fortunate to have met with him in a rather small group, and I was able to ask him whatever I wanted. His goal at that time (maybe 10 years ago) was to travel the country, and encourage rose growers to develop their own Earth Kind roses in their own states, and encourage them to spread the news about how important it is to maintain a good environment. I am curious as to whether he is affiliated with your university. Now I am curious, and will let you know if I get any answers. Good luck Sammy

Thanks Mike! I will go re-plant right now! If it seems to be staying too wet, then what would I need more of in the mix? Perilite? Or something else? I have mixed for days, so I think it is mixed ok. I did notice that the perilite was falling to the bottom before adding the bailed peat, but once I added that, it seems to be holding up much better. I may add some extra drain holes in the pot though just as an extra precaution. You know, I was so worried about them being over watered and wet, that I was not watering them everyday. Now I think they got dried out in the heat! UGG! So I am on this. bigmario, I am new to the soil mixes obviously, but the 2 best mixes seem to be the cocohusk recipe and the 5:1:1, which have both been shared on this thread. The pictures I have up are the 5:1:1 mix I made, but I did mess it up at first with the wrong peat. But the wrong peat for the 5:1:1 is actually the right peat for the cocohusks. I will be also making the cocohusk recipe, I just have not found one of the ingredients for it yet. But when I make it, I will post it here. OK! Off to transplant! Be back with pictures of the re-plant! Christy

Can anyone help?? I've found dozens of recipes for ground or husk cherry preserves, but none say specifically if it must be pressure canned (with instrucions) or just BWB. I know they are the same class of plants as tomatoes, and my canning book says it is now recommended that tomatoes be pressure canned. Does anyone know for sure from experience??? I started nearly 30 seeds indoors, and most of them have sprouted, so i will need the information in a few months. Thanks for any help.

Hi Christopher- Yes, I am still very new to this rose-growing thing, so I know it takes time for the pest/ beneficial balance to get established. Things should be warming up soon, and I'm hoping (really hoping!) we won't see any more freezing temps. The good bugs should be hatching out soon, and I bet they'll be hungry. I was very excited to see Ladybug larvae last fall, and there were some hoverflies hovering near the roses within the last couple of weeks. No signs of hoverfly larvae yet, but I did look online so that I'll (kinda) know what to look for. I had some Nasturtiums last year that I grew from seed- the aphids didn't find them last year, but maybe they will this year. Queen Anne's Lace is pretty invasive here, but I do plant Dill and Parsley and let them bolt. This year I have bronze fennel also, so the umbellifer angle should be covered... eventually. You mention Achillea, and that's the only plant I've been thinking to buy ready-grown this spring. I just don't have the kind of budget that allows for buying lots of flowering plants in the spring, and I tend to worry about what's been sprayed on the big-box flowers. So, I'll call around to some local nurseries to see what kinds of Yarrow they have, and make sure they haven't been sprayed with neo-nics. The local Native Plant Society offers the species (if I get to the sale in time), but there are so many pretty cultivars, that I may go that route. Here's a photo of R. moschata I took today. She unfurled those charming leaves not long after her arrival, but otherwise looks just the same- I guess that's semi-dormancy? The aphids haven't found her, and hopefully won't. She'll get a larger pot soon, but it's raining again now. I'll let you know when she gets growing- it shouldn't be long now... even my 'Mortimer Sackler' that arrived in the fall already dormant is showing tiny bits of green... Thanks, Virginia