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When I lived in Winter Haven, It was a 20 minute ride over to Florida Southern. I was just starting to get really interested in growing good roses. I remember when things started to get fired up at the school. Dr. Manners had about 32 Double Delight's planted in 25 gal. pots in a long row just outside the Gym doors. Each bush was injected with different types of virus's and different amounts. It was a great start to a life long project. The school colors are red and white, so the Double Delight's were a big hit. Back in the 80's the school had a great basketball program and packed the gym every home game. They were a big hit with everyone. I learned a LOT about soil and what it actually does from Dr. Manners. It didn't take long before the "big boys" learned about what was happening at the school and his work became well known. I feel very humbled to have watched this program come out of the ground.

Thanks for posting this! The article about Dupont is very interesting.

I'm still experimenting with potting medium! Where I am in Canada, we can't easily find pine bark fines. We do have pine bark, but the pieces are too big, and it is rather expensive. So when I find a bag of pine bark, I have to remove the larger pieces first. Having said that, 511 is a good potting mix, and I have used it. At present, I am experimenting with something like---50% pine bark, 40% potting soil and 10%-15% perlite. I am also trying an overwintering experiment this year. I am going to put some of my pots in a homemade greenhouse that is attached to the brick of our house. I haven't used this space for winter storage of plants because it is south facing. So during the winter it would be fine. But come early spring it would heat up too much. So my plan is to put in some hosta pots insulated with cedar bark mulch. I have found something equivalent to a white tarp which I will use to protect the greenhouse from direct sun exposure.