Well, the rose I bought looks like Ducher to me. Frankly, I was convinced it was. The blooms are all white and the foliage looks very china to me. The reason I asked about it being Smith's Parish Yellow is that the store called me, knowing I'd thought I'd purchased Ducher, and told me the grower says she believes it to be Smith's Parish Yellow. It was not labeled and I am thinking it was back there in the store since the last season when they did have Ducher. When the labels disappear, the roses sit there forever. My only doubt was that here in hot Florida, the bloom could have bleached out a tade. It looks perfectly all white though. Those other possibilities listed, this grower hasn't put in this store before. I go there often. I am going to have to get a direct line with this grower and find out more. Thanks guys!

The blooms ARE on the small side, in a very China-like fashion. We used to prune our "Smith's Parish" years ago, but finally stopped fighting it. It's easily 12 ft. tall, but it's hard to measure because part of it lays over on the hillside, and has grown up to meet "Ragged Robin" on the next terrace up. WE get a lot of color. This is the full range: Remember that the different colors will appear on different parts of the plant, so when your plant is young and small, it doesn't have as much scope for that. But also, Bob Edberg tells me that the colors are most distinct and vibrant in cooler climates. Jeri

Carrie, it sounds to me like you've got the right idea! Enjoy your life, have fun with it, laugh along the way. I think it's great that your husband shares his input. I guarantee you, your many friends will remember the good times they had in your warm and inviting kitchen! Of course, it's probably not the best idea listening to my decorating advice - for our new house we bought "faux emu" leather stools (and love them!) One more thing - when we were growing up, my dad built us a full court basketball court in the backyard and we were the most popular kids in the neighborhood. Perhaps not the most beautiful yard, but the most fun. Many years after we were all grown and gone, my parents still had the young neighbor's kids knocking on the door, wanting to play basketball. We lost my dad a little over a year ago, but one of my prized photos is of him and me, playing "one on one" in the backyard (I was a newlywed at the time - my husband was laughing at us as he took the picture.)

Indeed, it could be the extra N I have been dosing my trees with. My main goal with the trees is to get them to a large size so as to fill in the landscape - after ripping out 30 redwoods (19 were over 100 ft. tall). I have begun to back off on the N as they are getting close to target. Here is an update on the very last few Smith Reds and Sanguinelli. Two Smith on the left, and two Sanguinelli on the right. Sanguinelli cut and ready to juice; SmithR juice ready to mix: Smith Red juice - "diluted" And then the Sanguinelli were juiced as a comparison:: The Sanguinelli were darker, less juicy, but flavor preferred by the CEO of the house. (I preferred the Smiths!) Happy growing - George