Lime, Why of course your input is not too late! I have not ordered anything yet! I really want to give everyone time to chime in on this and tell me of their experiences. Paying that much for roses, I am not going to be in a big hurry to order from anybody! You stated: "the Heirloom Roses are very expensive for the size." Several others have made the same comment. Approximately, how small are we talking about here? Twelve inches. . .or less? Puts me in mind of the "special" trees I ordered from the Arbor Foundation....TREES? The biggest were only 12 inches tall! Only two of the 15 trees survived the first winter and we have had two relatively mild winters since then for Oklahoma. The 2 Roses of Sharon "gifts" are doing fine - they have finally grown to around 12 inches tall. For the same amount, I got three times as many trees on eBay and of the varieties I chose, not what they chose to send me. Lessons learned. So no, I am in no hurry to order my roses. There is still plenty of time for planting roses in my cottage garden this season. Of course, some of the same roses I can buy locally from a little private nursery I discovered not far from here. I can buy them for the same price, but a much bigger plant in a huge pot, ready to bloom this year. (I have my eye on a Smoke Tree, a River Birch clump and a beautiful 'Bloodgood' Red Japanese Maple that she has to sell. Already small trees and very healthy. She set them aside for me. Just gorgeous!) :) But of course, she only has a few of the rose varieties I seek. The rest I will need to order. Thanks to all for their great comments and suggestions. This benefits everyone interested in buying roses. ~Annie

"Diana, do let me know how Evelyn performs for you. Given that our climates are not that different I may wish to try it (I can't believe I just wrote this...)." Will do, Eduarda. And did I tell you I have Crepuscule waiting for a home, as well? ; ) "I bought an Lady Elsie May shrub rose last year and just love it. Your gardens are perfection." Annie Thanks, Annie! I hope L.E.M. does well for you. I have seven (yikes!) and they bloom non-stop from April until Dec., sometimes into Jan. if we don't get real cold too early. L.E.M. doesn't need deadheading but will bloom better with a snip or two now and then. Thanks, Nell! I'm glad you enjoyed the site. : ) Andrea, when you ask "how I have them planted" do you mean which roses hang out together? If so, I don't separate my roses according to type other than making sure the climbers have something sturdy to climb on. I have mostly floribundas along the front picket fence, with a few D.A.s mixed in. I leave quite a bit of room between them because roses get BIG out here and good air circulation is a must for growing healthy roses. I do pay attention to color and generally plant complimentary colored roses side by side, such as "Easy Going" (a golden color) next to "Outta the Blue", a deep pink that turns to dark purple). Most of the colors are the same intensities so nothing looks washed out, which can happen at my mile high elevation with strong sunlight. HTH! : ) Di

I have a rose that I'm fairly certain is Russell's Cottage Rose. I grew it from a cutting from my grandparent's garden. I recently moved and have to transplant the rose, so it shouldn't be any trouble to get a new start from it at the same time. If you are willing to take a chance that I properly identified it, I would be happy to send it to you. GK

Sorry, but beneficial snakes that are 4-5 feet long still freak me out. I'd want it out of the yard, too. Or another way of thinking of it is that I hope my property is not so "wild" or "natural" that it has such animals (ie rodents) roaming around that would be good for those large beneficial snakes to be snacking on. As always, it depends on which annuals and perennials. Perennail bulbs may have been at the store for a while already but they are still good at growing a little bit once in the ground, and many of those will still give their show of flowers for this growing season. You can also buy the perennials at the store. They would have been shipped to the store in such a time as to be blooming or about to bloom. Enjoy the flowers then plant them in the ground. Or plant them as soon as you get them home and give them some TLC after the transplant so no flowers are lost. Perennial flowers like dahlias would be OK, though, as they continue to make more flowers until frost, so even if you lost a few during transplant, it would be fine. Columbine may need some stratification. Rosemary could be easier to pick up a 6" or more plant. In a few weeks, take some cuttings and root those either with your preferred method to plant in a few weeks, or plant them directly to the ground and give them some TLC to keep it going. The marigolds would grow well in the heat if they were planted earlier. I'm not sure how the seedlings will handle these temps. I usually don't see any more seedlings naturally coming up throughout the growing season. However, everything can still germinate and grow depending on your conditions (other than columbine possibly). For example, maybe some spot that is not in hot sun all day would be fine for the seedlings to grow and develop. Also if you start them in protection until they are ready to transplant, then transplanting older plants that still came from your seeds will give them more chance to make it, too.