Harvestman: I usually don't get into a lot of detail and technical exceptions when trying to explain insect or disease control to a novice grower. Rather than risk confusing people and overloading the circuits with exceptions like post-infection activity of certain commercially available fungicides, I try to stick to a general rule. In the case of CAR and the backyard grower, I believe the best rule is: Have the fungicide on when the disease arrives. I know this is true of Ferbam, which is probably a moot point since it is now very difficult to find, but also recommend it for Immunox. Weather conditions in early spring will always affect the ability to spray, but in the case of a systemic like Immunox, post-spray rains may not affect the control of the chemical to the same degree. I do use a sticker-spreader with Ferbam, which I believe helps it cling a little longer, but doesn't protect new growth. This season I did three sprays with Ferbam in the month of April because I had three decent days to spray, and one more in early May. This may sound excessive, but after the CAR disaster I experienced in the '08 season (due primarily to poopy weather that prevented spraying) I was taking no chances. Even with this relatively high level of spray care, I still had 5-10% damage from CAR on the apples of some varieties -- and one of them was Goldrush, a genetically resistant variety. This level of damage to the fruit is not a problem for me, since at thinning time the apples showing even a touch of CAR on the calyx are the first to come off. This leaves plenty of healthy apples, but it irritates me when the affected apple in a cluster happens to be the big, fat king fruit. I don't worry too much about a few little CAR spots on the leaves. My concern is with the apples themselves. The '08 season, when damage on some trees reached around 90%, may have left me a little shellshocked. Didn't even have enough apples to press cider, and barely made the applesauce quota. This season is much, much better, although I am pretty sure the high level of infection last season actually knocked out a lot of interior fruiting spurs, since I am having a lot more apples on the tips this season. Don Yellman, Great Falls, VA

Thanks Don for sharing your insight and experience with me. I am prepared to prune like it is going out of style. My back yard is not very challenging to me right now with not much to do in it vegetatively. Even my garden I expanded this year had been very maintenance-free. I think I only pulled half a dozen weeds out since April. I've worked on creating a compact garden and a berry bed in the inside-side of the fence. My back yard is small and only extends about 24' back from the corner of the house. I fenced most of it in. I left some space on the outside of the east side where these trees are going. The soil is especially murderous on that side of the yard. I suspect when this house was constructed a little less than 3 years ago that the access road for the neighborhood construction was through that area. I notice contractor people here like to spread heaps of plentiful limestone rocks around construction sites for their machinery/keep mud down. It gets compacted and pressed down with that heavy equipment as houses are built. Then after a house is built it appears topsoil is added on top for sod, but it is never spread evenly. This explains why the west side of the yard is much easier to put shovel in than the east side. All my neighbors complain about their yards being the same way. Here's an example of what happened to all the rocks dug up in my back yard: I dug the final hole for that Mcintosh this evening and the soil was considerably easier to dig in. I had watered the spot where I wanted the tree a couple times this week and notice before doing that.. that the grass was more lush there. I can visually see where I will have a chore digging and where it will be relatively easy with not nearly as much shovel aerobics to pry out boulders and stones 'glued' into the ground. I hope these trees, as close as they are grow like wildfire because I want more privacy in my little yard. Notice in my picture the houses at the top of the picture... There's always people staring down at my wife and I from those balconies/roadway. We'd much rather they stare at fruit trees. I hope they grow 20' tall. ;) I will be sure to let you know how my Mcintosh grows (or dies). Last winter it was always colder on that side of the house. The path between the houses adjacent to mine act as a wind shaft to convect cold air along that area. Maybe that will be beneficial to the Mcintosh. Time will tell I guess. I will plant the Mcintosh probably tomorrow. I want to mix in some of that fertilized tree/shrub mix with our limely clay soil as I had for the two other trees. I could cram one more tree along the fence, but I have a white pine in the inside that should complete the blocked view (someday). I say I don't mind pruning now, but I may be saying different in 3-5 years eh? :)

Hi, everyone! great news is that the Rosarian couple were very nice. I actually tried calling them last night but couldn't get through because they had their fax machine on. Then tonight they explained that they couldn't return my call because the number I had left them had been cut off by their answering machine. They too have not grown tree roses because like Karl had feared, rose trees do terrible in Kansas. Stupid me should also have thought far ahead about our tornado problems as well. I didn't think about this issue before the terrible winds this past weekend. Flower2sew, in Overland Park we got hit real bad. There is still debris from knocked over light poles on Hwy 69 from people crashing from the ice... But the snow lasted just one terrible day, it was very thick snow,and we were blasted with both ice and snow at once and in some parts of Overland Park, the cable lines and phone lines were down ...then argh, it shot up to near 60 degree warmth right the following day, then dropped down again the following evening. The rosarian couple agreed that they would never leave out the tree roses at this point because of last weekend's extreme swing of temperature (including this week) but they too felt I really needed to speak to a Master Rosarian, so they gave me the emergency helpline for the Rose Society. The nice rosarian couple I spoke to explained that they themselves have never grown tree roses because of how erratic Kansas weather can be in the spring and they said that the people they know who had rose trees all had either greenhouses or would go to a nursery and "rent" out a space for the winter. In other words they wouldn't know how to advise me on how to keep my roses indoors in my particular situation. They did feel that since my rose trees still have buds sprouting, that keeping them in a completely dark, cold, poorly insulated garage at this point is a question that only a master rosarian could answer. It is a tough call because no sane person/gardener would ever be in the crazy predicament that I am in now... I am doing crazy stuff like lightly spraying my roses with warm water in the morning and when I come home, then again before going to bed to keep them as close to a greenhouse effect and reducing my house temperature from 68 degrees to 65 so that I don't shock the roses when I bring them outside to 58 degree sunshine (but that makes me super cold indoors and I end up having to wear a few layers of clothing in the house and shivering under the covers when I try to sleep LOL). So hopefully I can reach the helpline before I get "outta control" and do more crazy outta control guesswork. Anyway, thank you EVERY One and All for your help and ongoing support! Hugs to each of you... P.S. forgot to say that to me the membership dues for the American Rose Society is very reasonable, and wouldnt have hesitated for a second had I not been so broke from all the training with Eluane and house payments but in due time if I can just make the baby steps and get both trees to survive.

There are still trees and shrubs sold bare root as well as balled and burlapped. I'd estimate, however, that at least 80% of the nursery stock sold in North America today is pot grown in soil-less, peat based media. The stuff in the bags at the garden center labeled "potting soil" can be just about anything - finally ground earth from feedlots, stripped topsoil with sand added, for example. It's basically useless junk. No commercial growers use it. Instead they use consistently blended and tested media such as ProMix, Sunshine Mix and a number of others. Some big growers blend their own, but test constantly to insure consistent results. Native soils, unless they are very unusual - much higher in humus content than is normal, very sandy/gravelly for example - are not automatically suitable for plants which have spent life in a porous, well aereated soil-less medium. The difference is too great. The roots will be very reluctant to leave the easy living of the peat mix and venture out into the usually low humus, high clay, poor in oxygen native soil. They won't all die but they will sulk for a long time before becoming established. I am aware of the studies that purport to show that soil amendment is unnecessary and counter productive. These need to be interpreted with care. What was the tree/shrub growing in before planting? What was the nature of the native soil? What species of tree or shrub was involved? What, if any, "hormones" or other chemicals were used? Sweeping generalities are usually inaccurate. Some species of trees and shrubs will establish easily in even the worst native soil without much trouble. Others - magnolias, Japanese maples, rhododendron and other ericacea come to mind - most definitely won't. Too small holes in water retentive clay soil can "drown" - actually, lack of oxygen is the real problem - plants for sure. Wide, shallow planting areas amended with coarse material such as bark, compost, etc. supports the microbial life many plants depend on. It remains. imho, a much better, if more labor intensive, method. If we are gardeners rather than land reclaimers, municipalities working with ever decreasing budgets, plantation foresters putting 1000's of trees a day into the ground, we ought to be able to do what's best rather than what's quickest and cheapest.