I generally just start doing it. I find once I start, the interest follows. Thinking about it all seems overwhelming, so I begin with one section, usually one where I can see instant results, then I move on from there. My current issue is getting motivated to put the garden to bed.... I'm still getting roses and tomatoes, but that could change in the blink of an eye. It's nice just to enjoy it for a while without bugs decimating the plants or mosquitos sucking me dry.

I also found looking for new roses motivating. ;)

Winter isn't called "cabin fever" up north for nothing. By the time Mar-Apr comes around, we are chomping at the bit to get out & do some yard work, feel some warm sun & see some green plants.

NOTHING gets me going better than new roses! Lisa

Are you sure Lisa? What about a new pair of shoes?? :-)

Visit your local nurseries or rose garden if there is one nearby. Smell the roses. That brings my passion back :) and of course seeing new healthy growth from my survivors!

I'm with Wirosarian, I can't wait to get out of the house and into the garden! There is a terrible urge to get my hands dirty in some good soil. It's hard sometimes to wait until it's dry enough to play in, lol. Of course having new roses coming in is also a good inspiration.

Summers, those are fantastic photos. It almost makes winter look like fun. and your roses are superb. Please post more of your garden photos. Around here, winter isn't all that "bad"---a little snow, some coldish temperatures and maybe even a couple of days when it gets near zero. But basically I garden almost year round. What got me going last year was manure, which I was putting on the flower beds starting in January, and kept at it till mid March--all 75 bags. Jim knows the manure stories. I kept running out of the stuff, so I drove all over two counties to find it and buy it. That reminds me--I need to buy some more for this year. Diane

We did have a beautiful Christmas when some snow fell.

Moonrise over the mountains during Christmas Eve dinner. Everyone jumped up from the table, got their cameras, and shot the quickly rising moon. It was fast!

Kublakan, since you are anticipating losses they will need to be replaced. I believe choosing replacements, especially new varieties you have not grown before, will boost your enthusiasm.

Approach the daunting tasks before you with a, "small dose," attitude, little by little at a time. Remember the old adage,"Life by the yard is mighty hard; by the inch it's a cinch."

Hmmm. This is a good question. And everyone's photos from cold winter areas are amazing! In California of course we don't really have serious winters, but probably not in South Florida either, so I guess the main thing I'm focusing on in your question is how to deal with assessing losses.

Assessing losses stinks. Going to the garden and seeing a beloved friend that you have worked hard for and doted on not doing well, or worse yet, gone feels defeating. I understand not being motivated to do that Kublakan. I don't think anyone would be! In the past how I have dealt with that is to honestly just play it super safe and not plant things that were possibly not going to do well in my area. That wasn't really fun though, but it was very safe. This year I'm getting outside my comfort zone and planting bulbs that I have never tried before, roses that I have never tried before and combinations I have never tried. It's more risky and more time intensive, and next winter I might be bummed about what didn't make it... but it's also exciting. This forum is totally enabling too (in a good way). It's hard not to try new things with everyone's awesome photos and stories.

That said, I still play it pretty safe by making sure I have a few plants that I know are going to make it and be work horses. Those are the ones that get me through and make it OK to take risks on the others.

Do you have any workhorses in the garden Kublakan? Any that you know will be continual beauties after each winter and that you can focus on first to help get you motivated for the others?

Even if its a simple, common plant, like carpet roses or iceberg... or even something more simple like creeping thyme... focusing on those first make me happy because they're always good to go.

Near 7 months without blooms makes you kinda crazy here...lol...And I mean CRAZZZY! So one is ready to do something other then being confined indoors...So when late March comes and the leaf buds start to sprout my excitement starts growing and growing then late May brings the prize! ohhh weeeee its going be a long winter... :-/ he he

kublakan, hope you get things figured out on how to deal with certain things in your climate....

Well, here in NORTHERN CA, we do get winter. Temps go down into the low 40s or even into the 30s, and occasionally we will get a day or so of snow (usually in Feb). Haven't had any for a couple of yrs tho. But it still gets pretty darn cold. The roses slow down, but I almost always get a handful of blooms between Thanksgiving and February. I rarely lose any roses to winter cold, even if I have any blooming and we get one of those one day snowstorms. My losses are generally from summer sunburn and overheating, and my not checking sprinklers.

I am always geared up for the roses and the gardening. I will be spending whatever dry days, when I'm not at work, outside planting and deadheading all winter. I have sooo many to do, it takes a long time, and I often don't necessarily get it all done. There's no resting for me. And ordering new roses adds to the excitement. I was running out of room, and really don't have a whole lot other than the new beds I'm doing since we had the septic re-do (it's a long process getting them done... my husband still has one more tree trunk to dig out for me!!) But I was lackadaisical and didn't notice many of my drip-sprinklers were not reaching some spots in several beds, and I ended up losing a very large sum of roses, including many I can never replace. So I have to be on it better next yr!! Needless to say, I can buy a few new roses this winter!! I'm already ordering and searching for sources to replace the ones I can.

I don't have to worry about the winter, since I am here in zone 10 of Florida like you. I was so excited about the roses.... then the hurricane came and now we are having super high tides. The water table is just awful. The water is coming up through the dirt and the rose feet is getting wet..... nothing I can do about it until tides turn.... Then we are also having heavy, heavy winds at 25 to 30 miles everyday. Makes it almost impossible to spray the fungicide that I need.... I was planning on doing some yard work this morning, but can't handle the wind... I scratched my cornea terrible this summer and I don't want sand or dirt to get in my eye ever again. I will have to see what makes it through the flooding...

Winter is really December and January, with the latter being our coldest month. It is not rare to have roses on Christmas Day. Late Dec-Jan are prime bare root rose planting and rose pruning times. It passes very quickly as February arrives before I know it, ushering in new growth on most roses. July is actually worse than the winter. During that month, some roses still bloom, most are growing below ground, but I go dormant.....well, at least until the sun goes down...

I hate to rain on your parade, Beth, but when you get a string of weeks when you don't ever go above freezing, and can go below zero often, a winter of 30s and 40s doesn't seem like much of a challenge. December I don't notice as much because I'm so busy with the holidays but January and February are long, dark, cold and bleak for weeks on end. By March the day light hours start getting noticeably longer and even though it's still really way too cold to go out in the yard I really start to get itchy. By April 1st I can wait no longer and have to go out no matter what the weather is like, lol!

That's how I feel about NorCal winters too Seil. It's funny... everyone talks about a big storm here... but it really just basically dribbles. Although there are some areas in northern California, like near Tahoe, that do get serious winters which shouldn't be trivialized!

Kublakan, I start making my list in the fall. I add to it during winter, and add more as I walk through the garden in early spring. If I don't work off a list, I just flounder around, getting nothing done. What is most overwhelming to me are the weeds. I have had some luck with newspapers under the compost and mulch, but with open fields all around, there is no way to keep the weed seeds from blowing in. Like vaporvac, it's harder for me to wrap it up in the fall. I'm never ready to quit and I put it off until I end up spreading compost and mulch in the rain or dark. Summersrhythm, your snow photos look like my neck of the woods, but your rose photos look like mine only in my dreams! Just gorgeous!

Here in the Northern part of the San Francisco Bay Area, I think of October/Nov, when our rains start up again after a hot, long, long totally dry summer, as a sort of Spring. We have gotten over 5 inches of rain so far in Oct, which is unusual, but welcome. The roses are all trying to bloom through the rain drops, the bulbs (mine are mostly from South Africa, in a similar climate to ours, and are dormant all summer). are coming up, all of the trees and big shrubs are happy - you can practically hear them sighing in relief.

So, it is time for me to get into the garden too - this is our planting season, so that new plants will have 4-6 months of cool, wet weather to get established. I have a few roses in pots that need planting on a new gorgeous rose arch my DH just installed, etc. It is still hard to get going, but I agree with seil - if you just start, you will get excited about small victories, and get more interested. Picking a contained, small area to work on and ignoring the other thousands of things which need doing is also a good idea. That way you can "finish" that area, and watch how the roses and other plants respond in new growth, so you get good feedback.

Jackie

Thank you to each of you that shared your ideas. Although our weather circumstances differ when comparing "winters" in the north versus the south, I think we all feel a sense of disconnect at one point or another during the year. For me it has everything to do with rain. As a weekend warrior, I am stopped in my tracks if my weekend is awash in rain, and this describes almost every weekend in the months of July to September. Unfortunately, with all this rain comes an explosion of growth for weeds and fungi. I have taken some of your advice to heart and have dove into the work at hand. Already I have assessed that I lost at least 38 rose bushes. With this bad news comes the good that now I get to shop to replace them. So I'm busying myself trying to buy all my replacements by December in order to give the plants a running chance. Let the races begin!

Thanks Again,

A.

Good Grief! You lost 38 rose bushes in Fla in the summer??? If it was me, I would take a very careful look at what kind/which roses I was going to re-plant. I would try to find some (there are roses which like almost any climate in temperate zones) which LIKE the climate, instead of dying.

There are roses which don't get much fungal diseases, and like warm climates - I would ask around at your local rose society, look around your neighborhood, etc (unfortunately most local nurseries are NOT good sources of info). You should not have to put up with that much loss.

Jackie

Kublakan, I lost roses every winter before I discovered wood bark mulch. Since I've started putting down a 4"-6" layer before and after the blooming season, I haven't lost a single rose. Our zones and conditions (my clay to your sand) are very different, so investigate what rose growers use in your area. You probably have a local Rose Society or a Master Gardeners chapter to ask. They are eager to answer questions.

There is a current thread on here named "(Some) Good Luck with Disease Resistant Roses in South Florida" - you should check it out - it includes a list of roses.

Jackie

Thank you Jackie and Flowers. I'm a bit of a masochist. I want those florist style blooms and the beautiful scents. Trust me when I say that 38 is an improvement, although I can do better. In years past I could look forward to finding half of my collection gone. Heavy time on good groundwork and maintenance throughout the growing season has helped a lot. Next year's goal: -15 MAX, lol.

By January and February I usually loose my mind...I have a strong urge to be out side..only way to satisfy this urge is to shop on line...I usually buy roses on line...give me something to look forward to..oops that not what you were asking to ..Answer:- I usually buy top soil\Manure as soon as it starts warming up.

I think the one thing that bothers me the most about winter is not the cold or snow but the lack of sunlight. For most of Nov, Dec & Jan our daylight hours are so short that if you work an 8 to 5 job, you will be getting up when its dark out, just getting light when you drive to work & getting dark on the drive home.

Yes, I hear you. Vitamin D is a must for those months.

Seil, I certainly understand you guys who get below zero degrees and have snow on the ground a good part of the winter months have it much tougher than I do. My point is people who don't live in CA or who live in the lower CA flatland areas, just think CA is all sunshine and warmth. It's just not so. Up here in the Sierras, we get a true fall and winter. We have gorgeous autumnal colors on the trees, and leaves falling all over the place, unlike most of southern CA. I grew up in So CA and I don't ever remember seeing falling leaves. And we do get the occasional one or two day snow storms, generally in Feb. It might not compare to your winters, but it's definitely not the same as sunny, warm So CA. It's wintery enough for me tho. I sure wouldn't want to live anywhere else where it might get in the negatives temps. I wouldn't be able to handle it. My arthritis would have me incapacitated the entire season. My roses actually like the colder temps, altho the diseases show up then. But for the most part, they are happy in the cold. I just wish we didn't get such hot hot summers. That's when I lose roses. And I'm with Steve, I hate the shorter days. Not enough daylight hours to get much done. Otherwise I'd be out there alot more. Now if it would just stop raining for a bit...

bethnorcal9 is your reference to "Steve" about my post?....if so I'm not Steve, I suspect you think I'm the Steve from Wisconsin Roses because of my Garden Web name that is similar to his business name.

Oh yeah, sorry I assumed you were Steve!! LOL My apologies!

Re areas of Calif where there is "Fall color" - here are two pics I took last week at our cabin in No Cal (due West of Redding, at 3500 ft):

(note the now empty osprey nest in the background - they will be back in the Spring - they come back every year)

To get back to the original topic, I forced my self to go into the garden this morning (after 8 days straight of rain - we got 6 inches!) by asking my DH to put up a ladder for me in a difficult place - he did, although it was very awkward. Then he went out to get supplies for a raised bed he is building for me. Of course, I HAD to go into the garden and start working (picture a Lamarque which has not been touched for 6 years, and is all tangled up with an equally neglected Veilchenblau ). Good news is that I am enjoying it. I just have to keep telling my self if dealing with these 2 roses takes several days, then that it what it takes.

Jackie

Bethnorcal, I hear you! I lived most of my life in So. CA and always loved trips up north. Such beautiful country that most people don't associate with CA. It's the same here in WA. People assume the inland northeast part is the same as the Seattle area, but it's pretty much opposite. Jacqueline, I can relate. I've been running out between record setting showers (we're normally dry over here) to get compost and mulch down. I come in with leaves in my hair, mud on my shoes and dirt up to my elbows, but there's nothing I'd rather be doing. Are we all nuts?

Yep totally nuts. It makes things interesting though. It gets too cold here to be outside much for long, and our winters are way too long. I love the changing seasons but 6 mo of winter? I always wonder what the heck I'm doing here until spring comes around with all the new growth and life... plus we order way too many roses an plants that we don't have room for. We have all winter to come up with a place to stick them...

Our winters are that long, too, Kelly, and I'd sure vote for shorter ones, however, I couldn't work as hard as I do in the garden much more than the other 6 months. One of these days, I plan to just sit in the garden and enjoy it rather than working like a slave to all these roses. I'm really not complaining. There's no other way I'd rather spend my time and seeing the garden respond to a little TLC is good motivation to keep at it. Plus, what's prettier than a rose garden in bloom!

What kind of wood mulch do you use, flowersaremusic? trying to decide if it would be beneficial or if I should wait until a good freeze and then add leaves and grass clippings...

I use pine bark mulch, Kelly, because that's what I have. After having 40+ tall pines felled and hauled away, the branches left behind were run through a chipper and produced a mountain of mulch that will probably last the rest of my life. Wood chip mulch from deciduous trees is better, I think. The video on this site has more info. Those on this forum with more scientific minds than mine could tell you more about the best type for different kinds of soil, etc., but I was thrilled with the difference the mulch made on my roses. My soil is hard clay.

I will add that you can often get a truck load of wood chip mulch free from local tree trimming companies. Another source is your power company. Most have a crew to keep branches off the power lines.

Jackie that's crazy that you had 8 straight days of rain! We both live in the Bay Area... but in my neck of the woods we only got about 2 good rainy days. Now there's no rain scheduled for at least the next 2 weeks. Sigh.

Kelly I swear by mulch mulch mulch and more mulch for both winter and summer in my climate. But be careful with your sources. I'm not sure, but I think the grub problem I recently have been dealing with may be in part from the "free" mulch I got from tree trimmers in the area.

Sometimes they trim healthy trees, but often they are cutting down unhealthy trees infested with things like beetles.

You could probabaly feel safe using free mulch if you also used a systemic soil killer for grubs underneath (poisonous and not so great for invertebrates though) or predator nematodes (I bought mine through Natures Control and think they would have worked better if I applied them BEFORE the grubs hatched and took over). In the end, it may be cheaper to buy mulch instead of using free mulch and treating it.

Just my opinion from my recent grub infestation though. I used free mulch before this year and never had any problems until now... so who knows!

After a long winter even the sight of leaves excites me...lol

Kublakan do you have any community rose gardens near you, so you can go see in person which roses do well after the hurricane season in So Fl? That may be a really good way to pick the roses you're purchasing to replace the 38 that didn't make it.

Hey also... these are the packaged mulch brands that I have had great luck with in my area. Ecomulch is only local to the Bay Area in CA, but it's great, affordable and I believe they deliver. http://myecomulch.com/products/

Earthgro ground cover bark says it's "decorative" but I have had great results using it as mulch. Orchard sells it for $4 a bag. Home Depot usually sells it for $5 a bag. More expensive that buying bulk, but also easier to transport and spread in bags. :)

The long dark freezing winter bleck. If not for winter thou I would likely need to hire someone to take care of the house. Many odd jobs wait for January to roll around. The darkness of winter is one of the hardest parts of it all. My shed faces south and chairs remain set up in there for my self and the cats. On decent bright sunny days you can find us in there soaking up the sunshine.

In early March how many of us can be found outside looking at bare ground waiting for that first perennial to show green. A wonderful feeling brushing aside the leafy debris to see that first leaf of the geranium has arrived. Nothing more energizing than spring for me. Love it.

Cori Ann, that I know of, there are no public rose gardens here in SF. Roses require much too much care for that. Even Disney's Magic Kingdom did away with its rose walk by the castle. If there was a garden, I wouldn't think they'd have much more than some OGRs and KO roses. EPCOT is the closest thing, but I'm not paying Disney prices to tiptoe through a rose garden, lol.

I agree, Cori Ann, that bagged mulch is clean, but, I can't afford to buy it that way. I have 150ish roses and add more every year, in addition to my peonies and other plants, so mulch from my own trees is a lifesaver. Here's another site that I refer to. This article addresses many concerns that gardeners have about wood chip mulch. Here's one: "Many wood-based mulches
are not attractive to pest insects but are
actually insect repellent." I'm hanging my hat on that. :)

Patty, I had to laugh about hiring someone to take care of the house during the growing season, and tramping around in damp leaves looking for any sign of green, maybe a month too early. I can relate!