HarmonyP,I hope you haven't thrown out that poor Paradise rose with the signs of RMV. After all, it isn't contagious except through the propagation process, so it won't spread to your other roses. It is very common among big box store roses and still appears sometimes in reputable nurseries. The serious vendors seem to be taking it seriously and trying to glean it from their rootstock sources and budwood source plants, but its hard to eliminate completely because it often doesn't "show" itself at times. But anyway, RMV tends to, over time, weaken the plant and reduce productivity and resistance to diseases and winter frost, but different roses seem to show varying degrees of resistance. So once you know you have it, you might as well keep the plant as long as it seems to be growing and producing ok. I've had some infected specimens that still produced beautifully for several years. As for vendors, I think it makes perfectly fine sense to do what you've done. I did the same. Early on, I could not afford a lot of expensive plants but wanted to expand my varieties.I've had some great Lowe's roses and even from (gasp) Walmart. But once I got to a point where I no longer had room for many more roses, I naturally felt comfortable being much more selective, and the specialty vendors were there ready and waiting. I just got rid of roses that didn't please me. That was many cheap roses, but also some expensive ones. I don't consider the expense entirely wasted, because I satisfied some curiosity about the variety. I've had a few that were first purchased cheap and then replaced from a serious nursery, such as Chrysler Imperial and Elina. But I've also kept some of those cheapies for many years. One of my best workhorse roses has been Paradise, purchased from Home Depot, which I agree is generally one of the worst sources to buy from. Go figure. The big box stores definitely mislabel much more often, but you know what, I've had that happen from some of my favorite nurseries, too. It happens. One of my favorite roses ever was an obviously mislabeled red rose from Kmart (back in the early 1990s). Even friends with the Mobile Rose Society never were able to identify it, but it was a gorgeous,voluptuous velvety red rose of impressive size --and thorniness. Sometimes those unplanned mistake events turn out to be pleasant surprises. Last year I made one cheap purchase, just for no reason. I bought Chicago Peace for 3 bucks, because I saw it and had already spent what I had budgeted on "serious" roses. It even had waxed canes. It produced beautiful blooms even though the plant didn't seem very robust. I thought I'd replace it with a better Ch. Peace this year, but lo and behold, by November it was starting to bulk up and become a proper bush. So I've given it a repreave for another year. Who knows, I may never have to replace it.

northern california nurseries and gardens to visit For some reason, the faq upload will not allow websites. To get around this, I have substituted (dot) for the . that would normally be in a web address- you will have to change it back to make the web adddress work. Alden Lane Nursery 981 Alden Lane, Livermore (952) 447-0280 Aldenlane(dot)comDaily 8:30-5:00 Very large nursery with above average stock Amador Flower Farm 22001 Shenandoah School Road, Plymouth (209) 245-6660 Amadorflowerfarm(dot)comOpen 7 days a week9:00 am to 4:00 pm Wonderful demonstration gardens, primarily daylilies Annies Annuals Market St., Richmond- see website for directions (510) 215-1326 Anniesannuals(dot)com Wednesdays thru Sundays 10:00AM 4:00 PM Incredible selection of unique perennials and annuals Bamboo Sourcery 666 Wagnon Rd., Sebastopol (707) 823-5866 Shakuhachi(dot)com/B-Sourcerycall for appt. World class collection of bamboos BeniciaGardens Nursery 126 East E Street Benicia (707) 747-9094 Beniciagarden(dot)com10 to 5closed Tuesday Above average nursery with interesting stock Berkeley Horticultural Nursery 1305 McGee Ave Berkeley (510) 526-4704 Berkeleyhort(dot)comHours:8:30 to 5:00 Closed Thursday Many unusual plants, display garden, tropicals BlakeGardens 70 Rincon Rd., Kensington (510) 524-2449 Laep(dot)ced(dot)berkeley(dot)edu/ laep/blakegarden/index(dot)htmlMonday through Friday from 8:00am to 4:30pm Beautiful formal garden owned by UCB Bushnells Nursery 5255 Douglas Blvd., GraniteBay (916) 791-4199 Bushnellgardens(dot)comOpen Spring-Summer, Mon-Sat 9am-6pm, Sun 9am-5pm, Fall-Winter: Mon-Sun 9am-5pm Large nursery with above average stock California Flora Nursery Nursery is located at the intersection of Somers and D streets in Fulton (707) 528-8813 Calfloranursery(dot)com Monday - Friday 9 - 5 Summer Hours only: Saturday & Sunday 10 - 4 Exceptional stock, demonstration garden Canyon Creek Nursery 3527 Dry Creek Road, Oroville (530) 533-2166 Canyoncreeknursery(dot)com call to make an appt. for visiting Demonstration garden Capitol Nursery 4700 Freeport Blvd., Sacramento (916) 455-2601 Capitalnursery(dot)com Open 7 days/wk, April-October 8:30 am-6pm, Nov-March 8:30am-5:30pm Large nursery with above average stock Chalk Hill Clematis 11720 Chalk Hill Rd., Healdsburg (707) 433-8416 chalkhillclematis(dot)com/menu.html Wed.-Fri., 10am - 4pm. Everything Clematis CottageGarden Growers 3995 Emerald Dr., Petaluma (707) 778-8025 Cottagegardensofpet(dot)com 10 - 5 Daily Good reputation Digging Dog Nursery Albion (707) 937-1130 Diggingdog(dot)com visit by appt. only Unusual Stock EastBay Nursery 2332 San Pablo Ave., Berkeley (510) 845-6490 eastbaynursery(dot)com8:30 - 5:00, Tuesday - Saturday Large nursery with above average stock ElizabethGambleGarden 1431 Waverley St.,Palo Alto (650) 329-1356 gamblegarden(dot)org/ open every day during daylight hours Lovely garden on alarge residential lot Emerisa Nursery 555 Irwin Lane, Santa Rosa (707) 525-9644 emerisa(dot)com March to daylight savings in fall: M-F, 8-5 and Sat, 9-1 Daylight savings in fall to March: M-F, 8-4 and Sat, 9-1 Wonderful display gardens and stock FiLoLi 86 Cañada Road, Woodside (650) 364-8300 x507 Tuesday through Saturday, from February 8 to October 29, 2005, between the hours of 10:00 am and 3:30 pm $12. admissionfiloli(dot)org Estate garden in the grand style Geraniacea 122 Hillcrest Ave., Kentfield (415) 461-4168 geraniaceae(dot)com call for an appt. All things geranium Golden Pond Nursery 3275 Sierra College Blvd. Loomis (916) 652-5459 Open April thru October Fri, Sat, Sun10-4 Lovely display ponds and garden HakoneGardens 21000 Big Basin Way, Saratoga (408) 741-4994  hakone(dot)comWeekdays 10am - 5pm; Weekends 11am - 5pmAdmission charge Huge, once private garden run by foundation Half MoonBay Nursery 11691 San Mateo Rd., HalfMoonBay (415) 726-5392 daily 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m Good reputation Happy Frog Nursery 15386 Little Valley Rd., GrassValley (530) 273-3764   Large nursery with nice stock HaywardJapaneseGardens 22373 N. Third St. at Crescent, Hayward (510) 881-6700 Daily 10 to 4 Tranquil well landscaped garden Japanese Tea Garden at Central Park El Camino Real and 5th Avenue, San Mateo (650) 522-7440 Mon to Fri, 10am - 4pm; Sat and Sun, 11am - 4pm  Large, lovely garden Japanese Tea Gardens at Golden GatePark Tea Garden Drive and Martin Luther King Jr. Drive, S.F. (415) 831-2700  Open daily, hours vary by season; usually 8:30am to 5 or 6pm  Admission charge 5 acre stroll garden LakeMerritJapaneseGardens 666 Bellevue Avenue, Oakland   Mon-Fri 10-3Sat-Sun 10-4 In Lakeside park around LakeMerrit Small but high quality garden Lakes Nursery 8435 Crater Hill Rd,.Newcastle (530) 885-1027 lakesnursery(dot)comDaily 9-5 Vast selection of Japanese Maples Lotus Nursery 5606 Petersen Ln. Lotus (530) 622-2321   Gorgeous display garden MagicGardens 729 Heinz Ave., Berkeley (510) 644-2351 magicgardens(dot)com9:00am - 5:00pm Large nursery, exceptional stock McAllisterWaterGardens 7420 St. Helena Highway, St. Helena (707) 944-0921 Open March thru September Wed-Sun 9-4 Wonderful display gardens and water plants Mendocino Botanical Gardens 18220 North Highway One, FortBragg (707) 964-4352 gardenbythesea(dot)org Open Daily All Year March - October: 9 am to 5 pm November - February: 9 am to 4 pm $7.50 adult admission but worth it Mendons Nursery 5424 Foster RoadParadise (530) 877-7341 mendonsnursery(dot)com Mon-Sat: 8am-5pm Closed Sunday   MiniaturePlantKingdom 13404 Harrison Grade Place, Sebastopol (707) 874-2233 miniplantkingdom(dot)com call for appt. Unusual dwarf plants Morningsun Herb Nursery 6137 Pleasant Valley Rd., Vacaville (707) 451-9406 morningsunherbfarm(dot)comTuesday Sunday 10 am - 5 pm Nice display garden Orchards of Lafayette 4010 Mt. Diablo Blvd., Lafayette (925) 284-4474 orchardnursery(dot)comOpen everyday 9-5 Large nursery will high quality RuthBancroftGarden 1500 Bancroft Road, Walnut Creek (925) 210-9663 Ruthbancroftgarden(dot)org open various Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays $7.00 admission One of the best private succulentand cactus gardens in CA Sierra Azul Nursery 2660 East Lake Ave (Hy 152), Watsonville (831) 763-0939 sierraazul(dot)com Open daily: 9:00 a.m. - 5:30 p.m. Wonderful display gardens and plants Sonoma Horticultural Nursery 3970 Azalea Avenue, Sebastopol (707) 823-6832 sonomahort(dot)com March, April, and May: 7 daily 9:00am - 5:00pm June through February: Thursday thru Monday9:00am - 5:00pm Everything ericaceous Strybing Arboretum 9th Avenue at Lincoln Way,San Francisco (415) 661-1316 Ext. 312 Strybing(dot)org open daily, 365 days a year. Weekdays, 8 am to 4:30 pm. Weekends & holidays, 10 am to 5 pm. Incredible collections of native and cool climate plants Tahinis Nursery 5601 Folsom Blvd., Sacto. (916) 451-8150 daily High quality Stock The DryGarden 6556 Shattuck Ave., Oakland (510) 547-3564 Daily 10 to 5 Seriously unusual and weird stuff TiltonBotanical Garden Wildcat Canyon Rd and S. Park Dr., Berkeley (510) 562-PARK ebparks(dot)org/parks/bot(dot)htm Oct. 1 to May 31: 8:30 a.m.-5 p.m. June 1 to Sept. 30: 8:30 a.m.-5:30 Noted for spring wildflower display U.C.BerkeleyBotanical Garden 200 Centennial Drive, #5045, Berkeley (510) 643-2755 Botanicalgarden(dot)berkeley(dot)eduDaily:9:00 am - 5:00 pm Closed: First Tuesday of every month and major holidays$5.00 admission Vast collections of cool climate plants U.C.Santa Cruz Botanical Gardens 1156 High Street, Santa Cruz (831) 427-2998 Open daily 10-5 except Christmas and Thanksgivingucsc(dot)edu/arboretum Incredible selection of S. African plants VintageGardens 2833 Old Gravenstein Hwy. So., Sebastopol (707) 829-2035 vintagegardens(dot)com Open 9AM to 5PM Thursday through Sunday Best CA source of old and unusual roses Yerba Buena Nursery 19500 Skyline Blvd. Woodside (650) 851-1668 yerbabuenanursery(dot)com Tuesday - Sunday 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Demonstration garden, good plant selection  

Minus 20 C is only -4 Fahrenheit. That is not that cold. It is, in fact, zone 6b, a warmer zone than we have in south central Ohio. In the last few decades, as Southern-bred plants became increasingly tender, many nurseries rushed to declare themselves "northern hardy." I just saw that claim by a nursery in New York State. But when I looked on the map, I saw that the nursery was right by the lake in zone 6b. A plant's being tender does not always mean that one loses it. Rather, it tends to languish, sometimes multiplying well, but producing not many flowers and having stunted scapes. Since I don't hybridize, I must say that I routinely dismiss Salters and Pierces nowadays, unless I have a clear indication that they will thrive here. There are too many good cultivars out there that are hardy. There is increasingly a North-South divide in regard to daylily breeding. The in-between states--from Kentucky/Tennessee to North Carolina--are probably the ideal locations to grow cultivars.

Peony season is over for me as well now--the hot weather this last week put the kibosh on my latest bloomers. Here are pics of the last to open this year. Athelstane--very fragrant! Casablanca Cheddar Surprise, also fragrant, roselike Dr FG Brethour, fragrant but very floppy. Had to hold the flower up to photograph. You can see where the heat damaged the edges of this one... Elk Grove--a bit disappointed in this one, expected it to be a bigger bloom. Tall but otherwise fairly insignificant. Also floppier than you'd expect for a smallish flower. Gay Cavalier La France--you can see heat damage on several of these last flowers...Lord Calvin this one is probably a mis-id, supposed to be bi-colored. Lottie Dawson Rae Mandaleen--my new favorite herbaceous!! HUGE bloom on a 1st year plant, can't wait to see what it does next year!