Blazeaglory - in my No Cal garden, this has been the worst year for rust that I can remember. I agree that roses are getting it which have not in prior years - I attribute this to the very weird weather we have been having since last Fall. The best advice I know of is what Kim said in this thread above, on June 3, 2011. Of course, this does not involve shovel pruning any rose that shows a sign of disease! However, I would also like to comment that Jeri (who is one of the most responsive, knowledgeable, helpful, always goes out of her way to help folks, kindest, people we are privileged to have on this forum) is correct, as usual. In my garden ALL of the roses that got rust in this most rusty of years are hybrid teas, large flowered climbers, and other modern roses. I have over 100 roses, which include lots & lots of teas and chinas and noisettes and hybrid musks, and hybrid giganticas, and polyanthas and old ramblers and banksaies. NOT ONE of any of those classes of roses have even one dot of rust - nadda, zippo. I personally tolerate some rust (don't mean I ignore it - just that I don't pull out the bushes) on the others because, like you, I have some heritage roses in my garden that we inherited from ancestors, and I am keeping them, no matter what horrible things they do. Most years it is not too bad. If I really did not want any rust, I would get rid of the rust buckets. 80% of my roses have none, as I said above. Jeri is right - if you figure out which roses will grow in your exact conditions, you can have beautiful, healthy bushes that bloom for 9 months of the year (at least, in my climate) without spraying. If you, like me, insist on growing some that do rust, you have to deal with it. Jackie

This is a positively evil thread, LOL. Reading through all these posts prompted to me to purchase 'Pink Scentiment' and 'John Smith' earlier this spring, and I now have them both growing on my windowsill indoors. I have grown Begonia solananthera and 'Tea Rose' in the past. While they had very pleasant fragrances, they just never "wowed" me in the scent department, being far too soft and subtle. I thought the tuberhybrida begonia scents would be similarly soft and subtle. But I think I may have been wrong... Right now, I have buds on the 'John Smith'. One bud which is coloring up with an electric coral color but not really near to opening (I give it another week) is already exuding a fragrance! It is a *strong* delicious smell just like ripe sweet peaches or nectarines, maybe with a little rose thrown in. I am amazed, and my nose is very happy. This was an expensive bulb (from White Flower Farm) but it sprouted rapidly and it has been a vigorous grower from the start. The stem is extremely thick and beefy and the leaves are huge. The 'Pink Scentiment' is not nearly so vigorous compared to 'John Smith', but it also sprouted rapidly and has been growing steadily ever since. The stem is not as thick and it seems to be a very heavy brancher, as can be expected with a pendula type. Leaves are about half the size of 'John Smith' and there are no buds in sight yet. I can't wait to sample its scent later this summer once it is large enough to bloom. If I am successful with these two begonias, I will definitely want to seek out other fragrant tuberhybridas in the future.

Excellent reports, enjoyed them! Hope things go well! Kind of bummed that you're moving, but hope you'll still seem right down the way, posting here & teasing us about your exotic new digs. Sure fed a lot of Begonia cuttings to pill bugs this year... inadvertently of course. Once they start eating it, there's no saving it though. Next year I won't put any Begonia cuttings in the ground during pill bug season. The ones that established before that and recovered from an unexpected frost are almost all still around. A few were then killed by flood. Then trampled by dogs... Sheesh! I need more shady spots out front, where it's safer. It's time here to take cuttings, I guess. Could have frost Fri night. Whatever stems in the ground look really good, tall enough, will probably snap 'em off and stick 'em wherever there's room - again. That will only take a few minutes, there's not much. Gaining more and more respect for wax B's. They seem to be tougher against all of this stuff in general, except floods of course. Potted plants were the only real 'winners' here. What a year!

They really are tough plants (for the most part) and repotting isn't difficult tho' I know it's scary the first time or two. First be sure you have some good free-draining potting mix. Then knock it out of the pot--turn it upside down and hold the plant with one hand while you rap the rim of the pot against the table or wherever you're going to be working. Usually just a good rap or two will knock it loose, but it tends to be pretty messy so I hope you have a nice place outside to do it. Sometimes it takes a little more work to get it out, but don't worry about hurting it. Might even be necessary to run a long thin-bladed knife around the inside of the pot. Cut back any weak or damaged growth. Work the root-ball so you get as much of the old soil off as comes easily, and check to be sure the roots are healthy. You can prune them back, especially if they've circled around the inside of the pot a few times. Be sure you put a little something in the bottom of the pot to be sure all the potting mix doesn't wash out while the roots are getting re-established--I use various things such as scraps of coir from old basket liners, or a wad of long-fibered sphagnum moss; you can also use the liners from meat trays, and I have a friend who swears by used dryer sheets. But don't put a layer of rocks or broken pots or whatever might be suggested for 'drainage'--it actually stops drainage. Put a little potting mix in the bottom of the pot, put your root-ball on it, fill around it and rap it on the bench a few times to settle the soil in well and prevent pockets of air. Don't put very much soil over it, but a little is probably a good idea. Water it in well, and set in the shade to drain. Does that cover what you need to know? And sorry to the original poster who gets to read all this! In the future it's probably a good idea to start a new thread.