Thanks Katherine for sharing that information. I do have a small area on East side of my house I could potentially do that. What size pots and are they ceramic or plastic? (the ones you have planted under ground) I am Thinking it would be a pretty deep trench?

Thanks Kitty. That sounds good. :-) That’s a good idea to open a bed and breakfast at your location. It’s a such lovely water front college town . For a short period time our house was a bed and breakfast. One of the previous owners opened one for a few years. I found it out by googling. I don’t know how to cook, don’t have that skill. We might make the maid quarter into an in-law apt for rental later . It would need to add a kitchenette in the maid quarter living room there. Right now I am using that living room plus two small rooms connected to it as a big closet area (500 sq ft).

Lala, what a pretty poodle! :-)

Thanks Flower! Tammy has a pretty poodle in her garden pics too!

Well, I'm not sure what is the most unique thing about my garden... it's mine and that's why I love it. The wind blows cold in the winter, and the sun shines hot in the summer. I'm slowly making it what I want it to be, but it's got a looooong ways go. I don't have many roses, (12) but I'm working at changing that😉. It was an old farmstead that we built on and the landscape needed a total revamp, so it feels like we're starting almost from zero. I planted 50 some trees over the last couple years and i have 35 on order for this spring. And a Japanese maple sitting in my garage ready to go in the ground! Im so enthused about this summer.. seeing my hydrangeas and roses starting to mature and get beautiful! I love hearing about everyone else's gardens too!

Lala, I'm a zone colder than you and I grow half my roses in pots. I winter my pots outside in a big burlapped group packed with leaves along the south side of my house. I've been doing this for 15 years now and don't lose many at all. I usually always lose more in the ground than in the pots.

I love this thread! I love nice lighting too. Mehrin, your lighting is fabulous! Here is a lovely solar light gifted to me. It sits on the patio and turns on at dusk and turns off in the morning. The batteries work great so it is still bright in the morning. I am always up before the sun rises :-)

@Stephanie, 9b inland SoCal I have that one! I love the lacy effect at night!

@Lala Idaho Zone 7a They are terracotta, glazed clay, and plastic pots. The trench isn’t too deep, just so the rim sits just above ground, and I do it in the garden soil I’ve been working so it’s not tough digging. The smallest pot I’ve overwintered that way is a gallon nursery pot, many are larger. I like Seil’s method, too! I might try that someday when I want to reclaim my trenching area for more plants.

Love the solar light! I have some solar string lights for tree trunks.

Flowers are music, Thanks for Tammy’s link. She has a gorgeous video and photos of her rose gsrdens and white poodle!

Lala, She is a beautiful poodle. Wish she could meet my Anastasia-poodle! I am inspired to grow roses in pots, now, too!

Thank you Vac and Katherine-great ideas on winterizing roses in pots. I may try putting them on back porch and covering with burlap.

Stephanie, Lovely solar light-beautiful on the patio! . I have solar chimes and I love how they light up and change colors!

Summersrhythm, You know summer is my rhythm too-my favorite time of year! Making a room i to a rental is nice for a little extra income -pays property taxes and more...Great idea!! See you this summer! Cool tree trunk lights!

Katherine - oh my goodness!!! Your fence is so whimsical, your pond delightful...and your pathway a delight!!! You are incredible!! :) :)

Oursteelers - my dogs would poop on the strawberries...not eat them. Sigh. He poops in all of my pots...so I can't grow vegetables anymore. What a weird poodle he is!

Summers - the rose "climbing" the tree looks beyond beautiful!!! Swoon!!! Oh!!! The puppy has grown since we last saw pictures! And you're getting your puppy in summer time!! Does the breeder expect a variety of colors?

Kitty - Your yard is progressing beautifully!! Must be SO satisfying to see the differences that you've made!!

Erasmus - wow!! mature trees and a landscape that you created from a blank slate! Amazing! I'm really, really bad at that kind of thing...so, I'm amazed at those of you who can create a plan and make it come true! I wish I could smell your honeysuckle...I've never smelled it.

Lala is an exceptionally pretty standard poodle! So well groomed too! Idaho is colder than zone 3? I didn't know that. Yikes! A lot of people here overwinter their roses by building styrafoam enclosures (some enclosures cover the whole yard). Inside the styafoam (all 3 sides) they pack it tightly with garbage bags of fallen leaves. They have fashioned ingenious ways of keeping the styrafoam in place. The stryafoam is about 4 inches thick, I think. Or...how hot does your garage get? If it doesn't get over about 3 or 5C (37 or 41F), then that would be fine. Keep them outside until the temperatures are about - 7C to -10C (19 to 14F)...water them really, really well and put them in the garage...and don't water them again until about January...where you give them a cup of water once per month. Try to keep them in the dark. Okay. :) :) I just realized that everyone addressed your issues already. LOL

Stephanie - love that light!!! :) :)

Lala, RoseCanadian and Friends,

I think I will try potted roses, too. Last winter I mounded roses to keep them warm as soon as temps started hitting 32 F freezing. Then I put burlap on them after a few days of freezing. I suppose I’d put potted roses on porch and cover with burlap at that time next winter just at freezing 32 F?

Rose Canadian, You say kerp pots outside until about 19F-that is really cold for me. Of course all this snow weather in NY is too cold for me! I am new to winterzing Roses... but I am finding at my location my happiest roses this winter were all the ones I put in burlap at 32 F degrees and ones next to N side of home. Most my roses are zoned 5 and some zoned 6. Maybe with wind chill it takes 32,F and turns it into 20 degrees. Maybe that is something to consider. I am just realizing I have to be more careful to keep them warm. Planting flowers, scrubs near them keeps them warm, too.

Summers, what a beautiful row of trees.

Thanks Stephanie. We have a lot of old maple trees lined up by the driveway. We are afraid to park cars under the trees on a windy day. Lol

Summers, I just saw on Daisy’s thread that you moved to the country! Wow that driveway is beautiful in the snow. You have a lot of land now!

Summer, Check out “The Gardener” on Amazon for inspiration for designing a garden on a large scale. After watching I really want to visit it. https://www.amazon.com/Gardener-Frank-Cabot/dp/B07DJBFGJL

Thanks Stephanie. It’s still cold here, a long journey to spring. Yes, I am a country folk now. :-) Just bought 4 apple trees and 5 baby fig cuttings from Tractor Supply. If anyone is looking for hardy fig cuttings, fruit trees , Tractor Supply just put out Hardy Chicago fig cuttings for $7.99 each. Fruit trees for $13.99 each. I noticed a lot of rose gardeners are also fruit tree huggers. :-)

Rose Canadian, I don’t know what I was thinking ... I thought you were Oregon Coast area for some reason. I am zone 7a

Seil and Katherine, I can’t tell you how happy and encouraged I am that I may be able to overwinter roses in pots! Thank you so much for sharing your ways of doing this. If I can do this successfully I will be able to get more roses! yippee

@Katherine OK zone 7b I love all that lamb’s ear, how do you get yours to be so vertical, mine tend to flop?

Kitty - good job at finding what works for you! :) :)

Summers - what a wonderful picture!!! Your trees are so majestic! And the winter scene is magical with the low light!

Lala - yes, I was surprised when you said you are in the same zone as I'm in. :) :) Zone 7 must be wonderful!!! I'm excited for your adventure into potted roses!!

Hi, RoseCanadain,

I am surprised in Canada that it has a zone 7a., your zone? I am under Lake Ontario, going south, with zone 6A about an hour away . You are above me so I thought you would be colder? Where are you located that it warms to 7a?

FRIENDS,

PLANT ZONING

I just read about zoning in Canada and US. The zoning is based differently. For example, Totonto, is zoned by Canada at zone 6. However, US zoning is based on USDA annual temp averages zoning Toronto at zone 5. So our zoning classifications are different. So in Canada a 7a zone would be a 6 zone in US.

That explains that you may have about the same temps as me? Zone 6a in US Is my zone. After hearing about your weather... it sounded about like mine? Today I have a high of 30 F degrees and M-F it will be 50F-60F-40F. How is your weather this week for roses?

GLOBAL WARMING!

However, zoning maps have not been updated since 2012. It has been warmer around the US and Canada in past years! Maybe we all have warmer zones than we think? This winter and last winter my temps did not go lower than lowest 5 degrees on one day. That would bump my zoning from 6A to a 7a zone w/ lows at 5-10 degrees average annual maybe. Interesting for the present time. But I still buy lots zone 5/6 roses to get most hardy. Do we all have new planting zonings? Maybe?

Lala,

Your plant zone is like NY City, 7a! . I would like 7a, which is just a tad warmer than my zone 6A., NYC has 2 large rose gardens, The Rockefeller Rose Garden and the Central Park Rose Garden! Your climate is ideal for roses! All the Rockefeller does to winterize is prune a little and mound their roses w/mulch. Zone 7a is nice!

@Nick 10bSW17 I‘m super tempted to pretend to be a Stachys expert and be all ”Hrmm well mine is vertical because of the particular soil chemistry I’ve spent yeaaaars perfecting, dahhhling,” but I honestly have no idea. 😂

If I had to guess, it would be purely based on my anecdotal experience; I do have some that are lean-ers, they are in slightly less sun and slightly less mature so the spikes are less packed together (they tend to support each other) because the clump is smaller. The super vertical ones in the picture are on the best side of the garden, they get full, blasting all day sun except for an hour here or there where the plants closer to the fence shade them. I don’t stake them or anything, they just do what they do and if a bloom spike is somewhere I don’t want it, I cut it out and stick it in a bouquet.

I feel like I’ve read somewhere that the variety of Stachys matters; mine is a passalong plant that‘s old as dirt so I’m pretty sure it’s OG stachys. All of my plants came from one original clump I was given, I divide each of them every year and move them around because big, dense clumps tend to be short lived in my garden as I’ve geared the soil towards the roses so it’s a bit rich for lamb‘s ear. I’m terrified of losing the plant because it’s sentimental so I’m constantly “making” backups. I moved some to the super shady side of the garden under the live oaks last year as an experiment, if it blooms and floops I will let you know!

It’s one of my favorites because as you know, that vertical silver is hard to come by, and because the bees ADORE it, so it’s constantly humming in the late spring and summer.

Also, I can’t find the comment now, Houzz is still being weird for me, maybe I need to restart my phone, but somebody commented that their dog poops in pots, and I just wanted to say that I literally guffawed. An extremely loud, unladylike laugh-squawk that I’m sure woke the neighbors.

Whoever that was, I’m so sorry for your troubles, but the mental image of a pupper intentionally seeking out and squatting over pots just sent me on a snort fest.

Also also, @rosecanadian I just have to give you love, I’ve read so many, many threads on this forum over the years and you are always beautifully enthusiastically supportive of everyone’s gardens and successes and I just wanted to say that you are a gorgeous person who adds so much value to this place. Thank you for being you.

Katherine,

Rosecanadian has 60 pots and can’t have garden beds...poor soil...so her dogs uses the pots for business. Lovely! Lol! Now that’s UNIQUE!

Between SnowMeggaddon (from Polar V thread) in Texas and pooper pot puppy, you guys are going to keep me in stitches a long time! Lol!

@KittyNYz6 Hahahaha you sent me laughing again! It was @rosecanadian! Such a sweet person does not deserve to be scooping out pot doo on the daily!

Hi All-

I'd say what makes my garden unique is that it's in the high desert of Arizona. It's a unique and special place. However it comes with pluses and minuses. To me the pluses are self evident in it's beauty, color and a quiet place filled with nature. I'm fascinated by watching how things grow. Where I live water isn't an issue like it is in Phoenix as we have ample aquifers, but I'm considering some kind of rain retention to assist with watering. Roses and gardening are my main hobby so it is an indulgence. The big thing is that I've got this green, healthy space in a relatively dry area so every critter large and small wants in. That's a challenge.

This was last Spring, my first in the new garden I built.

Your garden is beautiful! Love the gate too! towanda, where did you buy the garden gate from?

@towandaaz So gorgeous! I love what you’ve done with your space.

@towandaaz I'm originally from Arizona and the desert there (both around Tucson and ther higher desert around the Verde Valley) will always be in my heart. So beautiful! My family still all lives spread around AZ and I haven't been able to visit in years. Your photos of your gorgeous garden bought me much joy this morning.

I did a little rainwater harvesting when I lived in Tucson and there are so many great resources and organizations in Arizona to get one started! I wanted to do more but then I moved to the PNW. Rainwater harvesting and gray water harvesting are such a great practice to support the water table and save you money while supporting beautiful gardens. If you get something set up I hope you share here. I look forward to seeing more photos of your roses this year 😊

Towandaaz, lovely garden, and you did all that yourself? I love it when we can make our gardens an extension of the natural surroundings, and yours does it so well. Just beautiful. I would like to know about your gravel. I love smooth gravel, but it's not practical to drive on, and my husband will have to drive his ATV and mower over parts of it, so a crushed type is more practical. Yours looks like what I'm thinking about using. Can you tell me what it is and the size? Looks 3/4" to me. I can't decide if 3/4" or 5/8" would work best. I'm interested in anything you can tell me. The choices are endless. I had no idea it would be as difficult as choosing paint colors or kitchen fixtures.

Katherine, amen and amen to everything you said about Carol's kindness and encouraging words. She has an extra something that makes knowing her a joy. Carol, you are loved here.

Katherine and Flowers - awwwww, you two are such sweethearts (I almost typed "sweathearts" LOL)!!!! I am so moved by your kindness!!! What would I do without everyone here?? I'm so glad we're all "together." :) :) :) :) :)

Kitty - I'm in zone 3b (the other side of Calgary is zone 4). There was just a mix up where LaLa thought we were in the same zone...so I was surprised that she was in zone 3...she's the one who's in zone 7. :) :) :) I can only wish. Ha ha. :) Oh! So that means in the U.S. I would be a zone 2b? Yikes! Calgary was rezoned to a zone 4 (south side) a few years ago. But, maybe in a few years I'll be a zone 4. I've planted some zone 4 perennials...and they don't survive.

Katherine - I laughed when I read your: I’ve spent yeaaaars perfecting, dahhhling,” I can just imagine this!! LOL LOL I'm laughing again, because it was MY dog that poops in the pots!! He has to really get his but high up and lean against the pot. I just shake my head and laugh....what am I going to do, when I'm in the house and there's snow all around and my empty rose pots are sitting out there...and I see this silly dog. LOL :) Now I'm laughing again...because my husband is on poop patrol. LOL LOL

Kitty et al....believe me I'm laughing too! He won't do it if I'm outside with him though....he knows that he has to be sneaky about it. LOL He's like a spy leaving his secret message. LOL

Towandaaz - what a remarkable oasis!!! Your area that you created is very (I'm not knowledgeable about the right words to use) structural and bare in a very good way. It's almost a reflection of the desert (architectually with the tall bare walls, etc.), but spiced up with gorgeous flowers!! I love it!! I'm in awe!!

Towandaaz, you have really created something special. No wonder the critters want to move in with you.

Carol, you may be on to something

Maybe you could go on Shark Tank with your new puppy line of Poop In A Pot. Puppy training system, sold locally for $29.99. .

Kitty, I love your theme of a pastel English-Victorian Rose Garden. It just sounds magical. I have a Dappled Willow tree that I call my Fairy Tree. I wonder if you have a spot for one of those? It’s a dwarf tree so it’s only supposed to get 6-8 feet tall. I put solar tiny string lights on it and it’s wonderful.

I think you’ll like Munstead Wood. I have a few by the garden entrance and when the fragrance waifs it’s pretty special.

I tried to work with color combos in my garden. Don’t know how successful it will all be as it’s a work in progress. I also wanted the natural environment to feel connected so I did concrete block walls at each end to signal an entrance and then have privacy from our little road on the other end. Both of the other sides of the garden do have that open feel and are cloth mesh along with green wire fencing to let the air pass thru and get that feeling of connection and a continued natural environment.

Summersrhythm, the gate came from Artisian Gateworks out of Houston. When the door's open it creates a groovy pattern on the wall.

LibrarianGardner, I hope you get to come back to AZ and visit. It’s funny, because my husband’s a born and raised Portlander with family still up that way so in more “normal” times we’re up that way a few times a year. I can tell you that Portland’s Rose Garden brings me much joy every June that we’re there for my Father-in-Law’s birthday. Have you been? I appreciate you sharing that you did rainwater harvesting. If you recall any good resources that you used I’d love to check them out.

Kristine could it work to use the standing water from the neighbors as a water feature? A pond with lilies or other water plants? You could possibly put a bridge over as a small crossing if it’s an area you need to cross? If all else fails, a chat with the neighbor on redirecting the water?

Flowers, I did do most of the work myself. I had some workmen help with building the walls, but I stuccoed, sealed and painted them myself. I also designed the whole space although the native trees laid the plan out for me our of necessity (no trees were cut down) and the gentle slope determined the raised bed areas. I hired “Vets for Hire” for a big hole digging and planting day which was amazing. They were incredibly hard-working men and delightful. The rest I did myself – that’s where I’ve been the last year rather than having fun on the Rose Forum! Haha The gravel is an interesting story as it is actually upcycled ceramic at 1/4 the cost of granite!! Here’s the story… I’m also a ceramic artist and a group of us went down to Phoenix to Mission Clay which is a ceramic sewer pipe company. Ceramic pipe was all that was used for sewer systems for a very long time as it lasts for up to 200 years under ground. When costs to the government became high, governments switched to plastic which only lasts approximately 20 years. So it seems ceramic pipes are making a slow come back. Anyway, there are some artists that use the plant to fire very large ceramic pieces and when our group was down there the tour person told us about the crushed ceramic. I had it trucked up to me and placed in my garden. I don’t think I can amply express how much this aspect touches me on multiple levels.

Erasmus, it sounds like you did a nice job. It’s so hard to know how big things will actually get because they don’t all grow exactly the way the tag reads! I swear I have a Madame Annisette in the shade that’s 12-13 feet tall. (Not sure what to do with that as it’s growing thru a tree! But, at least you made a part of your own property nicer and more private.

Katherine, I love how involved you are with your garden. I especially love the concrete and stone project you were working on. Love that!

RoseCanadian, can’t wait to see your roses this year.

Ashly, that’s a lot of trees. You go girl!

Seil, your dedication to your roses in your climate has been inspirational to me for quite some time now. You’re amazing.

Thanks all for your comments.

Love the animal photos and all the cool solar lights!

I'm doing potty training right now w our Great Pyrenees puppy. Maybe we could use some poopy puppy pots 🤣😅

She has the puppy pad thing down and pees on them but half the time she poops and misses the pad. This is at night.

During the day, she goes to the door if she wants out.

I hear you. Training a puppy is so hard.

Training a toddler is worse. I cant send her to the backyard to go.

Towandazz, our water issues is more like underground water that comes up like a marshland but no where near as cool. Eventually, we will build a raised deck over it so that area becomes usable.

Sadly the nextdoor neighbor passed away and her house with all of its issues is just sitting. I have a feeling that it is probably in probate.

I pray every time we have a wind story that her dead trees dont come crashing down on my house.

I wish all toddlers and puppies were kittens...they’re SO easy to train😭

Amen to that Oursteelers!

Perhaps a litter box would be just the ticket.

Kristine,

I will pay for Poop in a Pot Puppy Training-sounds unique! I love it! Lol! Next on my wish list!

Give your toddler M & Ms each time he/she uses the potty-they learn fast that way! Train in 1 day! Just like training a dog-give her a treat each time!

Rosecanadian,

You have a sneaky pup! Hmmmm.

I see-you are 3b. Ok... No Yves Piaget (zone 6 rose) for you, sorry. 😭You are doing an amazing job w/60 roses in pots in that cold... but you are brilliant bringing them inside. A greenhouse would be great for you-nice and warm.

Towandazz, Lovely landscape designs! Very polished! Love your gate making grovey designs in the light on the wall. Now a 12 ft Madame Anisette would. surprise me greatly! I read it was supposed to be 4 ft and I am still hunting to buy it. I don’t have your heat...so it won’t get as tall here In NY.,But your M Anisette is blows me away!

Towanda, thank you for the gravel - crushed ceramic - info. So interesting. I can see how that would be your number one choice for all the reasons you stated. Nothing like that is available here, but I wish there was a local source. It makes a gorgeous backdrop to your planters, fence and plants and fits in with your natural surrounds so well.

Kristine - I'd be rich...every home should have one!! Nestled in the corner of a room are my patented stylish pots. My dogs also like to pee on my rose pots...so they'll do double duty....just put some puppy pads underneath and voila!!! LOL

Twoandaas - truly inspiring!!! I'm in awe! So does the crushed ceramic have sharp edges?

Sultry - my pots are at your disposal...and for a small fee you can rent my weird dog as an example for your Great Pyrennes pup (must be darling!!!) :) :)

Kristine - yikes!!! That's scary about the trees! There must be a family member or a realtor trying to sell it that you can complain to??

Kitty - I'm sending my dog express to you right now. LOL Although he'll pee on your puppy too (He loves to pee on my other dog.) . And he'll drink water and come all the way across the room to shake it all over you. Sigh. :)

Rosecanadian, Oh, my goodness! Your pup is stellar funny! He pees on your other dog! I‘m going to be laughing about your pup for days!!!! Send her my way! My Anastasia needs a bath anyway! A pee bath, ah, well, um.. hmmmm... maybe she would prefer to stay in Canada?

Happy Gardening Lol!

Hi kitty,what gorgeous roses. If here in the UK.,I grew flowers that big they would soon fill with rain. A recommendation. In praise of Ballerina.

Hundreds of small hydrangea shaped flowers with a white centre and pink outer edging with a yellow stamen.An exceedingly long repeat flowering period.

Mine in a typically dreich english summer flowered from late May till early December. Bred by the late great David Austin who in any one year apparently

sowed a mind-boggling 350,000 new species of seeds,which after plant development ,an average of THREE were found to be suitable to be sold.

cheers

Bryan

Hi, Bryan,

Lovely post! Thank you! Do you have 100 hydrangeas? Flowering May-Dec is fantastic! Mine bloom summer-Nov. David Austin has made amazing contributions to our rose world.

Sorry Kitty,

after rereading my post I am afraid I have mislead you. Ballerina is a rose which has hydrangea type flowers. I hope you are well and covid free.

Frankly my garden is the only thing that's keeping me sane at the moment. I am trialling alfalfa pellets as a season long feed for my roses this year. They are not as well known as a soil improver over here as the appear to be in America. I always wear gloves when gardening. This was after a friend contracted weils disease which he caught after cutting his finger while in contact with the soil. As the symptoms initially are similar to that of a cold the illness wasn't diagnosed until the poor man collapsed and then spent the next six years in and of hospital whilst waiting for a heart transplant. I enjoy reading the New York Times its in depth analysis keeps me informed and is way ahead of the scandal sheets available here And the best part is the cost..I have just checked my account to be sure,its £2 every two weeks. Here's hoping for some normality, Kitty,bye

Kristine, a raised deck sounds really nice. Another project! Oh boy!

RoseCanadian, no, the ceramic granite has been tumbled so the edges aren’t sharp – thankfully.

Kitty - I know...he's the weirdest dog I've ever seen. When we go to the off-leash area...he hikes his butt up high, extends one back leg for extra height and poops OVER the middle horizontal fence bars and shoots his poop out of the park. I guess that's less poop for me to pick up. LOL Any treat I throw his way falls to the floor in case it's poison...then a sniff leads either to a walk away or a dainty pick up and swallow. My other dog won't let anything fall to the ground.

Bryan - Yikes!!! I have to try to remember to get a tetanus shot this year.

Towandaaz - yes, that's what I was hoping. :)

Rosecanadian, Ok, I’m going to laugh all night! Your pup wins the eccentric pooch of the year award! That’s quite a poopy trick over the fence! Wouldn’t we all love that!

My Anastasia is 2 1/2 years. She still does a dance in circles every time she goes 1 or 2. Do you think she will ever mature to just lift a leg? How old is your Zeph? (Female/male?)

How do you get your pups poodle energy out in cold winter when you have to stay inside? We run around in the car together and visit banks, Tractor Supply and Lowes to go walking. Snow is fun... but too cold for but a few minutes outside. She runs in my big house, too.

HU,

Lovely to hear from you in the UK.

Ballerina is a lovely polyantha anf it blooms well for you!

Normalcy-that we would all love! No more masks and pandemic-home bound. But we gardeners are blessed with roses and gardening indoors and outdoors. Fertilizer such as the alphalfa pellets are nice on the roses-they love the organics! Lovely therapy to keep us busy and happy!

I love The NY Times, too. I read a few other papers online, too. NY has it’s opportunities. I love the ballet and symphony! Hope to make it into NYC to see them and the NY rose gardens!!!!

You have the famous David Austin Gardens! Have you seen them or other great rose gardens in Europe. I have been to England once. Love to visit. Where are you located in UK?

Hey Kitty - I'll answer your questions on the Spring seasonal thread. :) :)