dulci I'm so happy for you, yes the Lord will lead you though. I'm not on the site very much anymore because I just don't have the time. But was looking around today and saw your wonderful porch. (before) and then read your story. God can always find someone worse off them myself and your story has just inspired and renew me. (I guess I was setting here at work feeling sorry for myself) I too have a wonderful Daughter and three grandchildren but her choice of men has not been the best so I moved them into my home. Seems all I pay for is Attoney fee for her and now one for the grandchildren. Ex is really bad man, But I know that God will find and end to this 2 year battle where we all can be happy in the end. Sorry. Just wanted to say God Bless you and please keep the pictures coming. I so enjoy watching your progress. I agree with Seamommy on the PURPLE DOOR AWARD God bless Betty from Indiana

Here is an idea. If you see rose rosette in a public place, and can't stop, can't find an email etc. Send them literature through fax. There are free online fax services. I called the nursing home but my calls were never returned, so I sent a fax. I have a fax machine at home so it was easy. If they have an email, send an attachment. This way they can't forget, or ignore what you say. Hopefully they will pay attention. It bothers me to see it in public places, so I have made it a point to take a few minutes of my time to try and do something.

In my case, about 2 months or maybe a little longer. I'm really not good with pots, but two years ago I was keeping my Rogue Valley mystery roses in their band pots to see what they were before planting them. They really seemed to sulk in the bands and only took off with new growth and (eventually) blooms once I got them in the ground. Part of my trouble in keeping them in the bands is that I am inconsistent at spending time in the garden, so I have to keep the bands in trays where I water the bottoms, and after a while the soil gets musty smelling in this treatment. As I said, I'm not good with pots. In my world, there's nothing inherently wrong with keeping them in the band pots as long as circumstances allow if that's what happened for one reason or another. The rose will sulk and not grow (like mine) if it wants more room to spread out or nutrition, or the roots will start coming out the bottom of the pot if they outgrow the band. Either way, if the rose is still surviving there's nothing wrong that can't be fixed by transferring it in a larger pot or in the ground. A lot of folks transition bands to larger pots to encourage them to spread out, but there are some cases where the rose will sulk at first if it's in too big of a container. New cuttings or really small bands might be best just left where they are to make sure they truly have good roots before transitioning them anywhere. Bottom line is - no need to be ashamed. If you kept those bands alive for whatever period, you're doing well, and nothing stops the rose from doing even better whenever you get it transitioned to where it's going. Roses are tough critters - they don't always arrive when it's convenient for doing something with them, so it's OK to let them handle less than ideal conditions if needed! Cynthia

I'm bad at following directions, so sorry - out of 130 roses, I HAVE to list two instead of just one. This year, I am somewhat surprised to see that my favorites are oldies ... but goodies. With many special new additions, and fabulous DA's, and some rare and hard to get - my two fav's this year are those that can be found anywhere - Crimson Glory (#1), and Fragrant Cloud (#2) My criteria is: 1. M U S T be fragrant, VERY fragrant 2. Must have dealt well with the crazy heat we have 3. Must have good, solid repeat 4. Must have healthy foliage 5. Must have beautiful bloom form These two meet all those and more. Crimson Glory - I realize I keep taking bush shots and need to get some individual bloom shots, as they are fabulous. The repeat is intense - it's always covered in blooms, of gorgeous, classic HT form. Fragrance is heavenly. Bush is very healthy. This is the only rose I have 3 of. Fragrant Cloud - form is even better than CG, blooms are voluptuous, scent is strong (maybe a little odd for some - I wasn't sure I liked it at first, but it has definitely grown on me). The intense deep orange color, while maybe loud for some, is breathtaking to me. The only thing that lags a bit is repeat is slower than CG. And the only other issue is, what crazy person named a bright orange rose "cloud"? Shouldn't it be white?!