I love the roses, wishing well and the Mickey shaped design. Last time when I was on you were looking for a house. I am glad you found your house.

Thank you jjpeace! Yep took me a year but I finally found the house I wanted...

Thanks Lilyfinch!

Thanks Kristine...Double Red still holding on...lol

Oso Easy Double Red bloom lasted 10 days on bush... 6/17/2022.... (own-root band) planted mid May 2022...

The rose bush appears to be growing vigorously at the present time... 2 basal breaks noted...No fertilizer used,,,

Oso Double Red own root band... Arrived May 2022

Try some fertilizer, Jim, and this rose will explode. I am impressed by its growth and nice bush shape, not to mention how long the blooms last. It would be interesting to see what happens after some rocket fuel fertilizer. I gave my Rouge Royale some extra fertilizer after the deer chewed it to pieces, and it's on fire with growth. I'm amazed because I used just a little extra Miracle Grow which I have little faith in. I use mostly organic stuff, which of course, takes longer to break down and be absorbed and used by the roses. I love what you're doing with your new garden, and it paid off to be particular when house hunting. Congrats. Nanadoll

Jim - I'm so happy that you've started growing roses and plants again. :) :) Everything looks great!

Nanadoll, with these baby band own roots I like to let them grow awhile before fertilizing... Sometimes I don't even fertilize them there first season...

If the temps stay a bit mild I might give them some liquid fish fertilizer this week or next ...

Esp "At Last" and Sunorita...

I'm giving all three roses rain water only...I collect rain water in a barrel..

Jim, Nice journal of your new home and gardening! You do a nice neat and finely detailed job of your beds and projects! Love your well and everything is so neatly manicured. Love to hear mire about how you avoid soraying? What di you do about aphids, JB, sawflies? Love your pucture stages if each bloom!

SUNORITA own root band today 6/23/22

AT Last own root band today... 6/23/22

Wishing well... 6/26/22

I'm still in the thinking stage with the front of the house so this year planted 3 shrubs that get yellow flowers during the summer... Sizes (2) of them 3x3 and one will be like 3-4ft...They are growing well... I put some begonia flowers in the front they are not growing well inspite of being fertilized...NOTICE how big the container plant is compared to the in ground plants in front...same plant just much bigger in container...... And there is a coleus plant stuck in there...

Begonias... small in ground..large in pot..They like that potted soil...lol..Excuse the finger...lol

yellow flower that will be on this Kodiak BlackDiervilla rivularis... sixe 3-4ft

This is Kodiak FRESH Diervilla rivularis... yellow flowers also... 3x3ftsize

Backyard when I moved into this house in July of 2021...

Slowly getting things together,,,Backyard 6/27/22

6/29/22

Widened the area around OSO Easy Double Red today and added some edging...Also had to make a larger cage as it has grown fairly fast..

Planted 7 begonias in the ground... 4 out front 3 in the back yard...

Planted alittle over 5 weeks ago but have shown no growth inspite of being fertilized with flower tone and fish fertilizer...one begonia was pot planted and it is growing very well and is much larger..kept more in shade than others..

I recently pulled up the 3 begonias in the backyard and noted no root growth at all since being planted 5+weeks ago.....

Gave them to my neighbor to pot up...

Ok so i started thinking they are getting too much sun and possible soil not nutrient dense enough... Out front Begonias, getting 6 hours of direct sunlight..

So, for last 5 days or so been only giving them 3.5 hours of direct sunlight from 7am-10:30Am.. Then I shade them until 1-2pm then take off the shading material and they receive bright light only for the rest of the day... They are starting to respond with new leaves etc. so must be on to something...lol

NOTE: I placed the larger Begonia that is growing well in a pot out front for 5 days with 6 hours of sun... kept well watered.. Green leaves started turning a bit bronze and were burning around the edges.. so too much sun...So in ground begonias just getting too much direct sun..

My first time growing begonias and first time growing at my new location...Lesson learned...lol

Ive grown begonias under an awning with no direct light and they have done great.

Kristine LeGault, I had my potted begonia under a awning and it does great too...

I just wanted to try the begonias out front to see here in my new location ...now i know..lol

NOTE: planted three Dreamland zinnias in a 14" pot... those are getting powdery mildew..

single ones planted in ground by themselves are clean...

These putunia type looking flowers..Can't think of name... But they seem to be doing well in its container so far...

NOTE: sawfly (rose slug) damage seen on OSO Easy Double Red... 7/3/22 or alittle before this date...

No insect damage seen yet on Sunorita or At Last roses...

Letting it go for now to see how bad it gets...

Jim, I think those petunia looking flowers are calibrachoa. I really like them. They have a longer bloom season than petunias, require less dead heading, and don't get rangy so fast as petunias, which often require pruning to shape them up and start them reblooming again.

I'm sorry about those rose slugs, and very glad we don't get them here. What can you do about them? Nanadoll

Diane, lol...

Thats it calibrachoa.. thanks!

As for the rose slugs... I'm going let them go for now because I like to see what I'm dealing with here in my NEW location.. AT my OLD location I had two types...Common Rose slugs which were gone by the end of june or early July.. But I also had the curled rose slug which were there until October if not dealt with...

I remember the first couple years of growing roses...lol... I had no idea what Rose Slugs were but they completely stripped my roses of leaves... :-O It was that bad! lol

Now, normally this size of rose bush I would of removed the rose slugs as soon as I seen the first sign of damage with my fingers or a blast of water ......

I did see birds pecking at my leaves so maybe they already took care of them...

Note: 7/6/22 potted zinnias (3) got wiped out with powdery mildew... I did not spot the disease in time...Tried milk formula and baking soda.... to late...

zinnias were crowded...NOTE: can not do that here unless carefully watched and prevention taken.. or action needs taken right away in very early stages.....

NOTE: single planted Zinnias in ground doing well.. No PM as of 7/6/22

zinnia is Dreamland type

Zinnias, I am having a super slow start eith my seeds that went in the ground Mothets Day

The ones that I bought have been feeding something, maybe slugs

Such a dissapointing zinnia year

One whole packet feed the birds so I didnt get any zinnias from those seeds

Jim , I will be enjoying yours.

I'm thinking zinnias probably like it in the ground better than pots. But, of course, the birds get the seeds direct sown into the ground. My friend, Elaine, starts masses of zinnias from seed under lights in the house. Then she has to wait for warm weather to plant them out. This year was a long wait. That's way too much labor for me, but it's the only dependable way to grow them here. Diane

Diane and Kristine, I bought my zinnias at our local greenhouses...Did not want to mess with seeds...lol

NOTE: Transplanted yellow flowered Zinnia covered in powdery mildew from the pot into the ground off by itself... 7/7/22.... Took off any dead looking leaves etc...

Tossed the other 2 zinnia plants into the trash..

Using large umbrella to shade... Experimenting: with GROWER’S ALLY FUNGICIDE... spray covered the zinnia leaves tops and bottoms 7/7/22...will repeat tomorrow early morning per directions..

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B09DPRRTRT?psc=1&ref=ppx_yo2ov_dt_b_product_details

NOTES:

AT LAST (7/9/22)... No insect damage or disease noted...

Leaves very nice... Has produced alot of buds for a small rose...

Growth rate...slow to medium

Blooms...so far petals lasting 2-3 days on the bush...

SUNORITA rose... 7/9/22

No insect damage or disease noted...

Leaves clean and very shiny...

Growth rate: slow to medium

Blooms so far lasting 5-6 days on bush...

OSO Easy Double Red (7/9/22)

minor rose slug damage...noted no action taken... No disease noted:

Growth rate: fast

Blooms last 8-10 days on bush....

Zinnia with powdery mildew is recovering...

Transplanted from pot into ground... Shaded and sprayed twice with GROWER’S ALLY Fungicide...

Jim, things are looking good for you--you are such a meticulous gardener. It's true for many that zinnias are prone to powdery mildew. I found asters had the same problem. These plants need sun and plenty of room in the ground to grow. I wish I had room for some zinnias, but we can't have it all. I hope your roses continue to thrive. Mine are really cooked, and 100s arrive in a day or so. Still, I'd say Julia Child is handling the temps about the best of all. Diane

Note: Never plant begonias in front of house...lol

too much morning sun @ 6 hours... Cut back sun to 3.5 hours by shading... Still alittle to much...

New green leaves bronzing around edges,,, cutting direct morning sun back to 2.5-3 hours..

Note: same type of begonia but potted and kept under a roof on my back balcony...

Growing and blooming very well.. :-) NOTE: may use these potted on back balcony next year...

I love the second photo. These are so beautiful under the right conditions. I just don't plant begonias at all in our awful heat, sun, and dry air. Some climates aren't begonia friendly (100F today). Diane

Diane, these type of begonias would fry in your heat for sure...toast...lol...100 degrees! :-O

Note: my in ground zinnias single planted show hints of powdery mildew...Dreamland series...

Sprayed them all with GROWER’S ALLY fungicide... 7/13/22

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B09DPRRTRT?psc=1&ref=ppx_yo2ov_dt_b_product_details

Note: checked in ground zinnia today (7/15/22 after spraying GROWER’S ALLY fungicide 7/13/22... Zinnias leaves are looking good! Caught PM early..only on 1 leaflet... Sprayed entire plant..

Note: All 3 roses have blooms on the bush...Note: letting them bloom as much as

they want now... Note: Was cutting off 98% of buds up until this point... 7/14/22

SUNORITA rose.... 7/14/22....

Note: rose petals are lacking in petal number... that should improve as plant ages...

At Last rose... 7/14/22

At Last

Jim those are nice cages, I need to make some like that.

I just buy fencing and make my own...thanks berrypiez6b

NOTE: Calibrachoa planted in pot mid May still going strong...

Jim, those plantings are so gorgeous and healthy looking, just perfect for the wishing well. I like calibrachoa better than most petunias. There are both cal and pet in this planting which has grown a lot bigger since this July4 photo was taken. Diane

Jim this is also charming! Love these latest pictures. Diane, yours arent too shabby either!

😉Ive kept meticulous notes for years and have really been thankfull at time thats the case as my memory, while good, isnt infallible!!! I now use HMF, but still write the salient purchases and notes in my journal for a hard copy back-up.I also keep the tags and some old catalogues in a bag, but I think your system is better and neater!!! Besides pics of my Dad, the worst part of losing all my photos from Google, was losing the documentation Ild been so careful to catalogue. It was such a humongous change and so much work, but I have nothing to prove it! LOL!!! I probably should make a Houz album, but I dont trust that either.

Thanks Diane and Vaporvac...

Nice photo Nanadoll....

What I like about the Calibrachoa is no deadheading needed and they are not sticky like petunias...

I was thinking about removing At Last rose next Spring because it drops its petals so fast...And placing it in a large pot..

Planted At Last in Mid May as a own root baby band... After watching it grow and bloom since then I think I'm going give her a chance in the ground...I'm sort of surprised with all the buds its been producing for such a small rose bush...It has grown on me...lol

Time will tell!

I agree time will tell, and this is a baby rose, which I think is doing very well. That's a lovely photo, too. You've come a long way in such a short time at your new place. Diane

Sunorita rose bloom today... 8/5/22

Front of house going take a couple years to fill out...Those tiny bushes in front of Coleus (Kodiak Fresh) will be 3x3ft and another bush (Kodiak Black) toward the forefront will fill out the area...

Still deciding what more to put in this area next Spring..

Begonias now doing very well out front...

Kodiak Black

First bloom of season on my new Elfin Swan... 8/5/22

Thanks for the detailed progress pics and descriptions, Jim. I have been interested in those Oso Easy roses for a while. I just got an Italian Ice rose to replace a Lady Emma Hamilton rose that grew backwards and died.

Your zinnias are really beautiful and lush! I have a planter box with "Peppermint" zinnias grown from seed on my balcony in full sun. No hint of any disease, but they are prone to wilting and frying leaves on hot summer days. I never grew them before, so I didn't realize they may still need a tiny bit of shade. (Edited to clarify - Not that they don't like the sun, but they have a ton of leaves per stem, and they will wilt and brown if they get too dry.)

Thanks Steve...

Sometimes we have some learning to do when we try new plants that's for sure...

My OSO Easy double red blooms last 8-10 days on bush so even though its young it has had blooms on it most of the time here...And its growing fast here in my soil and climate...I'm not sure of its disease resistance yet here but so far so good...

Good luck with the Italian Ice rose...Let me know how it does...Thanks!

What State you gardening in?

Yes, I like that Oso Easy Double Red. I nearly bought it, but I was trying to focus on more fragrant roses given my limited space. (The hot summer months have kept both bloom count and fragrance down, but I am hoping late summer and fall will bring a reward.)

I'm in eastern PA, so climate is likely very similar to yours, but a bit warmer.

I will post at some point how the Italian Ice rose does. It's a little 8" baby right now, though it has 2 buds about to open and 1 hip developing! I have to keep it in a protected spot until it gets a little stronger.

Sometimes we have some learning to do when we try new plants that's for sure...

Jim, the master of understatement!😆

Jim, I just got an email from Proven Winners (I'm on their mailing list because they send out good stuff with lots of photos). They featured several stunning photos of Oso Easy Double Red. My favorite showed the rose massed in front of a narrow deck with the backs of some cute red deck chairs showing above the roses. Of course, that kind of massing would take more than one rose. There was a lovely photo of Italian Ice, too. If I had the space, I'd try Double Red.....And what is Elfin Swan exactly? I'm going to google that one because it has such an interesting look. Diane/nanadoll

Elfin Swan windflower...Nanadoll

https://www.google.com/search?q=elfin+swan+windflower&sxsrf=ALiCzsYsvks6Ba3kWZPihyZJ5Op7FUu9ZQ:1659812204113&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwjc8Mam8rL5AhV8F1kFHflvBgIQ_AUoAnoECAEQBA&biw=1280&bih=631&dpr=1.25

Thanks, Jim. Diane

Took a pic of one of my OSO Easy Double Red blooms and noticed it was full of rose slugs...I cut it off and inspected then trashed into garbage...

Yup rose slugs actually hatched inside my bloom.. And they were eating my bloom...

Well, I can't like that, Jim. We don't have rose slugs, and I wonder if you have a photo of an actual slug, so those of us who don't know much about them can see one. Double Red is a favorite rose of mine, and that's so awful seeing the damage the slugs do. Diane/nanadoll

Look closely at the bloom pic and you will see a few crawling around. Here in the east end of the state, we get the bristly roseslug sawfly. They breed multiple times per year, and they are quite relentless. I have been able to keep them mostly in check this year with insecticidal soap spray. Last year, I tried not to spray anything but water, and the defoliation was getting out hand.

lol Nanadoll on not liking.. I been battling with these little demons since 2008...lol..so no surprise they are here at my new location... lol

I remember way back when I noticed most of my rose leaves had disappeared...lol...Thats when I discovered my first rose slugs... Its like what are these little Houdini's from (HE) double toothpics...lol

In the past I have used insecticidal soap and Spinosad with success if it was needed..

I have never seen the bristly roseslug here Steve Mazza...The Common and curled rose slugs are around here...

Rose slugs are alot easier to deal with then say rose midge, JB's, thrips etc... So that is a good thing... :-)

Yes, Jim, thrips are a nasty piece of work, and only a few of my roses get them for reasons unknown. If thrips affected all my roses, I wouldn't grow roses. That's how I feel about RRD, too, which we don't have here. It's a game changer for growing roses. Diane/Nanadoll

Nanadoll, I had thrips, rose midge, etc. at my other location so it was not fun...lol...My old location is only 4 blocks from my new location here...Hope i can hide from them here..lol