K@M Nurseries in MS

last year

I was wondering if anyone has any info about the K&M Nursery in MS. Are they still functioning (in business) ? Thank you!

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sultry_jasmine_nights (Florida-9a-ish)

last year

I googled and its about a 4 hr drive from me. So 8 hr round trip lol. I will have to figure out a time when I can go. Is this nursery open year around or only in the spring? I may be going that way early this summer anyways on another errand.

Spring is hard for me to leave for extended times because I have does kidding. This baby came just the other day!

He's so sweet!

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Artist-FKA-Novice Zone 7B GA
Original Author
last year
@forever_a_newbie_VA8

I just received some information from a member of the local rose society that Jim Mills might not be easily available these days because he is caring for a family member who is quite sick.
Artist-FKA-Novice Zone 7B GA
Original Author
last year
@Kristine LeGault 8a pnw

Do you mind if I asked you when you ordered the Dave Bangs?
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Excited! Going to K&M for my first Fortuniana roses on Saturday!
Q
Comments (9)
Well I went to visit Mr. Mills at K&M today. He was a very friendly man and patiently showed me all of his different roses. He has several huge rows of all the different plants he sells. Almost every bush was close to or taller than 6 feet, and none of them looked like sticks with a bloom on the end. They all had plenty of leaves and were very full. Even in July, almost all of them were covered in blooms. He had a small greenhouse where he has special varieties in large pots that he said his wife will be using for cut flowers. He also showed me his small greenhouse with all of his fortuniana stock. He showed me some small pots of some cuttings he said he started only a month ago, and you could already see the white roots growing out of the bottom of the pot. I don't know why it completely slipped my mind to take pictures! I was so busy trying to figure out which plants I wanted. I ended up not really getting much in the way of the old fashioned varieties, but went with his recommendations for plants that he liked the best and said performed the best. This is what I ended up buying: Bronze Star (AMAZING strong fragrance, beautiful color on a very large thick plant. This was in a 5 gallon but he gave it to me for the 2 gallon price) Neptune Gemini St. Patrick Elina (a creamy yellow--the best looking of all of his bushes in my opinion. Was the best looking as far as foliage and bush shape--I got 2 of these) Marlon's Day (a pinker sport of Moonstone) Hot Princess Medallion Heart of Gold Carolina Pride Jema There were so many beautiful plants, it was almost impossible to choose. I really would love to have a Peace on fortuniana, but he said he really doesn't grow those anymore because they just don't perform well. He also said he coming to an agreement with David Austin and will probably have them available next season, so I'm really looking forward to that. Mr. Mills said the difference between fortuniana and any other rootstock in the South is like night and day. I am really excited to see how it works for me. All the plants I got were covered in new growth with NO blackspot or any other blemishes. Several had blooms and buds. Even the couple of 1 gallon plants were quite large. It was interesting to see how much smaller the fortuniana stock is compared to the much thicker and knobby stocks like Dr. Huey. I can see why it is recommended to stake. Anyway, now I am really motivated to get my bed ready and am counting the days to plant out in the fall. That way I'll have almost 6 months of growth before next spring's first flush.
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where K&M
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Here is the article I put in the Mesa East valley Rose Society news letter. I live in Chandler with my wife and 3 year old son. We have over 120 roses and plan to add almost 30 more this winter which will put me at the max of my yard. When I began planting 2 years ago I included 5 roses on Fortuniana rootstock as a trial versus Dr. Huey rootstock. It only took a year for me to see that the performance of roses on Fortuniana far surpasses that of Dr. Huey. As a result, I only plant roses on Fortuniana rootstock. My work for NTCNA (Nissan Technical Center North America) requires me to travel frequently to our Titan/Armada manufacturing facility in Canton, Mississippi. On a recent trip, I had planned to fly home on a Friday morning but decided that I would stay late and go see K&M Nursery. This rose growing nursery is operated by James and Daisy Mills and one of the only places that roses can be acquired on Fortuniana. I left Jackson, Mississippi and drove 2 hours Southeast to Buckatunna. The farm is located on a small country road and can be identified only by a sign in front of the house. After pulling into the driveway I instantly knew I had arrived. Roses and greenhouses could be seen every where. I was met immediately by James and Daisy and their wonderful southern hospitality. James allowed me to tag along with him through his "rose farm". I had never experienced anything like it. Everywhere I looked I observed numerous roses at various stages of development. We began by walking through what was once his display garden. He has decided to no longer maintain this garden because his focus has shifted to exhibiting roses, his current passion. Unfortunately, this is a real loss; at its peak it was home to 1,000 roses, most of which were planted in rows on the side of a hill near the house. I could only imagine the beauty during a spring flush. Even with my untrained eye I knew we were surrounded by many potential Queens on these enormous bushes. In the heart of the display garden are the Fortuniana plants that are used for the rootstock. These plants are key to the K&M Nursery. (For more information on Fortuniana rootstock please see Dona MartinÂs article "An Overview of Rosa Fortuniana Root Stock"). Next, James and I moved to the greenhouses that contained the potted rootstock at different stages of development. The cuttings of the rootstock are placed in a special potting mixture and kept in the greenhouse until they have established roots. After this stage of development, these cuttings are grafted onto the rose wood by hand. This is where the rose variety that they wish to propagate joins the root characteristics of the Fortuniana plant. This grafting process is tremendously labor intensive and involves numerous instruments. Several cuts are made and the two parts are joined together to create the bud union. Once grafted and planted, the roses must be kept at temperatures below 90Â° F and a highly humid environment. K&M has hundreds of 1 gallon and 3 gallon roses of many varieties that are available for individuals to purchase. These particular roses must be kept off of the ground in order to prevent nematodes from getting into their soil. If nematodes are found during an inspection by the US Department of Agriculture the roses are not allowed to be shipped. Most of K&MÂs sales occur in the early part of the year, however; in Arizona we can plant in the fall in order to give the roses a jump start before the heat of summer ensues. Believe it or not, roses are not the highlight at K&M nursery (at least to those individuals who are not rose enthusiasts). The showstopper is James and DaisyÂs blueberries. They have several beautiful fields of this delectable berry. The blueberries are harvested at the end of May through the first of July. The harvesting, sorting, and packaging of the berries all occurs on the farm. If you ever have the pleasure of visiting James and Daisy, be certain to make a stop at the Buckatunna cafÃ©. Wow, they make really good southern food; ribs, chicken, potato salad, and spectacular banana pudding. After our filling lunch, we returned to the farm and discussed the roses that I should add to my garden. James had many helpful insights into what I should be adding to my garden and ideas on possible future bankers. I want to thank James and Daisy for their wonderful hospitality and precious time. I remain in awe of their skill and ability to grow such wonderful roses. It is their grassroots approach, unending love for roses, and passion for creating the next queen that has only confirmed my own passion for this "sport". The contact information is: K&M Nursery 1260 Chicora River Road Buckatunna, MS 39322 Phone: 601-648-2908 Fax: 601-648-2151 Email: millrose@netpathway.com Catalog: Free mail order list.
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Starting Nursery in MS. Help
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Comments (3)
Hey. Did you contact your local Extension Service Office? They should be able to assist you. If there is not one in your county, there will be one that serves a combined county area. You can also contact MS State as they are the ag college for the state. Go online to MS State and you may find what you need. They have an extensive horticulture program, trial gardens, etc. I live about 30 miles from MS State and have recently asked their assistance for my orchard and gardens. Also, I was born in MS but left when I was a teen. Inherited some land and decided to go back there....have found it very difficult as they do not have the laws, inspections, permitting, etc. that I am accustomed to. You will find it difficult to get the info you need because "no one knows anything" or they won't help. So, it's just best to go to the professors and Extension Agents at MS State. Good luck in your new endeavor!
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K&M Roses
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Comments (42)
I do love their rose sale though. Hope he has some hardy own root roses in the future. The $8 per own root rose is a great deal indeed. If you guys see him next time, would you please ask him to have some hardy own root roses, so the gardeners from the north also can support his sales. I'd be happy to buy from him in the future.
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forever_a_newbie_VA8
last year
Thanks Artist.
mojavemaria
last year
I inquired about a week ago and received a reply that roses will be available the end of October or November.
Artist-FKA-Novice Zone 7B GA thanked mojavemaria
Kristine LeGault 8a pnw
last year
K&M like so many other wonderful nurseries is basically a one

man ( woman ) show with elderly owners so sometimes tough to get replies.

I gave up trying to email and called but this was late spring and if he has family issues even that may take time. Super nice owners, I wish them the best.

Artist, I ordered .my Dave Bangs late spring and they were out of my top picks but they may have more now. Those roses are pretty popular so keep checking on availability.

Shipping for me is too pricey so I will be happy with the ones that I have. Both are wonderfully healthy and bloomy .
strawchicago z5
last year
Artist-FKA-Novice Zone 7B GA Firefighter does well as own-root in an air pot. I bought it from Roses Unlimited this mid-May, and it gave me over 10 blooms in a 7-gallon pot. It got too big, so I transferred to a 12-gallon air pot. So far zero blackspots after 2 days of rain and 90% humidity as of 9/15/22.

I mixed in pelletized lime with potting soil, and constantly top with such. Firefigher HATES salty granular fertilizer (even organic chicken manure) and prefers to be watered with sulfate of potash and alfalfa tea.
forever_a_newbie_VA8
last year
Artist,

Firefight is also one of the roses I requested. Did they reply whether they have it? thanks
ann beck 8a ruralish WA
last year
I am certainly sending prayers and good thoughts to Jim and his family, I would hate to lose him or his knowledge. I talked to him about a week ago. He sent me 4 wonderful ownroot gallon old DA's. He is has a long list of Old Austins on ownroot. They will be listed by AUS designation as the real names are trademarked. He is growing them to 1 gallons. He is very overwhelmed with the amount of demand and his available list was changing daily and even hourly.

He would appreciated any cuttings of show roses that people could send him for budding to Fortuniana as he lost lots of his show rose stock. He also would love old DA cuttings to root, since they are saving his nursery after losing his rootstock and now many of his overstock. Call him to send them. He is hoping that next year he will have more DA's to keep up with demand.

forever_a_newbie_VA8 How are your propagations skills? I have Firefighter and it is off patent. It is not super easy to root being a HT. (High Country has it too in the spring.)
forever_a_newbie_VA8
last year
ann @ann beck 8a ruralish WA

thanks for asking me. I consider myself a little better than newbie regarding rose propogation. I was able to root a couple costco roses. one fake tiffany, and one coral noid hybrid tea.

How did you find out high country will have fire fighter in spring? Their site only shows out of stock.

If you have extra firefighter cuttings, I would love to give a try. I am willing to send any cost. Thanks so much!
forever_a_newbie_VA8
last year
so sorry to hear about Jim losing root stocks. I hope things will turn better for them
susan9santabarbara
last year
IIRC, he experienced a huge flood a few years ago that wiped out a lot of his stock.
ann beck 8a ruralish WA
last year
K&M had constant rain this year and wiped out most of his overstock too!

forever_a_newbie_VA8 Firefighter is one that HCR almost always carries. He doesn't stock until around Jan. I would call him and ask if you are really counting on it. Otherwise, now is a fairly good time to root a rose.
forever_a_newbie_VA8
last year
@ann beck 8a ruralish WA

Ann, I ordered a few roses from HCR and am eagerly waiting. I actually called them a few times, adding roses, changing orders. Just called them a 2 hours ago changing the delivery date. I feel awkward to call again. But it is great to hear they often carry firefighters and probably will restock it next January. Considering they have a few roses I really would like to order but currently out of stock, I definitely will check back next spring.

Thanks so much for the help.
librarian_gardner_8b_pnw
last year
Forever, if you're thinking of buying from HCR in the spring, look for their gift card sale in December.....you can buy a gift card at a discount and then use it to order roses when they fill their stock in January. It was a great way for me to affordably try a bunch of roses.
Meg-zone8aOR
last year
last modified: last year
HCR has a 20% off coupon code right now (for in-stock roses) FALL20
forever_a_newbie_VA8
last year
librarian: thanks for the tip. I will definitely do so in December

Meg: I just missed the sale by a couple days! well, by ordering early hopefully I might get better plants :)
Kimberly Wendt (Florida Z. 10b)
last year
Update for discussion. As of today, Jim at K&M in Mississippi is still in business and growing roses. Just celebrated his 80-something birthday last week. Last week, he sent me 4 Austins (out of patent). I was so impressed with the plants - I just ordered 4 more. The shipping is pricy, but he is shipping plants, not bareroots. The base charge per DA plant is less, there's a $6 box charge for every 2, and then the actual shipping via UPS. Overall, it's a couple dollars more, but I get actual plants in pots, and on fortuniana. Good deal.
sultry_jasmine_nights (Florida-9a-ish)
last year
Which Austins did you get?
Kimberly Wendt (Florida Z. 10b)
last year
@sultry_jasmine_nights (Florida-9a-ish) Heritage, Pat Austin, Charlotte, Gen. Gardener, Tess, Abr. Darby, Scepter'ed, Molineux - all told. He has on hand right now: Benj. Britten, Mary Rose, The Pilgrim.
Lilyfinch z9a Murrieta Ca
last year
Sigh .

i am still waiting for any reply .. i dont mean to be impatient but i have to set money aside and it was either order from him or the jalberts i want from chamblees . i am hoping he has st cecilia ( and evelyn but who isnt hoping haha )

i did email and i left two very friendly voicemails and theres not much else i can do .

ive gotten wonderful plants from him before ! i hope to again . i dont even need them shipped right away , i just want to know .
sultry_jasmine_nights (Florida-9a-ish)
last year
last modified: last year
Kimberly you hit the jackpot!

I tried to get Evelyn from them a few years but they were always out. It did take a long time to get replies via email.

I have several fortuniana rose plants now thanks to pulling off suckers from my fort grafted Abes & planting them lol. I have a few Evelyns on Doc Huey so I have decided to start grafting my own fort roses of the varieties I want.
Kimberly Wendt (Florida Z. 10b)
last year
@Lilyfinch z9a Murrieta Ca, I know he does not have St. C ready to go yet, and I think he might have sold out of evelyns. He can't keep them in stock. If those are the only two you want from him right now, I'd go ahead and order from Chamblees...
Kimberly Wendt (Florida Z. 10b)
last year
last modified: last year
There's a tampa nursery with NO website, and as far as I know.. .no shipping. Reported to sell out of patent Austins on Fortuniana. The Tampa Rose Society people mention them. I'm going to track them down and see what else I can get. It's only.. .what... 3 or 4 hours from me? ROAD TRIP!!! lol. The Yelp/Yahoo listing has comments from people that they HAVE roses on Fortuniana (HTs, FLs and such it looks like from the pictures).

EDIT for info: That Tampa Nursery is Hardin's. No website, and only open on weekends?

Address: 6011 S Dale Mabry Hwy, Tampa, FL 33611
Hours: Closed ⋅ Opens 8 AM Sat

Phone: (813) 839-6151

Any Tampa rosarians on here? Can you confirm this info?
Kimberly Wendt (Florida Z. 10b)
last year
Also FYI, I talked to one of the owners at Nelsons Florida's Roses yesterday - they seem to be the main supplier of Fortuniana grafted roses for nurseries. (Doesn't sell to public) She said that they only graft Abraham Darby. Every now and then they will graft Tamora, if asked for it (ordered). That's it. She says that in her experience, it is too hard to keep Austin's in Florida, too hot and humid. (I was like really? Hum.). So now I'm looking in to Southern California nurseries.... lol.
Sunny Mississippi 8a
last year
last modified: last year
@Lilyfinch z9a Murrieta Ca I was at K&M Monday and he has plenty of Evelyns. The ones I saw were all 1 gallon plants. They may have had 2 gallon available too. I also saw some Judes.

There were literaly thousands of roses. I spent about four hours on the property going through the greenhouses and checking out what they had and I still didn't get through all the houses before I needed to leave. I saw all the Austins @Kimberly Wendt (Florida Z. 10b) mentioned above plus the Evelyns and Judes.

There were also a significant number of roses I saw that were not listed on their website. Of those not listed I grabbed a Bliss, Wild Blue Yonder, and some OGRs they don't have listed: Vicktoria, Francis DeBrueil, Mrs BR Cant, Spice, Baronne Prevost, and Clotide Soupert. They had more OGRs and none are currently listed on their website.

This is obviously a great time to order because they have a ton of everything!

@Lilyfinch z9a Murrieta Ca when you call, make sure you call Mr. Jim's number (listed on the website) first thing in the morning. Go to the "About" page then scroll to "Contact". His number is the second listed. They never answer the office phone bc they are always pulling orders, etc.

I also saw Earth Angel, Bolero, Francis Meilland, and Princess Charlene de Monaco as some off the top of my head that are in stock but not mentioned on the website.
Sunny Mississippi 8a
last year
He actually has Fort Grafted AND Own Root roses available!
sultry_jasmine_nights (Florida-9a-ish)
last year
Where in MS is K&M nursery? North or South? If its south, it'd be a straight shot from me (I am in the FL Panhandle). It might be worth the trip.
BenT (NorCal 9B Sunset 14)
last year
last modified: last year
Sultry,

They’re in Buckatunna, about 70 miles north of Mobile AL
Kristine LeGault 8a pnw
last year
Now that's a cool name!
Kimberly Wendt (Florida Z. 10b)
last year
That is awesome! Thanks for the In Person report!
Kimberly Wendt (Florida Z. 10b)
last year
I’m guessing the Jude’s must have been own root…
Sunny Mississippi 8a
last year
@Kimberly Wendt (Florida Z. 10b) im not sure about Jude’s rootstock. I forgot whichgreenhouse I was in when i saw it. they had at least two greenhouses of own root if not more.

@sultry_jasmine_nights (Florida-9a-ish) if you make the drive get Liz to help you! she is amazing! And check out the greenhouse that has for sale 3-Gallon roses (too big to ship). K&M is a five-hr round trip for me. I hope it is a reasonable distance for you. I highly recommend packing a pair of short rainboots for romping around the property.

For those of you interested in roses by the breeder Steve Rousell, I saw a few Liz’s Charm roses.
Sunny Mississippi 8a
last year
I think i also saw a Falstaff
Sunny Mississippi 8a
last year
And Easy Spirit
Kristine LeGault 8a pnw
last year
Easy Spirit is an awesome rose.
Kimberly Wendt (Florida Z. 10b)
last year
Soooo… Must be that he doesn’t ship the 1 gallons (like you said) just the two gallons. That may be why he said he ‘didn’t have any’ Jude, St. C or Evelyn’s when he and I spoke. I wish I was closer!

I have a question tho. Why is it that ppl are crazy for Evelyn?
BenT (NorCal 9B Sunset 14)
last year
last modified: last year
Kimberly

K&M does indeed ship one gallons, I’ve received them before. In fact, he is only permitted to ship one gallon to California due to agricultural restrictions. But perhaps the current crop of 1 gallons is too young to ship.

I like Evelyn because I think she is one of the few Austins that stands up to a hot Southern summer, the majority fade/crisp/fall apart too fast for me. The bloom is especially large, the form complex and beautiful. The scent is strong and delightfully peachy. The plant grows strongly and repeats well.

Edited to add: I spoke to Mr Mills today (Feb 23) and he said he is all out of Evelyn…he told me everyone in the country wanted one!

Sunny

Your report is much appreciated!
oursteelers 8B PNW
last year
Sultry, I’m in love!!!
Kristine LeGault 8a pnw
last year
AWWW Sultry what an adorable baby. What a sweet face. I would never leave the barn.
oursteelers 8B PNW
last year
For me, this is why. She is absolutely stunning. Fragrance is awesome but the blooms are so romantic, so perfect. There are a lot of beautiful, beautiful roses but I believe she is the Queen
sultry_jasmine_nights (Florida-9a-ish)
last year
Thanks Our steelers & Kristine. If you can find a goat yoga class near you (apparently really popular now), I highly recommend going. If nothing else, just for the baby goat snuggles & laughter. They are like little puppies all over you and nibbling on your clothes, hair, ears lol. Heck if I know how they would get any yoga done, with all crazy baby goat fun. You can feel the stress just melt away when you hold these little guys. They are comical to watch with their crazy antics, hops & skips.

Our Steelers, Wow that is gorgeous!
Kristine LeGault 8a pnw
last year
Oursteelers that is phenomenal

No wonder that Evelyn is so popular .

I lived in Mountlake Terrace back in the early 90s and had a 3 bedroom apartment and paid $350 a month. I cant even imagine what that apartment would rent for now.
oursteelers 8B PNW
last year
Kristine, rent is just bonkers right now.

My oldest son just rented a loft studio apartment in Redmond (which admittedly is crazy expensive) for 2800!!!!

I about died.
Kimberly Wendt (Florida Z. 10b)
last year
last modified: last year
Our Steelers.... oh my, that is ONE gorgeous rose! No wonder people want Evelyn. Sigh... She goes on my short list... At this rate, I have to purchase the house next door, bulldoze it, and plant the property just to hold all these roses I want to grow now. You all are feeeeeeeeeeddddddding the addiction! lol

$2,800 studio loft? Seriously? wow. Where do people that work in retail or hospitality live?
Sunny Mississippi 8a
last year
@BenT (NorCal 9B Sunset 14) to be honest the reason i spent four hours at K&M and didnt get to all of the greenhouses is not many roses were blooming. I had to search by finding the ID tag of every rose I came across. They were partly in alphabetical order, but quite mixed around too. And i kept finding roses that were not listed on their website. If you call back in a month or so once the roses start blooming, Im sure he will be able to find the Evelyns. I saw at least four in a sea of thousands of green plants. There were only a few Judes. Once the roses start blooming it will help! Maybe you could get on a waitlist? Not sure if they do that or not..
Sunny Mississippi 8a
last year
@sultry_jasmine_nights (Florida-9a-ish) the nursery is open year-round. I usually go late fall October when many roses have already been soldout. But you get to see all of the mother plants in bloom then. And what an adorable kid! I need some snuggles!
Kristine LeGault 8a pnw
last year
Sunny, whenever I dream of moving, it is to .Mississippi.

Ancestors from Natchez and Hattiesburg.

The humidity would probably be hard on this old gal but I bet that my skin would be lovely .lol
Ken Wilkinson
last year
K&M is a great nursery. I have been dealing with them for a long time. I just received 2 Crystalline's from them a few weeks ago.

Kimberly Went----Scepter d' Isle is one of my favorite Austins. I have 2 bush's of it. One is 4 years old and the other is 16 years old. On Fortuniana it gets very large. Give it room. Here it a photo of my 16 year old bush.
Kimberly Wendt (Florida Z. 10b)
last year
last modified: last year
Hi Ken, Thanks for the tip. Lovely picture of your rose bush! I've got Scepter'd in the plan for a 5' space. That's 1' bigger than the listed 'width'. There's room for it to spill out a bit onto the path and back towards the bird bath. I love the look of it and hope it does well. I also love the look of Sharifa Asma, but haven't found it yet...

K@M Nurseries in MS

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Artist-FKA-Novice Zone 7B GAOriginal Author

Artist-FKA-Novice Zone 7B GAOriginal Author

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