Olga, you should write a rose book for the Mid-Atlantic, your information is INVALUABLE I swear. Even as anecdote, this is highly likely to be true. Perhaps you could collaborate with Molineux, and your colleagues nearby in northern Virginia (& perhaps a few in the Philadelphia, &/or southern New Jersey/Delaware area). You would at the least provide very significant info. to rose breeders elsewhere curious to know what their rose progeny face in "ground zero" for blackspot. ;) (Nothing like suggesting work for others, is there? ;) ) (My very humid climate is also very subject to blackspot, but unlike in the Philadelphia area I note that here the disease appears to be more spotty in its severity. The warm/sticky portion of the summer here is much less long, lasting typically only from early-mid July through mid-August, and even then normally only in spurts during that time. In a warm year without spraying symptoms normally first appear within a week or two of the burst of bloom at the end of the late spring/early summer, but in other years symptoms may not appear until mid-July, and then fade out by the end of August as long as an organic fertilizer such as "Rose Tone" is regularly applied according to recommendations (I use "Garden Tone", but no matter, it largely works the same way).) Regardless, Olga, thank you for passing along your experience with Joyce Barden. As a consequence I know it is likely to be problematic for me.

Just my humble opinion here and I have no experience with AeroGrow lights at all but petunias require quite a bit of strong light/sun in order to grow and bloom. I grow them outside in full sun. If the AeroGrow works well enough for the petunias to bloom it seems to me this might be too much light for the violets. I personally would be very careful. Hopefully someone has experience, good luck :)

Lily, mine is in a 3 gallon right now. Its still pretty spindly - last year was really busy for me with a lot of family responsibilities and my roses didnt get sprayed and fertilized as they should. This year I think things are under control and I will have much more time for my own projects. I like to pot my bands up in smaller pots when I first get them, like 1 gallon or less if needed. Burlings' roses are generally pretty small so put those in smaller pots. The RVR's usually can go in gallons. I am going to let my Oshun do some growing this spring - I can usually just eyeball a rose and tell when its ready to move up a pot size. First of February is this weekend - as I have my Regan order of 14 coming Saturday, and am picking up my David Austins on Friday [14], I have alot of work to do! Still.......if some of the ones I want will be available again, I have no doubt but that I will order. Resistance is futile! I dont even bother anymore!

Ken, I was just looking more gardeners that have tried them. It seems some people like them, and some don't. So I want to try them (and have begun). Wondering what the negatives will be. So far, it seems those bags need more watering. Spin out bags are heavier, water permeable but I don't think they would dry out as fast if they were on the surface rather than in the ground. Patti, I wish I could answer your questions! Mxk3 said they used a spin out bag and planted it into a ceramic planter. I've done that. Spin out bags are made to be planted into the soil. So I had a large planter with assorted plants. The hosta plant was in a spin out bag, the others weren't. Come fall, I removed it from the planter and dug it into the soil to overwinter. Fabric bags aren't made to be planted into the ground. But maybe it would work? You certainly could put the fabric bag into a pot. Not sure what the benefits of that would be. But it would be helpful when overwintering. That way, you would remove the fabric bag and store and overwinter the ceramic pot away from rain and snow and freezing temperatures. I don't think one should worry about the roots freezing in the fabric bags. The roots freeze in pots that are left outside too! As I understand it, it isn't the freeze that kills the roots, but it is the freeze/thaw/wet conditions that can cause root and crown rot. I will be storing my two fabric bags in a shed.