I am in east Texas, about 3 hours from you. I have some Knockouts in several colors and cut them back severely in February - they get so big I have to do this. Just trim them back, water them, mulch them and they will most likely start showing you some new growth. These really are good roses for beginners.....I don't have any blackspot issues with mine. Other than the compost, was the soil good that you planted them in? Maybe the fertilizer you used might have burned them - watering will help leach it out. If leaves are a light green, possibly with the veins showing, get an iron product from Lowes [forget the name of it but think it might be Ironite] and mix in water and water it in. I have a few plants that do this and one watering with the iron is all it takes to green them up. Mulching will help - we haven't had any rain either - make sure you are getting the roots watered. Maybe leave a hose on them for 15-20 minutes going very slow. You might think you are watering well when the water is actually running off and not getting to the roots. I hand water a lot and I will water one group, then another and come back to the first group [and so on] to make sure there is adequate water getting to the root zone. If they are planted getting the hot west sun, it might be a little hot for newly planted roses. Just keep them watered and mulched. Good luck - you will get the hang of it. I am no expert but have grown [and killed] enough roses to have finally figured out what they like. Oh, and Home Depot usually has some good deals on mulch...... Judith

cwcervantes, Yep, that is a 'Rose Quartz,' also know as Chamaelobivia Hybrid. I lost mine last year (long story, it got sprayed with bleach, someone thought it would be nice to clean our patio), but I enjoyed its blooms while it lasted. Thanks for sharing! Planto

If you can lift the entire clump w/o doing much damage to the roots, you may not even need to transplant the foliage. Whenever I have to lift a plant and remove all the dirt from it - YES - trim the foliage, but if you can lift a clump and plop it right down into another freshly dug hole, you shouldn't need to cut back.

lyfia - Thanks. Even my mood is brighter when working in my new kitchen : ) mab1964 - I'm really glad we added the glass on the cabs above the peninsula. To save money, we only did glass on 4 of the 8 doors. We chose to do glass on the 2 outer doors on the outside portion of the cabs (facing the family room). We did glass on the 2 inner doors for the portion facing the inside of the kitchen. See pics below. I feel like the glass adds a nice dimension and gives variety and lightens up the feel a lot so your eye doesn't only see wood. Another modification we made from the original over peninsula cabs...the new cabs are not quite as tall & a little less in length as well. This modification opened up the area a little and I still feel the cabinet space is sufficient. Now, when standing in the kitchen and talking to someone who's standing on the outside of the peninsula, I don't feel like the cabs are such a distraction like the old ones were. hisgal - Thanks. I like my faucet with one handle very much! My old faucet had one handle, although it wasn't exactly the same as this new one. So, it didn't take much getting use to. Below is a pic of my old faucet...so sad looking. I learned from people on this site that ceramic disc valves and solid brass construction are important features to look for when buying a faucet. drarc - Any ideas about what kind of backsplash you may want to use in your kitchen? Dal Tile has a nice showroom in Anaheim. The public can look, but they sell to contractors. Will your kd be involved with the backsplash? If not, you might want to check out Anaheim Stone Works (2020 E. Howell Ave, Suite F). They use Dal Tile and are located right across the street from them. Anaheim Stone Works did our granite and they probably do backsplashes, as well. We were very pleased with them. ngng - Thanks for the nice comments : ) I was finally able to view the slideshow of your beautiful new kitchen! When I picked on your link, I got a black screen (even after waiting a few minutes). Then, I tried picking directly onto one of your pics in your post...and I got it!! All of your colors go so well together. I especially like the message center, granite & backsplash & the decorative plate displayed in the corner..so pretty : ) You did an amazing job on everything! Old Faucet : ( New Faucet : )