Nice set up, Mes111. Yes, Appleseed70, over the fence is fair game. Although I'd like the kids to wait because they'll grab them unripe and sprayed. I'd give them better apples anyway. The two trees show up there are basically the same. The bushy one is more overgrown because that's how it produces, but I am working on thinning out the top to get more sun to the lower. I'm not sure what the last tree was in the picture in '09. Judging from the description it was sawed off and grafted onto because I didn't like the variety. It's basically the same but bigger. Free standing and ready to go wild now. Hopefully should bear this year. Which reminds me, I want to get out there and put some more room between tiers. I've got two more both spur type this time. If the Macspur survives the fireblight that killed 2 and hurt it and another last year and starts producing the bushy one will be removed (maybe grafted to a free standing spot since it seems to withstand fireblight). The Earliblaze on the right is much better behaved than the Macspur on the left which is acting more like a semi-spur than it did on the free standing one which died. This was the Earliblaze last year before picking and pruning.

Fishlady, You know I emailed Judith Freeman with a question and she emialed me back. Seems very nice! Hostaholic, I like symmetry in curl of the petals and I find both Leslie Woodriff and Dunyazade to look like a bad hair day compared to Scherhezade and Black Beauty. I took pics from the top view- see what I mean? MG- This saddens me too. I would love to trade, but not illegally. Nice website! Information and good pics:) linnea, You might be nearby, and you are welcome to visit/swap :) I'm in NW IL. Not too far from the Mississippi River. You might not like me that much, I'm the one who told you it is humanly possible to yank a lily right out of the ground if you don't like it. ;-0 Karen

Terri, Thank you for your reply and I have added your favorite garlic to my list for next year. I received an email from one of the CF members who very kindly sent me a wonderful link that I had not found in all my garlic searches. I was blown away by all the different varieties of garlic available! I have already placed my order for this year and it will be shipped this week. I look forward to having really fresh garlic for the very first time. I hope it is as juicy as the beautiful garlic that ann-t posted earlier. Jessica, I have several times planted some of the sprouted garlic and was disappointed when it just disappeared never to be seen again. I was surprised that even the stuff I tossed onto the compost never grew as I have had herb, flower and tomato plants pop up in the compost. I finally decided I needed to get a totally different kind of garlic if I wanted to grow and harvest it successfully. I posted here because I read the cooking forum on a fairly regular basis as I donÂt get to spend much time on the forums and I spend even less time on the garden side. Most of my computer time is at night and it is limited. Today I just have about 30 mins for this gardenweb visit before going to work. So the cooking forum is about the only one I visit. Thank you both for your replies. Kat

To start with, 'conventional' methods of rose growing are geared almost exclusively towards growing hybrid teas. If you aren't growing hybrid teas, then it is like someone going on and on about the merits of crate training and regular exercise, and missing the fact that the pets under discussion are fish. Roses that are climate appropriate are actually very easy plants. The trickiest part is usually pruning. Roses that bloom once, in spring, are pruned very differently than roses that bloom on and off during the summer. If you haven't been around long enough to know which ones you have, then the first thing is to get some idea of what types you are dealing with. This time of year, unless you live in a dry climate, where plants need water over the winter, the best thing is to just walk away. Don't fertilize, don't cover them with anything, and definitely don't prune them. In the spring, after they start to leaf out, obviously dead wood can be pruned out, and they can get a dose of whatever fertilizer you prefer. When they bloom in the spring, take pictures, and post them on the Antique Forum for identification. They will want to see photos of leaves, canes, thorns, as well as flowers. After you get some idea of what they are, you can start to fine tune what they may want for care. At this point, I think it is fair to assume they aren't fussy types and go from there.