Jenny, As you know, I bought my first "Miss Kim" this year - now, that lilac of yours is truly "inspiring" - Okay, so I have to wait 6 more years, leave my southeast side and relocate to the opposite side of my building and pray for hot muggy weather...easy! All kidding aside, your Miss Kim, is absolutey gorgeous - thanks for sharing posting it for all of us to see.

I can't barely smell phlox. I can't smell phlox at ALL. Period. And nobody tell me about zinc. I can smell everything except phlox. There isn't another of the flowers (or spices, or anything) I cannot smell if they have a smell. I also cannot taste BitrexTM. There are a few percent who cannot. I'm disappointed. It's supposed to be so murderously brutally bitter, and I can't find out. And yes, I can taste other bitter things. Dandelions, yuk, methylsulfonylmethane ugh; Tylenol, arggh, etc. Bitter soda water, nicely bitter. Swedish bitters, yup (but no thanks). Etc. I discovered about phlox some 20 years ago. My sister said, 'Ohhh... PHLOX!! I LOVE the smell of phlox". And she goes and bunches a bunch together and sticks her face in it. "Mmmmm!!" I try it and I'm like Dang! she's playing me. The stuff has no smell and she's pulling my leg...

Mwheel, they have the those devices in many states. They have it in Wisconsin at the 2nd & 3rd OWI or DUI (whatever you call it where you are from). While the devices sound like a great idea (and they are) there are a few problems with them and the main one is that the device can be started by anyone that is sober. It is not hard for a drunk to talk someone into blowing into the device for them. The other problem is that they often borrow vehicles from their friends and families that do not have the devices. In Wisconsin, the person has to have all vehicles that they have in their possession. That doesn't stop them from borrowing a vehicle from someone else and hiding it on their property. While I'm with you about giving someone heavy jail time, I know that there are more dangerous people out there and I also know that we can't really afford to put even more people in prison. It really does cost a lot of money to house a criminal. Maybe instead they could institute the device on the vehicles and another device that is hooked to their telephones that is set up so that when the device calls, they have to prove their sobriety and progressive discipline for those that decide not to follow the rules.

I agree that research is essential. Everyone has been seduced by glossy pictures at garden nurseries or has overlook good roses based on pics. For example, if I didn't read glowing reviews on Julia Child on this forum, it wouldn't be a rose I would had bought had I seen it at the nurseries. At glance, it looks just like any yellow rose that is available. But fellow rosarians can't be wrong, especially from so many people from different climates and countries. It is definitely one of my favourite rose so far. In my experience it is better to spend a bit more money on strong plant than to buy cheaper weaker ones. This may not always be the case but a strong plant with strong canes is essential in my opinion, especially for those of us who live in colder climates. After so many years growing roses, disease resistant varieties and vigor is on top of my list. I would be willing to forego most roses no matter how beautiful they are especially if they are famously prone to diseases and are not vigorous. Of course, I have made exceptions but there is no point in wasting time to nurse unhealthy plants that takes a lot of your time and energy and space for that matter. Last but not least, do not stress yourself out with rose problems such as Japanese beetles and blackspot. I admit that I have been beaten down last year by Japanese beetles. However, I am trying to find other ways to deal with them. I may experiment with the traps as a few gardeners I know has found to be very effective for them. I started to buy more bs resistant roses and I found it really helps. I still get bs at the end of summer but they are more minimal. The last advice I have is don't subject yourself to a heart attack if your rose died. It happens like everything else in life. There are so many roses to grow and take the opportunity to grow a new one.