I'm quite a bit older than BassandBonsai, but I was noticing a similar pattern as I was reading this thread. It seems to me that it is mainly Californians who despise Dr. Huey, complaining that he too easily takes over and suckers a lot. Almost everyone non-Californian and Zone 6 and further north claims not to have any of those problems, or very rarely at best. I'm sure it's possible that there are Californians somewhere that haven't had Dr. Huey problems, as well as Zone 6 and further north gardeners who have experienced too many Dr. Huey problems. However, they aren't appearing here on our GW thread. So what do you think? Any validity to my observation here that it is only, or maybe primarily, Californians who have problems with Dr. Huey? If so, I'd be curious to find out WHY. What is there about California weather, soil, growing conditions, whatever, that makes Dr. Huey too vigorous and overpowering and excessively suckering? And if it is true that this is a primarily California problem, then maybe it is NOT true the death/near death of the more tender top plant is the main cause of why a Dr. Huey take-over occurs (though that is definitely the main and perhaps only way the take-over tends to occur in Zone 6 and further north). Since I have never grown roses in California, I can say nothing about that experience. But I can definitely state that in the midwest, Zone 6, I bury the grafts a couple inches and that I have never had anything sucker nor any rose get overpowered by Dr. Huey. Whether there is or is not a connection, I don't know, but I have been growing some of my roses for 15 or more years. The only exception to that rule in my yard (midwest Zone 6) is what happened before I moved here. I'm told a woman used to live here who was a wonderful gardener--and I still have legacies of some of her accomplishments growing in my garden. However, the one legacy I got rid of were several Dr. Hueys. Whether she was growing Dr. Huey or Dr. Huey took over after she left and no one cared for her gardens, I couldn't say. By the way, I did let her Dr. Hueys grow a couple years here--I was curious about them. Found out they are gorgeous in their springtime bloom and wretched plants the rest of the year. They no longer live here, needless to say. : ) Kate

Hi everyone gosalsk - As you've ruled out what I suggested previously, and your plants are growing under trees, could I ask what type of trees they are? I once read on one of the forums that brom's growing beneath She Oak Trees (Allocasuarina verticillataoften) suffered from Crown Rot due to the build up of the fine needle like leaves in the central vase of the plant. It wasn't so much that there were leaves in the vase but due to some sort of toxin given off by the She Oak leaves in particular as they started to rot down. She Oaks are sometimes confused with Bull Oaks (Casuarina littoralis) with the main difference being the needle like leaves which are much coarser on the Bull Oak than the She Oak. See: http://dbellamy.customer.netspace.net.au/bog/native/sheoak.html I don't know if you even grow these trees in your country but I thought it worth mentioning just the same. Like HDD says, poor air circulation can also cause rot and this is most common in over-crowded collections where plants are growing in shade houses in cramped conditions with insufficient air circulation between plants. I guess the same could apply to garden grown plants as well if they were over crowded, however you say that your plants are spread out, but are there other plants that could be crowding them? Another thing that just occurred to me is the mulch; when you say "most with their pots set in mulch under trees". How deep is the mulch compared to the mix level in the pot and is the base of the plant in contact with the mulch. We all know that planting brom's too deeply in the potting mix can create problems and the same can occur if the mulch is too high around the plant. Mulches that contact the lower part of any plant are often the starting points for rot so this all needs to be checked also. All the best, Nev.

Nature is complex. Apparently mechanical transmission is not always successful. I wonder if the mites contribute a cofactor that helps the virus overcome the immune system. The following may apply to this point: "but no consistent method of mechanical inoculation has been developed for both wheat and maize that can satisfactorily bypass the use of the wheat curl mite as a vector (Mirabile, 2001; Seifers et al., 1997; Skare et al., 2003)." http://amarillo-tamu-edu.wpengine.netdna-cdn.com/files/2010/12/A-new-eriophyid-mite-borne-membrane-enveloped-virus-like-complex-isolated-from-plants.pdf ---------------------------------------------- "We are beginning to determine what proteins are present in the mite saliva, in order to determine how the mites are suppressing the immune reactions. In collaboration with Doug Cavener and Kaori Iida, we have isolated the genes for several genes involved in honeybee immunity. Not all invaders are met with a well-defined immune response, as during disease transmission by insect vectors. Understanding the mechanisms that underlie co-evolution between the vector and disease organism is critical to understanding how the disease transmission cycle might be disrupted. Through interdisciplinary collaboration with Drs. F. Gildow (PSU) and S. Gray (Cornell), we are examining the mechanisms underlying virus/vector specificity in aphids at the accessory salivary gland, the primary site determining transmission of different species of luteoviruses. In my lab, we have identified several proteins that bind to luteovirus in a vector-specific manner and that are also recognized by antibodies that mimic the virus. We are isolating the genes encoding these proteins for studies of the evolution of these virus/vector interactions, among different aphid and viral species. This research may further understanding of mechanisms underlying the vector-specificity of mosquitoes for transmission of alphaviruses." http://ento.psu.edu/directory/dxc12

Thanks guys! Laura, my rodent problem is mostly squirrel. They just de-pot everything. I move the plants out of the cage only when they reach a size that can handle their roughness :) Rina, yes the GH set up is not ideal for light but I did not have much other choice and still has other pros. Thanks to that roof the temps are higher longer in the winter and cooler in the summer. I don't need to heat or fan or cover. I originally got it to protect my tropicals and for seed starters. Got tired of wheeling pots in and out of the dark garage on a daily basis in winter...So these are pretty much dormant when in the GH. I built a heated chamber in the corner with the least light for my seed starters that is also supplemented with some LED. The rest is filled with young seedlings up to 1-2 year old or so. So overall not too much of a problem for this usage but if it were my property I would definitely cut out a couple of skylights on that roof :).