In article
aHlwYXRpYQ==.e95d73a15c2acb5be5ce83fa2953984b@104 4383898.cotse.net,
wrote:

Joe Doe wrote:


Clay is good

Roland, love, you may wrestle with your clay all he-man like and love it
all you like. To each his own.



Good for you, duckie. I still think clay sucks. May you save others from
my errant ways--and may you garden in your beloved clay forever.



I am not alone in thinking that clay is good. Let me provide the opinion
of several Rose authorities:

Peter Beales in Classic Roses on page 100 (First American Edition, 1985)
says: ³ Roses tend to do rather better in slightly acid soils and have a
definite preference for clay².

Liz Druitt and G. Michael Shoup (owner of Antique Rose Emporium Brennan
TX) say in Landscaping with Antique Roses on page 75: ³clay holds nutrient
well, and roses prefer it to all other soils; but a really tight clay can
stunt their growth unless it is amended².

In the complete book of Roses by John Mattock, Sean McCann, Fred Witchell
and Peter Wood (All-stars of the British rose scene) on page 25 ³Heavy
sticky soils. These are reputed to grow the best roses..²

In Roses by James Underwood Crockett states on page 17 ³Roses do best in
rather ³heavy² soils *those that are mostly clay * to which an abundance
of organic matter has been added to loosen the texture and help moisture
drain away²

So even if you assume I am an idiot plenty of people that are
knowledgeable acknowledge that clay is actually the preferred medium for
roses because it holds nutrients so well. Roses are heavy feeders to be
prolific bloomers and hence the importance of (nutrient holding) clay.
You are obsessed with drainage and ignore the other requirements of the
plant. The drainage/aeration issue can be successfully addressed with
amendments.

So your universal advice to ³get rid of clay² is ill founded and ill
informed. Your posts have other examples where you are in fact ill
informed but seeing the tone of your replies to me I will let you discover
your other delusions by yourself.

You¹ve also raised some side issues in your reply to me and others (Texas
is flatŠ numerous gratuitous insults etc. etc) that I do not have the time
or desire to disabuse you of.

Roland