15-03-2005, 05:31 PM
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(melitie) writes:
I first heard about zones in US and Canadian sites, because these
countries have places with very different climates. That's why zones
are important to american gardeners. However, I personally think
sometimes they exaggerate about them when it comes to roses.
There was a time I was living in Epirus, Nothern Greece, where winters
are extremely cold, maybe like zone 5 or 6 (US) and the rose plants
everywhere there were wonderful. Now here in the island with the
climate being like US zones 9-10, I see that my roses suffer from
June to August and more. This is because roses don't like extreme cold
and ice, but on the other hand don't like too much heat either. They
get sunburnt and the buds open in a few hours...
[snip]
The zone system leaves a lot to be desired even here in the U.S.
Zones are based only on the winter minimum temperature, without taking
into account how wet or dry it is or how warm it is in the spring and
summer. I'm in Seattle, and our zone is the same as lots of Texas,
but the preferred roses and common diseases are very different because
there it's hot and humid all summer and here it's cool with a dry
spell in August and September.
Cheers,
-- Patrick
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