mm said:
On Sun, 24 Dec 2006 21:07:51 -0600, Eggs Zachtly
wrote:
mm said:
I have a big beautiful rose bush on one side of my fence gate. I
dont' tend it but it just gets bigger.
I wanted to buy a yellow rose for the right side, from Miller
Nurseries. I've tried before in that part of my yard, bought locally,
and they just die. Lots of clay in the soil might be part of the
problme.
Drainage is probably a part of the problem. Have you had the soil tested?
I tested it with a cheap little kit, and the previous owner, who was
very into bushes, did so before me.
And the results were?
After my kit, I realized why he
had left the bag of something something behind. It's the stuff they
sell to turn an alkaline (or acid, whatever I've got) soil neutral.
And I use it when I plant anything, but maybe not enough.
I would definately find out what exactly what that "something in the bag"
is.
[...]
Golden Showers or Graham Thomas?
Golden Showers, I've not heard of (roses aren't my "thing"). Graham Thomas
is a fairly new cultivar (1980's), but I've seen a couple specimens. One
was very nice, about 4-5' tall, and full of blooms. The other looked like
it was struggling. Both plants were the same age, but in different beds, so
soil differences may come into play. It didn't look diseased, just slower.
That's pretty much why they aren't my "thing". I've found roses, while
tough plants, they're too damn finicky for me.
Well, when I bought this house, as little as an end-of-group townhouse
lot is (1/20th of an acre, if I calculated right, counting the part
the house sits on), he had lots of bushes. I managed to kill all his
berry bushes, and 7 of his 8 rose bushes. I killed the rose bushes in
less than 10 years, maybe less than 5, but it's 23 years since I moved
in and the one rose bush is still good. Very good actually, maybe 12
feet tall, and might be taller if the pine tree wasnt' in the way. (He
planted a couple pine trees too, and some other stuff.)
So that's why I want to balance the rose bush that is there.
I it's a balance you want (which doesn't necessarily mean symetrical) a 12'
plant on one side of an opening, and a 4' plant on the other side, may not
achieve the balance you seek. Unless there's something else, larger, on the
side opposite the 12' red rose. You wouldn't need something 12', but
something only one third as tall, may not achieve the look you desire. Just
something to keep in mind. =)
If I buy a climbing rose, will it over the years damage my unfinished
wooden picket fence?
Depends on the rose. How's the one on the other side holding up?
Would it in your opinion clash with the free-standing rose bush on the
other side?
That's a matter of taste. Yours, not mine. You're the one that's gotta look
at them. =)
That's the problem. I don't have any taste. I used to say that at
least I knew bad when I saw it, but I'm not even sure of that anymore.
"Roses shoudl be mulched 6" in mild climates, up to 12 in severe
climates". I gues baltimroe is somewhere in between? I don't think
I've ever seen anything with say 8 inches of mulch. Am I just blind?
Yup. It says "up to" 12 inches, according to your reference. 
OK, if it lives until the fall, I'll do it.
So, the advice you sought here, was more 'after the fact'. Looking for some
reinforcement? =P
I never do anything to
that one rose bush that is still alive.
That could very well be a lucky guess. Some roses bloom on old wood, and
some on new wood. It all depends on the cultivar.
That's why the others died, I guess, and maybe other reasons too.
Yup. Probably a combination. You can't just let everything "go", without
pruning or care specific to each individual plant's needs.
Something about Tanglewood or
Tanglefoot. I think it is a outdoor concert location near Boston, but
it seems to have some effect on my plants.
Heh. =)
If you are inclined to email me
for some reason, remove NOPSAM :-)
If you plan on including the above, at the end of each post you make, could
you please put it behind a proper sig-delimiter (dash dash space)? Thanks.
G/L with your roses.
--
Eggs
Photons have mass? I didn't even know they were Catholic.