"Mick709" wrote in message
...
Hello all

Just bought a climbing rose and it had been dipped in wax prior to
packaging/shipping and I was wondering if I should remove the wax-and if
so
HOW? Any thoughts?


MICK

I'm going to copy an artical I wrote for my local rose society and let you
think about what to do with the rose you bought.

Waxed Roses: Why You Shouldn't

Lots of areas of the country are going to be getting in bodybagged puppymill
roses soon. You know the ones I'm talking about. They sit there in 12" long
tubes tied with wire and twine and the canes have been dipped into hot
parrafin. They have pretty pictures and sexy names. They are shipped across
country by people who you wouldn't trust to have a foam lined box of rocks
arrive intact. They sit in the hot sun and drying wind with no one
moistening them down. THey're brought inside the stores way too early and
start developing pale rubbery shoots in the warmth. You fall for those
doctored pictures and sexy names and plonk the rose into a hole in the
ground where it promptly either dies or struggles all season. Then, you give
up on roses because they are "hard to grow"
Many of these roses, despite being called #1 grade, bear little resemblence
to the #1 bare root roses that you can get mail order from reputable
nurseries like Edmunds Roses or other quality nurseries. Those 12" sawdust
and plastic tubes never contain enough roots. They've been severely chopped.
If the rose has 5 or 6 good sized canes and only 2 anchor roots 3" long,
what do you think will happen when they can't supply enough water and
nutrients to all of that newly emerging foliage. Most mail order bare roots
will have roots at least 8" long, and many will have them much longer. Roots
are the most important aspect of getting any rose off to a proper start.
Make sure that you don't start garden life with a handicapped rose.

Then, there's that wax. It's supposed to seal in the moisture so that when
they sit in the hot and drying sun for weeks on end they don't actually die
like normal roses would. Well, the green parrafin that is used does have a
low melting temperature, but it's still not kind to living tissue to be
dipped in it. It also hides lots of cane imperfections that a knowledgeable
buyer might note and refuse to buy the rose. In hot climates, the wax can
actually cook the canes if the foliage doesn't develop enough to shade the
rose properly. Good bare root roses are never dipped in hot wax. They are
stored in climate and humidity controlled refrigerators. They don't dry out,
and they aren't handled like playground footballs. When they're shipped to
you, they're wrapped in damp medium and sealed in plastic and cushioned in
their shipping boxes. They arrive green and plump and ready to take on the
world with all of their strength.

The biggest "secret" in the rose industry right now is Rose Mosaic Virus.
Not many casual rose growers know anything about it. And, not many of the
growers want you to know anything about it. Most of the lower cost "1.98"
waxed hackroots that are at the big box stores come from growers who do not
want to talk about how infected their stock is. Nor do they want to talk
about what they are doing to get rid of it. Many of your larger growers WILL
talk about it and WILL tell you what they are doing to eliminate it from
their stocks. That's not to say it's completely gone, but they are trying.
The low cost growers based mainly in Texas are not even trying to eliminate
the problem. And, 90% of the waxed roses you find originate from these
problem growers. Roses from these sources are very, very, likely to be
infected. Out of 50 that I bought 2 years ago as an experiment, 45 turned
out to be mislabeled or virused. Very bad odds. RMV may not show up right
away, but if you've had a "problem" rose that despite your pampering has
just failed to thrive and been stingy with blooms and you're wondering what
you did wrong, then you probably have had experience with RMV. The most
common symptom of RMV is failure to thrive. Some of the different viruses
that cause RMV can show up as yellow leaf patterns similar to tobacco mosaic
virus in tomatoes. The biggest problem with RMV infected plants is
that,especially in mild climates, the symptoms can take a while to show
up--usually well after any warranty period offered by the grower or seller.
They've gotten away with selling you a rose with built in obsolescence and
ensured a hefty return business for themselves when that rose fails and you
want to replace it. Or, they've turned you off of roses entirely. Either
way, they're the true responsible party for your garden failure, NOT you.

See, roses don't have to be hard to grow---if you buy healthy good quality
ones suited to your growing conditions! There are different kinds of roses
that do better in different climates, and not all roses that do well in your
particular climate will be the hybrid tea florist type roses, but there are
some really wonderful roses for each and every person no matter where they
reside. If you are wanting to add roses to your garden, do a bit of research
first and don't be seduced by the Photoshopped pictures on the local
bodybags---or in some of the major rose catalogs. (J&P is notorious for
doctoring photos and describing roses with non existant scents as "lightly"
scented.) Don't believe the hype. Believe local sources. The American Rose
Soceity www.ars.org/ has many links on their site to local societies. Find
one and ask them for recommendations to suit your climate and gardening
style. Make sure to mention if you are planning on spraying your roses with
fungicides to prevent disease. That, and your winter climate, are the
biggest limiters to the types of roses you can grow.

Just don't buy the bodybagged puppymill roses and put any money into these
irresponsible growers pockets. You'll be happier in the long run with better
quality roses, and the poorer companies will be forced to clean up their
acts or go out of business.