I placed an order in two parts with Fork and Spade before the end of
their season. The first part arrived last Thursday (having been
shipped the previous Friday).

The Good: the roses are from Jackson and Perkins, Weeks, Star, and
Arena (based on variety of rose - the Austins were J&P, the non-patent
hybrid teas were Star, the patented stuff was Weeks, and the less
common ones like Papa Meilland were Arena). They are for the most
part pretty good specimens, especially considering that these are all
late season clearance sale items. A few canes have blackened ends,
but a little snip work with the Fiskars when planting should take care
of that.

The Bad: I checked availability on line and called in to place my
order in person, confirming availability for each and every rose I
ordered. Even so, the packing slip lists one of my plants as back
ordered, to be shipped in the 2004 rose season. Grrrrr........

The Ugly: I'm stunned that the roses weren't utterly demolished in
packing and shipping. They were simply put all together into a single
plastic bag, which was then put in a cardboard box for shipping. No
newspaper around the roots. No packing material of any kind around
the bag. Just bare root plants in a bag in a box. Fortunately,
there was no catastrophic damage. A few roots were broken here and
there, and many have "albino" growth (breaking dormancy in the heat
of the box with no sunlight whatsoever) but I don't see anything life
threatening.

So, I'm happy that I was able to pick up a few Austins, an extra Papa
M, and some other misc hybrid teas at half price, but the packing
method leaves much to be desired. (The second part of my order was
shipped out last Monday (I think) or possibly Tuesday, but it has yet
to arrive. Eight days is a long time for bare roots to sit in a box
with no wrapping to preserve the moisture.)

So, the verdict is that I'm not sure I'd place an order with them at
full price next season, but perhaps I'd risk the clearance sale again.
(This order was completely an impulse buy, so the temptation will
certainly be there.) I'll have to see how these babies do first.

I put them all into a cart of water to soak. I planted the Austins on
Friday, but due to the storms we've had every day since, the others
are still soaking in the cart. Oddly enough, the ones still soaking
seem to be doing better than the ones I planted. They're putting out
green leaves right there in the cart ! (Anyone ever try hydroponic
rose growing?)

In article , torgo
wrote:

I placed an order in two parts with Fork and Spade before the end of
their season. The first part arrived last Thursday (having been
shipped the previous Friday).
....
The Ugly: I'm stunned that the roses weren't utterly demolished in
packing and shipping. They were simply put all together into a single
plastic bag, which was then put in a cardboard box for shipping. No
newspaper around the roots. No packing material of any kind around
the bag. Just bare root plants in a bag in a box. Fortunately,
there was no catastrophic damage. A few roots were broken here and
there, and many have "albino" growth (breaking dormancy in the heat
of the box with no sunlight whatsoever) but I don't see anything life
threatening.

....
I put them all into a cart of water to soak. I planted the Austins on
Friday, but due to the storms we've had every day since, the others
are still soaking in the cart. Oddly enough, the ones still soaking
seem to be doing better than the ones I planted. They're putting out
green leaves right there in the cart ! (Anyone ever try hydroponic
rose growing?)

Yes. I barerooted my own Joseph's Coat to move it this winter. It sat
in the water for at least a month with no ill effects, about to open
the first flush. This is contrary to everything we read about drowning
roots, etc etc, but it is commonly reported. So any time a bareroot
arrives looking less than optimal, I soak longer rather than shorter.
Two weeks is common. Late season planting really really really requires
mulching the canes until 2 inches of vigorous new growth starts.