Do I dare mention that quite a few of mine are, in fact, starting to bloom?

Many of mine never stopped. Sorry.

Mine stopped because I pruned them down to almost nothing this year, but many of them already have buds.

Mine are starting to leaf out. It's really so exciting. Because my roses all seem to be so much better at producing foliage than at producing blossoms, I'm still getting my kicks from watching them grow. I'm hoping to learn enough about rose care to get them to actually do both well. Hoping I can afford the water. A neighbor claimed he had a friend with a Disney-scale rose garden who spent $600 per month keeping them watered. Not going to happen here.

I'll try to remember to post photos.

*sigh* that's what I get for trying to grow something in a tundra.

Oh well, it'll get here when it gets here and not a minute sooner.

Toni - when I find a plant that survives the insults and abuses of mountain weather, I'll happily share it with you. Come to think of it I need to review the list myself.

I've been told that peaches and apricots grow well here. Planted my first apricots a few weeks ago. Daffodils are very happy here. And I have some tulips returning for a second year that I thought were the single year kind. Lavender, nepeta, and oenothera grow well here. Most alliums are moderately happy here including onions, garlic, and various lilies. Iris definitely thrive. I got some cheapo discount iris at a clearance from Wilds last year for $2.00. When they arrived I was shocked that 80% of them looked like compost fodder. Probably three quarters of them are alive now. So it wasn't a terrible deal.

I've been happy to see that some sedums work. And red hot pokers, too. Euphorbias have endured punishing conditions where other "drought tolerant" plants have failed including cold hardy agaves. With adequate water, dahlias have proven to be quite easy. It seems to be natural habitat for most perennial herbs: rosemary, sage, and thyme. Santolina and stachys can be coaxed along with additional water. So too, coreopsis and salvia. One of three heucheras planted in deep shade last year survives. I planted some arugula last year and it is well on its way to becoming a prominent weed. Too wet and cold for most cactus and agave. Too dry and sunny for most of the plants in the normal gardening lexicon.

The only roses that I can say are definite successes here are Abe Darby, Tess of the d'Ubervilles, Rise 'n' Shine, and Thor. Crocus Rose, Cherry Parfait, Rainbow Sorbet, Gourmet Popcorn, Art Deco and Cupcake show definite promise. So do Blush Noisette and Hermosa which both stayed green through the winter and are much the healthier for the effort. (Here the ground does not freeze deeply, so a plant that can survive freezing temperatures at least in spring and fall can grow when there is ample soil moisture - hence the success of alliums and cold hardy evergreens. Cool season grasses thrive, too.)

I remain hopeful for Le Reve, Lady Hillingdon, Sexy Rexy, Don Juan, Allgold, Baronne Prevost, Rosarium Utersehn, Felicite Parmentier, Lavender Lassie, Mrs Robinson, Magic Dragon, ZD, Marie Pavie, Perle d'Or, Nouveau Monde, Centennial des Lourdes, and Westerland.

The other roses including Belle Epoque, Apricot Nectar, Lemon Spice, White Maman Cochet CL, Blumenschmidt, Futura, Geisha, Gardenia, Sympathie, and Cotton Candy are all very probationary, speculative, perhaps temporary. The nibbling critters are fond of Paul's Lemon Pillar which, after three years is not so many inches tall.

Etoile d' Hollande is being pulled up this season. Anson Jones did not survive the winter. Lamarque, Celine Forestier, and Reve d'Or failed quite convincingly, too. Surprisingly, Pink Parfait seems to be gone. But it appears that most of the rose garden survived the winter intact. Hurray.

I saw your review of Mardi Gras at another site and it cheered me to know that the rose can do well since it is on my Garden Valley order. I'm sure you have a list, too. And at your leisure, I'd be glad to know what's on it.

(Note to Zuzu - Feel free to move this entry to where it belongs best ...)

Steve - What list? What has survived, what hasn't? I'll be making a full list of what survived the winter next month after the official hard-freeze times are over (there's always frost in April/May). But, like a champ, Mardi Gras has survived with fully-green canes from ground to tip, so we're looking at about 3' (I stop pruning in Sept, in case of a snow in Oct). Looks like I had very few deaths from winterkill this year.. maybe, just maybe, my hard work with all the mulch worked? I know that there's going to be deaths.. that's inevitable. But if I can keep the numbers down to a respectable <20, then I'm happy, considering how pathetically ignorant I was with my poor roses in '10. On a good note: my roses in my pond area (Sterling Silver, Singing the Blues, Stainless Steel, Heirloom) all seem to have survived with very little mulch (less than 2" versus 6"+ on almost everyone else). Same time, they're pretty close to my dryer vent, so maybe with me doing laundry, the warm air helped?

Daffodils do grow wonderfully here if you can put them in sun, which, where I planted them, does not get. I got my very first tulip to blossom last year.. I planted those back in winter '05 when I bought my house. oops. Grape Hyacinthia - can't kill 'em. Various sunflowers do quite quite well, catnip is a weed in my front yard (evergreen, if you can believe that!!). Creeping phlox does quite well, blanket flower (I am not sure on yet), butterfly bushes (smaller ones transplant best, big ones just croak), Russian sage (can anyone kill this? Seriously!), bluebeard (love this!! Has to be in my top 5 plants), campanula (bellflower), honeysuckle (prefer the Japanese types, like Halls), agastache, mums, ... all of these are plants that I have had excellent luck with. Minimal care, drought, extreme temp tolerant.. and pretty flowers!! Yay! My maybes include delphiniums (the taller types), Japanese maples (I don't think I know how to take care of them), butterfly weed (should come back, hopefully), baby lilacs (aphids like these too much), silvermound (let's see if it comes back too), and cranesbill (yes, grew like gangbusters last year, but is it going to come back?).

Yes what survived and what didn't.

I'm sure mulching helped tremendously. I really need to get to work here. If I can do just one rose a day, I'll be ready long before the first hard frost hits in October.

what happened to the rest of my message??? WTH!! I had a long list of plants that have done well & others that are kinda so-so...!!! :( :(

I listed as my champions of crappy gardening with horrible weather/soil: agastache, butterfly bushes (only small plants, don't try a big one as it'll croak), daylillies, irises, campanula, bluebeards, Russian sage, vinca, creeping phlox, mums, lilacs, columbines, plumbago, & honeysuckle

My so-so's are blanket flower (maybe), penstemon, tulips, daffodils, snow-in-summer, delphiniums, bachelor's buttons. I'm guessing 100% that this is all due to negligence and not the plants. :)

Plants that are DOA w/me: coral bells, hostas (wth! full shade?), liatris, Joe Pye weed, bee balm, lupine... I'm sure that there's others that I've tried multiple times to no avail.

Thanks. Good List.

I've failed with bee balm here, too, though one has survived more than a year. Worse luck with lupines. Columbines work well if I keep them from completely drying out. I've never been able to get Russian sage to grow. Stay alive, yes. Grow, no.

I must try phlox. I was very happy with how it performed in NJ. I need to remember the distinction between the creeping kind and the tall kind. I always get Joe Pye weed mixed up with Centranthus ruber which is commonly known as ... Oh I forget. C.R. does very well for me here in sandy soil, blooming for quite a long time. I saw it growing in the cracks of rock walls in France. I think it does fine in dry conditions so long as the soil is loose.

I have had totally terrible luck with Agastaches. I once kept one alive for a year. It looked like it might make it. Then we put a paved area there and the landscapers mowed it down. I've killed six or seven, in several kinds of soil.

With the agastaches, I've found that if you get small plants rather than big plants, they do better. Plus they have to be kept kinda moist their first year.. thereafter, they're weeds. That's what I've found out after 3 years of experimenting with them. Hugemungo plants from a LGS never survive, the little bitties from Home Depot (grown by the same wholesaler, btw), do just hunkie dorie. Probably because the big ones are so pumped from the nutrient fluid they're grown in, once you put them in the ground, they starve to death.

My first summer in my house ('06) I spent over $2500 at my LGS (Tagawa Gardens). Well over 75% died, but they have a year warranty if you have your receipt. '07, spent about $1300 at same LGS, same results. Started to wise up & branch out to other LGS (Nicks Garden Center & Paulino's Gardens) in '08. Spent more at Nicks & Paulino's in '08, almost 100% survived when went to other places. In '09, experimented: bought same plant from all 3 different garden centers plus one from either Home Depot / Lowes. Results? Home Depot did 100% the best out of everyone, Lowes' plants didn't do so hot. So, in '10, shopped almost exclusively at HD (various HDs throughout the metro, usually hit about 5 different HDs when I make my rounds). Result? Happy gardener, ticked off DH who had to pay the massive Home Depot bill (LOL!). This year? Not buying much of anything (being super picky now); but what I do buy will probably be bought there at HD.

Pretty sad state. I prefer to patronize smaller "mom & pop" stores versus big box stores (not saying that I don't love Walmart now), but when I can get the same plant grown by the same wholesale grower but cheaper and they perform better? Makes absolutely no sense.

I understand.

I need to do that same experiment here. Only one each of Lowes and HD. But we do have a great locally owned nursery or two. And two Walmart stores.

Received my very first Palatine Roses order, shipped FedEx three day. Overall, I'm pretty impressed. The multiflora root systems seem better than Dr Huey. There seem to be more roots. They seem to be tougher, harder to damage, and every bit as long. The size of the roses is impressive, too. Many have six, eight or ten good-sized canes. They had obviously been kept well. There is no sign of mold or desiccation on the canes, and the bark was dark green. I'd say these roses are definitely first rank in quality.

The list is: Las Vegas, Folklore, Valencia, Duftzauber 84, South Africa, Gold Medal, Ilse Krohn Superior, and Handel. I had pre-dug the holes for most of them days in advance, so planting was a breeze. Got them all into the ground in about an hour. And watered. Mulching is still future tense.

I'm exceedingly happy with the order. Will start planning my list for next year soon, I imagine.

Yay!! *happy dance* You'll love your Palatine roses.. even with my inept care they did well for me! (well, most of them did). I wish I'd ordered South Africa.. it's a gorgeous rose!! My 3 that I had gotten last year were pretty bad off when I got them and they didn't survive the winter.

Sorry you lost South Africa. I'm looking forward to lots of color, eventually. Maybe even this year?

Steve - Here's two of my Palatines that bloomed for me last year. I got in 4 last year and 2 blossomed.. Stephen's Big Purple & Laguna Freelander did not, but Kordes Brilliant & Blue Bayou did.

I'm expecting wonderful things from Stephens Big purple & Laguna Freelander this year..

Wow. Is that red, or what?

Two questions about your lavender/purple roses.
1) Are they all equally fragrant & is the fragrant distinctly different between them?
2) I notice some brown tips on Blue Bayou and wonder if they are bothered by thrips?

The lavender/purple area of my garden keeps shrinking. I think Lavender Lassie is the last lavender rose I have. And it isn't very lavender. Meanwhile I keep dividing salvia May Night for that deep purple color in the garden.

I don't have the collection of lavender roses that Toni does, but all of mine seem to be more fragrant than average. I am not good at distinguishing subtleties of scent but they don't all smell alike. They all seem to get black spot though and many previous purples no longer survive.

Thanks, Porkpal. I gave up with Lagerfeld long ago when it gave up in its second year. Thinking of trying again.

Steve - for the most part, all of my blue roses are either fragrant to highly fragrant. I really don't find much of a difference in the scent. The headiest scented ones are definitely Intrigue (deep purple/red) and BlueGirl (bluest of 'em all). Blueberry Hill isn't all that fragrant, not like Angel Face. Enchanted Evening has a nice rose scent, Sterling Silver has more of a lemony scent, Stainless Steel is OK as far as scent. I honestly don't know about Blue Bayou.. I didn't bend down to take a whiff (too far to the ground & didn't want to cut one of them). Some of them are more heavenly than others.. but none are as sweet as, say, HoneySweet or Melody Perfume.

As far as the brown tips on my Blue Bayou and thrips, I have no idea. I don't know really what thrips are. I don't spray outside of the initial aphid time in the early spring, so I have no idea what's wrong with them. From what I just did in a quick 5 minute google search, looks like I may have them. Guess I'll get some Neem oil.