and lovely roses Toni!

Thank you for all the information

They are all beautiful but the blue one and topsy turvy are so different and lovely.

My dad grew Mr. Lincoln and it reminds me of him

I do deal with heat, humidity, and Japanese beetles

Thank you, Toni. My climate is hot and dry in the summer, cold and mostly dry in the winter. We recieve less than 10 inches of precipitation annually. I now see why my "body bag" roses haven't done well, and also you've busted the myth that if the graft is buried the rose will only be what the roots are.

Lovely article and good info . I almost can smell the roses. Have you tried R. Rhapsody in Blue. That is one of the roses I will get this spring.

Magga - I love my Rhapsody in Blue.

Great article, Toni! You've been holding out on us!
Ha ha, "body bags!"

"Body Bags" Potted roses are the best choice for sure. Great info and photos.

Ok, Toni. If my shiny new Angel Face doesn't survive being buried up to it's elbows, I'm coming after you!

Woofie - Angel Face is a very very strong rose, so you should have zero problems! My first Angel Face I actually gave to a neighbor. She planted it 100% wrong.. bud union like 3" above the ground in a rock garden w/NO winter protection and it comes back year after year! Plus you can find that one own-root if you want (I'd recommend own-root for colder climates like ours).

Really? Own root? Oooh! Where? I love that rose; my Mom bought me my first one so it has enormous sentimental value as well as being one of my favorite colors.
Not quite bullet proof, tho. DH found me one last year, but it looks pretty sad this year. I think it's toast. This new one (Walmart's finest $10.88) actually looks pretty frisky. And I have a much better location for it, too.

Woofie - As long as it's alive, keep pluggin' along w/it! Feed it heavily and it should booster right up. And that's better than my Home Depot $8.88 specials...

If you're looking for it in own-root, Roses Unlimited (http://www.rosesunlimitedownro...) has the climber variety available. Also, keep watch on what Palatine Roses (http://www.palatineroses.com).. I *highly* recommend their roses!! They're not own-root, but theirs is to DIE for! (check this thread out The thread "And Palatine Delivers!!" in Roses forum)

Great article. Thank you.

Question. The last picture. Do you have roses planted that tight together?

Cinta - That's my mini bed. They're all planted within 6-8 inches of each other because they're all pretty small plants. When they start blooming, I'll take pictures of that area from the side rather than the front.