Toni - About plant size and losing plants ...
Until very recently I have imagined a very good correlation between the size/development of a plant on delivery and its survival in my own garden. Heirloom's smallest roses, for example, tended to die quickly. Grafted hybrid tea roses took longer.
Recently, Zuzu mentioned that she's been seeing that roses from VG are not really doing that well in her garden. I realized that I too have lost a huge portion of plants I got from VG. They would usually die within six months of planting. Right now my garden contains a number of tiny rose plants, mostly from RVR, that have endured punishing conditions over the summer and are still doing well. Most of these are still in their first season. I guess I'll see how they do this winter.
I know the first winter I was here I lost all twelve roses from ARE that I planted in October. And I know that they ship well-developed, tough roses - generally speaking. Lost a lot of fall planted roses the next year, too. So now I know that fall planting is almost always fatal here. Notable exceptions are Parade and Mrs Oakley Fisher.
Mulch is a problem for me. I just don't have the energy to tote it about the garden. Because the only access to the garden is down a flight of eight stair steps, it seems likely to continue being a problem for me to put inches of mulch over the whole garden. Furthermore, with the ground temperature staying relatively high, organic matter burns off pretty fast. I guess I've just about given up on mulch. I'm relying on weeding and plant vigor to make up for my gardening flaws. It almost works.
Now I just have to train the deer to deadhead after the rose has dropped its petals.
