I've now re-affirmed my own thing of giving plants a chance, even when they look deader than dead. I found a rose in the middle of my back yard that was dead. Dead crispy dead. Canes were crumbling. So, with a heavy heart, I dug it up. The bud union was about 4" below the dirt level and, low & behold, it was green, along with about 2" of big fat, thick cane above the union. Knowing that it was one of my Sterling Silvers, I had an empty spot in my pond area where I had planted the wrong rose (Sheila's Perfume) and so dug it up to transplant it in the front and put this dead-caned-but-live-bud-union rose in it's place. Didn't do anything special that I didn't do to any of the other roses.. just watered the heck out of that area (but I've been watering that area anyways as it has other plants like the crane's bill, plumbago, delphiniums, and a baby Japanese maple [Lion's Head]). Low & behold yesterday evening I found like 10 leaves on it!
