Helping Mom Tame the Temperamental Rose.Everyone has romantic ideas about the beauty of roses, and they are a favorite for Mother's Day gifts. But instead of a dozen, give her several dozen -- year after year -- with rose plants for her garden, along the fence, or next to the house. Not all roses deserve a reputation for being high maintenance and chemically dependent, even though if you go to a Rose Society meeting you might hear that roses don't grow well in average garden soil, need to be sprayed on a regular basis for bugs and diseases, and then require a blood letting in the fall when you prune them. But roses haven't always been that demanding and temperamental. Just look around the countryside and you'll see old rose bushes flourishing around abandoned homes, graveyards, and along ditch banks with wild abandon and no one to care for them. So what's so special about those roses? Can you get those rugged characteristics of wild (or just abandoned) roses in "domestic" varieties? Yes. There are some beautiful roses that aren't nearly as high maintenance as some of their pampered pam·per tr.v. pam·pered, pam·per·ing, pam·pers 1. To treat with excessive indulgence: pampered their child. 2. cousins. Some of the old-fashioned varieties (or "shrub roses") are a great choice, especially if mom isn't one to spend every day toiling in the garden. Two examples of the many great low-maintenance varieties are Knock Out(TM) and Home Run(R). These shrub roses easily grow in regular garden soil, and they normally need no pesticides at all. All they might need to get off to a good start and keep going strong is a little Messenger(R), a naturally occurring, harmless protein that suppresses diseases and enhances bloom. Messenger assures that the roses are spot free and loaded with blooms. Whether or not you deadhead dead·head Informal n. 1. A person who uses a free ticket for admittance, accommodation, or entertainment. 2. A vehicle, such as an aircraft, that transports no passengers or freight during a trip. 3. the bush doesn't seem to phase blooming of these two amazing roses. An unusual and easy to grow rose is the Green Rose. If your mom She goes to the gym. likes the uncommon and surprising, she will love this rose. The flower is completely green. This is another rose that you can plant in regular garden soil, water rarely, and need only spray with Messenger to keep it healthy and going strong. The plant itself seems to have almost no problems with diseases or insects, and it blooms like crazy. This is a nice easygoing eas·y·go·ing also eas·y-go·ing adj. 1. a. Living without undue worry or concern; calm. b. Lax or negligent; careless. c. guy mom will love. In addition to choosing low maintenance rose varieties, practice good habits that discourage problems in the garden. To start with, help your mom plant her new rose in the right place. Since most fungi germinate in high-moisture conditions, good soil drainage is important. Before planting, work plenty of good compost into the soil. Then after the garden is planted, mulch well and add more mulch every fall. The mulch provides insulation in winter, keeps things cool in summer, helps maintain soil moisture, suppresses weeds, and breaks down into natural compost so you are not nearly as dependent on chemical fertilizers. Space roses so they have at least 6 hours per day of sunlight and enough room so air can circulate freely. Good air circulation is also important because most diseases start and grow on wet plants. Water early in the day and try not to wet the foliage. Do all you can to encourage plant vigor and health as a first line of defense against problems. This includes adequate but not excessive soil fertility, avoiding water stress, mulching, and using Messenger to encourage good plant health. If despite all your best efforts, you still find you have a problem with diseases or insects, there are some natural solutions. Serenade serenade [Ital. sera=evening], term used to designate several types of musical composition. Opera and song literature yield numerous examples of the serenade sung or played by a lover at night beneath his beloved's window; outstanding is (R) works very well on powdery pow·der·y adj. 1. Composed of or similar to powder. 2. Dusted or covered with or as if with powder. 3. Easily made into powder; friable. Adj. 1. mildew and contains a harmless bacteria. There are a variety of waxes, soaps and oils that make your roses less attractive to invading insects. Some of them include hot pepper wax, insecticidal soap Insecticidal soap is defined as any of the potassium fatty acid soaps used to control many plant pests. Insecticidal soap is typically sprayed on plants in the same manner as other insecticides. Insecticidal soap works only on direct contact with the pests. , and neem oil Neem oil is a vegetable oil pressed from the fruits and seeds of Neem (Azadirachta indica), an evergreen tree which is endemic to the Indian sub-continent and has been introduced to many other areas in the tropics. . Now about that pruning chore -- it is a myth that roses need a severe pruning every winter. Most shrub roses and old garden roses only need the dead canes removed and a slight reshaping to keep the plant within the desired boundaries. So, save your mom's blood for the next Red Cross blood drive, and give her more time to spend with you and the rest of the family enjoying her garden. Other Great Variety Choices for Low-Maintenance Rose Gardens Baby Love, Polonaise polonaise (pŏl'ənāz`, ō'–), Polish national dance, in moderate 3–4 time and of slow, stately movements. It evolved from peasant and court processions and ceremonies of the late 16th cent. and was later used by J. S. and W. , Carefree Beauty, Prairie Sunrise, Prairie Harvest, Pink Pet, Marie Van Houtte Van Houtte Inc. (TSX: VH) is a company based in Montreal, Quebec, Canada that processes, distributes and sells coffee and related products. France-born Albert-Louis Van Houtte (1877–1944)[1] emigrated to Canada in 1912. , The Fairy, Wind Chimes wind chimes pl.n. An arrangement of small suspended pieces, as of glass, metal, or ceramic, hung loosely together so that they tinkle pleasingly when blown by the wind. Also called wind-bells. , Felicia, Livin Easy, Easy Going, Nearly Wild, Our Lady of Guadalupe
Our Lady of Guadalupe, also called the Virgin of Guadalupe (Spanish: Nuestra Señora de Guadalupe or Virgen de Guadalupe) is a 16th century Roman Catholic Mexican icon depicting , Zach, Mutablis, Playboy, Quietness, Westerland, Awakening, Pinkie, Marie Daly, Sea Foam Sea´ foam` 1. Foam of sea water. 2. (Min.) Meerschaum; - called also sea froth ltname>. . Web sites with good information about roses and natural gardening include: www.messenger.info www.greengardening.com www.rosesunlimitedownroot.com www.ashdownroses.com www.almostheavenroses.com www.bridgesroses.com www.davidaustinroses.com www.antiqueroseemporium.com www.heirloomroses.com www.witherspoonrose.com Messenger is a registered trademark of Eden Bioscience Corporation. Knock Out is a trademark of Conard-Pyle Co. Home Run is a trademark of Weeks Roses. Serenade is a registered trademark of AgraQuest. |
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