Ok. I tried roses last year, but I was in an apartment and kept them in pots outdoors. That worked well until the heat of August came and fried them all - I just couldn't keep up with the watering. I learned that lesson.

Since then, I've gotten a little smarter about soils and watering, and I think I'm up for the challenge.

So... I got married and moved and now we own a house in suburbia. I'd like to actually have a rose garden in the ground, but I'm not sure it's possible. You see, we just put in a fence, and in digging the 2' holes for the posts, we brought up bricks and stones, and enough clay to supply an art class for about 5 years.

The "fill" starts about 6 inches down, maybe less, there really isn't a whole lot of "top soil" in our yard. Is it even possible to amend something like this, without the clay around it just making a little soup pot to hold water against the roots? Is it possible? I don't mind digging big holes, but I just want to know if it'll do any good.

What would I do? I've been growing african violets, so I use peat/perlite/vermiculite in that soil. I don't think the same thing applies to roses.

Thanks for any help you can offer. :o)

Sara