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Can I do it?

Posted by BubbleDragon z6? WestPA (My Page) on
Fri, Mar 11, 05 at 16:19

Well, after reading through these posts and a bunch of information, I'm going to attempt organic growing. Mostly because of my propensity toward migraines, the dog running around the yard, etc. That and I... kinda want roses to smell like they should.

I, however, am also new to growing roses, and plan to order a few mini's from Noreast for my birthday (late april, perfect timing for my zone) I'm in western PA, it's humid here, but still rather mild temperature wise in the summer.

I've chosen a few, most of which say 'disease resistant' in their descriptions. I know moonlight scentsation is new, so no one will have experience with that, but I'd appreciate input on the others, especially from my zone.

1 - Baby Boomer
1 - Moonlight Scentsation
1 - Pacific Serenade
1 - Salute
1 - Sweet Fairy

Am open to anything, really - these ones looked the best to me. I lean toward pinks myself, though my favorite color is really orange. But if you think I'm making a mistake, let me know.

When I get em in I was planning to throw a bannana peel and some coffee grounds into each to pot before repotting them up, then use this Cornell method everyone talks about, in addition to good old blasts of water, if I see buggies. I've seen mention of eggshells - what is the purpose of this?

Thanks in advance,
~Bubbles


Follow-Up Postings:

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RE: Can I do it?

Check out polyanthas instead of minis. They're far tougher, hardier, and more disease resistant. If you want to go organic, avoid modern roses like hybrid teas, floribundas, and miniatures. Their "disease resistant" means they don't get the measles or mumps maybe, but they sure get black spot. And Cornell really never worked for me on BS. YMMV since you're in a colder zone with a shorter growing season.


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RE: Can I do it?

I highly recommend 'Pacific Serenade'. I think you could order rose diseases in concentrate from a science lab, dump them on this plant, and it would still shrug it off. Mine even put up with my boyfriend running over it with a lawnmower and bounced back like nothing happened. I've never seen a trace of disease on this rose.

I've had good experiences with some of the other minis too, but I'm trying a lot more of them this year to see how it goes. So far 'Gizmo', 'Bee's Knee's, and 'Climbing Rainbow's End' have done well for me.


 
 

 

 


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