What was I thinking? With hindsight, I wasn't thinking about color when I placed my rose
order this year. Roses are not cheap to ship these days so I limited my "spring binge" to
one nursery and because so many nurseries limit themselves to one annual ship date, which
I missed, Chamblees got my business.

If you are considering ordering from them you should know that all their roses are very
reasonably priced, top quality and grown on their own roots. I recommend a call to have
them explain how to get the most out of your shipping dollars. It is all about pot size
vs box size.

I found five, three of which were replacements for plants killed by our unlamented
ex-caretaker, a firm believer in ride on lawnmower combined with no water to lessen the
work load.

The replacements are:

Crepuscule,
Mermaid, and
Mrs B.R. Cant

I also bought Julia Child and Buck Griffith's Winter Sunset.

Notice anything? They are, in order, creamy yellow apricot, yellow, pink, yellow apricot,
& (surprise) yellow apricot.

Mrs Cant and Crepuscule will be planted to riot over our not very pretty well pumphouse.
Mermaid about 20 feet away on a support by the road fence. This will hopefully result in
pleasing sight lines from all directions. Julia and Winter Sunset will have to remain in
their pots until inspiration strikes.

Daniella is one of those sturdy gems that life gifts you with when you least expect it. I bought this as a birthday present to myself in Safeway around Valentine's Day, one of those little pots of miniature roses in full bloom for $5.95 plus tax. I chose this particular plant because I am very partial to the shades of apricot and it had a bonus, rare in a supermarket mini, strong scent.

Many miniature roses mature to an unattractive flat rosette with triangular folded petals, Daniella does not. The bloom is a classic Hybrid Tea shape in the bud and in maturity it has slightly frilled edges to the petals, similar to Angel Face. Depending on the heat it may be shades of apricot or warm gold in the center. The flowers last longer in the vase than just about any other rose I know, retaining their scent to the end. The only negative is that the flowers will get red spots from the rain.

Daniella is extraordinarily healthy. I had five plants in my pot. They are planted in a crowded holding bed which has gotten away from me with weeds. They have grown to approximately two feet tall and been covered in blooms throughout a very hot summer. No sign of any disease at all and all five survived.

Companies who grow these seasonal floral offerings get the full pot look by stuffing three, four or five plants into that 4" pot. Most of them die within weeks of being sold, but they don't have to. The secret to keeping them alive until you can plant them outside is (a) never let them dry out, without keeping them standing in water (b) don't keep them too warm and (c) make sure they have enough light.

When it is time to set them out, tease the roots apart gently. Some folks like to immerse the root ball in a bucket of warm water and float them apart. I prune mine back by about half depending on the size, some of them are pretty puny. Provide some shelter from howling gales and scorching sun until the roots are established.

This is a rose that captivated me with its description. Who could resist " bronzy centers with outer orchid pink petals that shade to lavender at the edges" certainly not me.

I ordered it from Northland Rosarium in my spring spending spree. To be fair they did warn me it was "a bit puny" but I wanted it and when it arrived it was puny indeed. About 6" tall, three sets of leaves and a great big fat flower bud.

The wind does not bother it, neither does the oppressive heat - three days last week we reached 109F (42.7C) and the other four days we 'enjoyed' 105F (40.5C) Where it is planted it gets full sun all day.

The color in our searing summer sun and heat is pale pink fading to a warm tan in the center. Pretty! Flowers seem to last longer than most roses and I am looking forward to seeing it when it has grown up.

Many years ago I bought French Lace for my garden at home. I know they were expensive, high quality plants. They didn’t like my garden and refused to thrive. Eventually they just died. I think French Lace needs winter dormancy which I couldn’t provide and so it wore itself out.

A month ago I found two dried out French Lace in gallon pots on the “next stop the dumpster” table at Walmart for $1.50 each. They were covered in blackspot and aphids with a mess of dead spindly stems at their centers, each bravely carried one flower. I rescued them. I have bought #1-1/2 plants before but didn’t even know there was a #2 category!

The aphids and dead leaves blew off on the way home in the back of the truck. I stripped every remaining leaf and pruned out dead stems before watering. Then I placed their pots in a spot out of the wind that gets morning sun only.

A week later it was obvious they were going to survive so I dug the holes and planted them. A few days after that I fed them with the fish emulsion and they have exploded.

The description says they have a mild fragrance. Mine has a fairly strong scent, despite the intense summer heat. I think it would be even stronger in cooler spring and fall.