Debbie, if it helps any, after 16 years, I still can kill 'em. Maybe that wasn't so helpful... :-O

Don't give up.....the first year I grew roses I actually planted a bareroot rose upside down! 17 years later I grow over 200 roses in pots. By the way someone pointed out what I did and I fixed the problem and the rose did survive. You learn and move on to the next lesson. I think you'll be fine based on your interest in roses.....so don't give up yet.
Michael

I think one of the harder things you are trying to do is grow roses in a big container. It's much harder to keep the moisture level right in a big container. They are always too wet at the bottom and too dry at the top. I use smaller containers that dry out daily. I water every day, unless it rains enough. It's much easier that way. Heck, two of my (cheap) HT's are going into their second year crammed in 5# Starbucks coffee bags. I had to cut off most of the roots to make them fit in there (they were cheap bareroots). It has been a lesson to me that roses don't necessarily need big fancy accomodations - just regular water and nutrients.

I would recommend simplifying your rose container scenario. Maybe move PJ into a smaller pot - one that is just the right size - not too big - with excellent drainage. If she thrives, you can always move her up to the larger container.

Jim is right that a wick will move all the stagnant water out. My soil dries too fast if I wick it (it's very arid and windy here), but in your climate that might help your situation. Just make the wick so you can pull it back out if it's too drying!

Do you have a moisture meter on hand? If so, stick it in those pots and check the moisture at the top and middle and see what's happening.

And don't get discouraged. :-) This is a bad week, but also a week where you have some learning opportunities. Besides, PJ is off patent. You could propagate another one or six on it's own roots.

Cheers,
Michelle

Without getting into incriminating details about just how foolish I can be the list is huge of things I have done wrong in the garden that seemed VERY appropriate and indicated at the time! Hang in there, you learned something here and your rose vision will come together with persistence.

In the meantime take yourself rose shopping.

Kate

I think the smaller pot might be a good idea to start. What size would you recommend- this was a Pickering bareroot, not a David Austin TX one (i.e, the roots were not enormous. Maybe I can put the smaller pot (black nursery pot) into the larger one just for show.

I'm awful with pots. I'll keep roses in pots only as long as I absolutely have to. That's why my Heirloom roses get planted right into the ground no matter how small they are.

I'm having a bad week too. We had bad storms over the weekend and I lost at least four canes on four different roses. One of my tomatoes died too and I had to get a different kind to replace it as the kind I wanted was sold out everywhere.

But since you had a rose die, you get to go out a buy a new one as consolation. It's a rule :)

redsox, I've got bands in onegallon black pots. A larger bare root should probably go into a 3 gallon. Are you planning on planting these in the ground eventually.

Actually, no I bought them strickly for pots. I will try the 3 gallon. I might already have some on hand.

What Buford said. 3 gallons is a good size to grow out a medium bareroot, 5 gallons for a bigger bareroot.

Cheers,
Michelle

Are you sure you killed PJ? Underwatering for a short time is better than overwatering as far as plant recovery goes. I hope you watered her after she flopped over! (If underwatering was the reason). When I lived in an apartment I had several potted roses that I basically ignored. They recouped. Now I have several large roses in containters. I have them on a bubbler system, 3 emitters to a pot. To figure how to to adjust the timing and spray volume, I put my finger in the soil about 2-3 inches down. If soil is still saturated the next day, you know you can cut down on watering.

I definitely killed one. The other one is still floppy even after I watered it last night. Maybe I am not watering enough? I thought I overwatered the other (dead) one so I am confused. I put an umbrella over the alive, floppy one to see if it would come back. If it returns, I will downsize to a 3 gallon.

Best advice for pots is a drip irrigation system on a timer. That way, you can get busy, go out of town, forget to water, and nothing bad happens. After years of miserable pots (with all kinds of flowers, including miniature roses), I got a drip irrigation system from dripworks (www.dripworks.com). I use one system on my in-the-ground roses, and another on my pots. I can adjust the amount of watering time per day to account for the weather. My pots look the best they ever have. I am a believer! Now, if I could just get such an easy solution for thrips and aphids.....