Beautiful roses, Ingrid.

Is Bishop Castle sensitive to powdery mildew in your garden? I moved mine from a shaded spot to a sunny spot, and that helps with the powdery mildew but it still has some in my garden. Helen

Your roses are truly beautiful. I am so sorry that you are losing so many of your bushes. I have lost 8 plants.... the sad thing for me is I can't identify what is killing them. It is not any kind of critter. Plant seems to be dying from the bottom up with black streaks. I did dig one up that was not doing well but still green on top. I was going to try and pot it up, but did not bother. The roots did not have any fine white hairs ... just black..... I dug down further to see if their was any kind of drainage issue. No. The ground was not "wet" but not dry. I do have to water on a daily basis otherwise they would be dried out.... I though it might be wire worms because I do have those in the soil, but they were not overly plentiful in the hole left behind from the rose I dug out.... now I am wondering if it could be something in the water from the city.... they have been putting extra chlorine in the water to flush the pipes. You can actually smell it when you shower.... we also have reverse osmosis.... but the city swears that would not cause a problem.... who knows why mine are dying...

so I sympathize for you.... I wish mine would put out beauties like yours.

Good luck with the ones you still have left.

They are so beautiful. Sigh. Do you think you could grow some in containers perhaps in an enclosed space?

Ingrid, your Potter and Moore is so beautiful . I love that orchidy pink color

I love your photos, Ingrid. I hope your rains start soon. Keep posting photos, please, even though it can be frustrating. I love your spare look too. I am finding more congested plantings here. I just put in more lilacs and I have a pot rose ghetto again. I have a lot of work ahead getting ready for Spring. Not feeling it at the moment.

I’m so sorry that you’ve had so much damage to your roses, your blooms are still lovely and I can understand how precious they must be. I do hope you get the much needed rains you are longing for.

Oh, that Potter and Moore is so very dreamy!! Despite all your difficulties, you sure grow them all. beautifully Really wishing for rain for you soon!! :-)

Helen, I sometimes have mildew on Bishop's Castle, but only when it's very humid in early spring. I defy a rose to get mildew when it's at 1%. Actually today the humidity finally climbed up to 6%. Sharon, I'm so sorry about your losses, and what you describe is very puzzling. Those black roots when you don't have a drainage problem pose quite a mystery.

Sheila, I can imagine that when you have all the room you do to grow roses (and other things) it's a real challenge not to get overwhelmed. However, your garden in the spring is one that I always long to see.

Thank you all for your lovely praise. I'm glad to say that even a few blooming rose bushes fill me with joy; one learns to adapt to the prevailing conditions and be thankful.

Your bouquets are so beautiful, I like the porcelain fruit with the roses. Glad to see you still have blooms, Ingrid.

CA needs rain, I hope the rainy season begins soon.

Ingrid, i hope you get more winter rain too . I am amazed at the size of the blooms on your Marie Pavie. Mine looks way smaller even though i had it almost reaching to 3rd year. I am still getting baby blooms . Lovely bouquets of roses.

Ingrid, how I wish I have such a lovely bouquet in my room now! I must say that the photos of both your garden and bouquets give me equal joy. I've been away from the forum for awhile and looking at your garden is like meeting old friends, "Aha, here is Ingrid's SdlM!" And then as I scroll down, "I wonder if Potter and Moore will be in bloom ...yes, here it is! Of course, gorgeous as always." And so on. Thank so much you for sharing.

Ingrid, it’s great to see some roses blooming in your garden! That 1% humidity you had sure does beat my 4%. It’s amazing that either of us have any blooms at all after the kind of conditions we’ve had lately. I’m so glad to see that Potter and Moore is amongst the survivors. I’m sure every bloom you get is especially appreciated in your challenging conditions. My humidity is back up to 50% today, and I hope yours is improving as well.

I too, have the dreaded roof rats here. Do you know if they make holes in the ground to live in? I’m seeing holes that aren’t the usual gopher holes, although I have those as well. These rats aren’t eating my roses, but my neighbors have fruiting bushes that seem to keep them fed. I hear them running along the fence and getting into fights amongst themselves. I’m terribly phobic of rodents, so I dread watering there at night. I just wondered if you might know where they go during the day? The holes I’m seeing are not from squirrels or chipmunks. I don’t have squirrels, rabbits, or chipmunks here.

Anyway, I’m thrilled to see what’s blooming this month at your place. Bishops Castle is looking gorgeous, and nothing beats your SDLM. I know we’re still in for some warm weather for a week or so, but hopefully after that we can catch a break. I’m longing for winter too. I just hope it’s a wet one. Lisa

vesfl, I'm charmed and touched that you remember my roses; what a complement that is for my garden.

Lisa, my understanding is that roof rats like to live high up, unlike Norway rats, and will hang out in palm trees (or other trees), house eaves and attics. I don't know about the holes in the ground since that wouldn't hide and shelter them during the day. However, since you don't have other critters that must be their work. I so feel for you; I would be freaked out by seeing so many rats traipsing around. The only natural deterrent I can think of would be a dog with vermin hunting instincts like a terrier, but I imagine another animal to care for would not be easy for you. I hope your kitties are all well.

Ingrid, the roses that have survived are so lovely. Souvenir de la Malmaison is a very handsome shrub. I have very few blooms right now. Just a couple on Madame Alfred Carriere, Gruss an Teplitz, Belinda’s Blush and Star of the Republic.