Roses

Lined Goatskin Gloves Keep Hands Warm For Winter Gardening

December 3, 2011 42 comments

Us pro gardeners are pretty tough. Even so, every year I’m surprised at just how cold winter is. When you go out at 9 am to get a spot of pruning in, and find your breath catching in the cold, you start to appreciate all the little design elements in tools that keep you warm [...]

Click here to continue reading →

Drift Roses, the Dwarf Knockout Relative

August 22, 2011 43 comments

As an organic landscaper, I’ve long been annoyed by those weakling, disease-prone roses that are pesticide junkies from day one. Yet when roses are done right, the colors, fragrance, and luxuriant flowers are hard to resist. They have that old-fashioned, secret garden-type appeal that makes me feel kind of warm and fuzzy inside. That’s why [...]

Click here to continue reading →

Disease-Resistant Roses for Damp Coastal Climates

January 19, 2010 7 comments

It’s bare-root season, guys, and the roses are cheap and plentiful! I’ve written before about how to select a bare-root rose and about some disease-resistant rose varieties for the coastal Pacific Northwest. I wanted to follow up with some additional suggestions that our local rose expert, Cynthia Graebner of Fickle Hill Old Rose Nursery, left [...]

Click here to continue reading →

Rosy Resolutions for the New Year

January 8, 2010 2 comments

I’m honored and pleased to be able to share with you the writing of my favorite garden humorist, Dr Leda Horticulture. Regan Nursery, the finest place to buy bare root roses online, and a gorgeous full-service garden center serving the San Francisco Bay Area, has given us permission to reprint Dr Leda’s articles from their [...]

Click here to continue reading →

Dr Leda Horticulture: Dr. Leda and the Rose Snobs

August 9, 2009 6 comments

Click here to continue reading →

Disease-Resistant Roses for the Pacific Northwest

July 20, 2009 15 comments

As a professional gardener, my philosophy leans more towards making organic and sustainable choices in the garden, not only because I’m afraid of what long-term repeated exposure could do to my health, but also because I have the power to help so many people make better choices for their gardens. The organic philosophy can be [...]

Click here to continue reading →

How to Treat Rose and Flower Pests Naturally: Organic Control of Black Spot/ Powdery Mildew, Aphids, and Caterpillars

July 14, 2009 5 comments

If you’ve tried to prevent rose problems with the tips in this article, but still ended up with some pests (it happens!), here are the methods I recommend to get rid of pests on roses the organic way. (Obviously, before spraying anything, read the instructions on the bottle and be sure to suit up appropriately [...]

Click here to continue reading →

How to Treat Rose and Flower Pests Naturally: Prevention

July 12, 2009 2 comments

The introduction to this series is here. Preventing pests with good gardening habits is the first step towards having healthy roses and flowers. Healthy plants are a lot less likely to get diseases, while sickly plants become overrun by problems very quickly. Not only that, attending to the basics of a healthy garden will get [...]

Click here to continue reading →