Michigan Gardening: Growing Roses in Michigan, 1 by Cottage_Rose

Cottage_Rose wrote:
For those of you who have given up on roses please don't because there truely are carefree roses that thrive in Michigan.
A good place to start would be your local bookstore where you can buy a copy of "Roses for Michigan" by Nancy Lindley (owner along with husband Roger) of Great Lake Roses near Ann Arbor MI.
(check your library if you don't want to buy it)
Another tip for you novices is to resist the temptation to buy those cheap bagged roses from the big box stores.
Thier roots are usually severly chopped off, they are usually severely dehydrated and often they are virused and many times simply fail to thrive.
"You get what you pay for" usually applies when purchasing roses too.Consider purchasing your roses from the reputable online/mail order rose vendors like Pickering Nurseries or Roses Unlimited. (my favs)
Groups of easy to grow roses to consider: Rugosas (come in all sizes), Albas (one of my personal favorites), Canadian Explorer Roses, Morden, Parkland and Pavement roses, Meideland shrub roses, many of the Old Garden Roses and select roses in the modern shrub class.
Resist the temptation to buy the all too available Hybrid Tea roses which tend to be tender and disease prone.
While Dr. Griffith Buck roses are very popular they have heavy Hybrid Tea lineage and tend to not be all they are cracked up to be. I have grown at least 20 varieties and so far I'm only impressed with Apple Jack, Prairie Princess and Carefree Beauty.
Being selective in your purchases can lead to success!
So lets go rose shopping! :))


This message was edited Apr 5, 2005 4:13 PM