Can This Rose Bush Gamble Be Made To Pay Off?

[virginiadear]

First, I should say that although I've had to prune and feed roses, and while I know that they are an ancient and very tough shrub, I've never actually planted roses.  So, if the collective mind of the gardening community would come to my assistance, here, I shall be most grateful.

A few weeks ago, matanai had posted to this community about roses at Big

Comments

[liminalia]

Nick the bark on a side branch and peel it back a little. If it's still green underneath and the pith seems moist, there's a chance. Get them in the ground and watered asap!

[virginiadear]

Even the seeming-dead ones, if there's some green? (I've been watering, by the way; not a huge amount of water, just enough to "feel" it through the packing, but four of the six seem okay with what I've been giving them...)

Will do!
Oh---we haven't had our last frost date yet (that's mid-May, usually.) Will that make a significant difference, or will the roses just wait and or fall back and re-group if necessary? We're not expecting snow that I know of but it is *brisk,* still, and we can have frosts over night.

[liminalia]

Hmm, I wouldn't put them in the ground then. Can you plant them in containers and transplant later? The problem is you've started watering them, which has broken their dormancy, although being at the warm store probably did so, too. If you planted them now, I'm afraid the frost would kill off any new growth.

[virginiadear]

Yes, ma'am, planting into containers I can do.
I was rather concerned that planting them outdoors might harm them just now. Most of the six had shown tiny little shoots of green in the store; some had shown rather impressive new growth!

Will transplanting them later upset them in any way, other than the expected resentment over being transplanted?

[matanai]

Did you guys get that crazy ass storm the night before last? We actually had a tornado touch down about 5 miles from here O_O But all of my stuff is okay. I have my plants outside right now, I put them under a tarp for the storm.

The weather is so deceiving, I'd think by now we're okay, but I know last year it tricked me too, and i put my tomatoes outside during a warm spring week like this, and then the last frost came and wrecked shit. >:(

[virginiadear]

That wind-and-rainstorm which was blowing hard enough you thought you could feel the house shift in the wind?
Yeppers, we got it. Felt like winter was blowing in all over again, that wind was so icy cold. >8^[
No tornadoes of which I've heard, though---amen!

There's a very good reason we near the Lake don't plant outdoors until Memorial Day. I grew up here, so I know better than to trust to optimistic meteorological forecasts.

[matanai]

I was never terrified of thunderstorms until we bought the house. Before, it was neat, because it wasn't my house and if damages occured, I didn't have to take care of it. LOL. Now i'm always terrified the roof will be damaged or a tree branch will crush something. Plus the wind makes it sound like our siding is shifting and coming off. Creepy!

At around 4am there was thunder loud enough that it shook the ground and made one of our neighbors car alarms go off.

"There's a very good reason we near the Lake don't plant outdoors until Memorial Day."
Omg that would drive me nuts waiting that long. I went to a wedding up in Mentor once and it was the middle of summer but the wind and rain was so cold, it ended up raining on wedding day and of course it was an outdoor wedding. God, it was miserable.

[virginiadear]

I can harvest *young* zucchini or straight neck yellow squashes in November. The Lake offers compensations, or trade-offs, depending on which end of the growing season we're at. It holds off the frosts and cold in autumn, but it postpones the arrival of outdoor planting in spring.

We had a *lot* of storms blow in off the Lake last summer. They come up fast and whatever they're going to do, they do hard. They they leave, but often there's something else arriving via land.

They'll teach you to respect weather, though. And to learn to bend with it, instead of making yourself crazy with wanting to get out there the first clear and sunny day, to dig in the dirt.

[matanai]

Mmm... what do you mean about the frost and cold in autumn? Do your winters come later or something, with the lake acting like a stablizer or something?

The thing I love about gardening, is that it's taught me patience. Nature is what it is. It does what it wants, you're there for the ride. And it's not permanent, you can change it so easily.
And, weather included. Rain is good for my garden and so is sunshine. Snow, not so much, but without death there is no life. And hail, well, hail happens.

(And when Nate got a Jeep, it was perfect timing. we both watch weather.com for rain reports, for different reasons. He takes the top off when it's nice. If you ever need to know about the weather forecast, ask a farmer or a Jeep owner.)

[virginiadear]

The solar winter, the one which arrives according to the winter solstice, arrives when it arrives

[matanai]

I learn something new every day! That's interesting about the times it takes for the lake to refresh. I... didn't even know they did that.

I heard they cleaned up the lakes, btw? I flew to Youngstown from Minneapolis once, on a small plane, and there was nasty scum and garbage all over Erie.

[liminalia]

As long as you don't disturb the roots too much, they should be ok.

[virginiadear]

That's readily do-able.

Thank you! :-)