I used to go through all kinds of contortions when I planted a rose...or anything else for that matter. All sorts of expensive composts and additives got mixed in the planting hole. Sometimes they did great and sometimes they didn't. Then I read a report put out by the University of Florida that said that plants adjust best when just planted in the native soil. I've been planting new roses and camellias and I quit ammending the planting hole. I work the soil up nicely, water them well, and lovingly plant them. I add the compost, etc. on top of the soil, as nature would. I've noticed over the years that earth worms are more than willing to bring the good stuff down to where the roots are. I'm having great results with a LOT less work. They seem to be adjusting to their new home much quicker. And it's less expensive, too. I've also switched to pine needles as mulch rather than pine bark, and have much less of a weed issue in my beds. Fortunately, bales of pine needles are harvested in my area, so the price is reasonable. Sandy

I have volunteer Oxalis and Strawberries, which I just leave alone. I wish the Oxalis was thicker and the Strawberries do not like being covered in the winter. This past mild winter seems to have really hit them hard, especially as last summer I was very late in getting the Roses uncovered but the Strawberries looked pretty good. This warm winter it seems everything under the cover, except the roses, and night crawles, looked like the worms went dirt tracking under there, took a real beating. I was rushed for time, trying to beat the rain, which was too bad as on a deep black surface like that, every weed that had survived stuck out like a zit, but I simply did not have time to dig them all out. As it is I failed and ended up digging the roses out of the black muck in the rain. The only tool that works if you do not want to ruin the roses is ones bare hands. The problem with having to cover the roaes is finding what companions tolerates that, that is not unwanted. I am not, repeat NOT, going to bury them again as workng in our black-gumbo is too much a pain in the buttocks in the spring. I put strings on them to find them but the strings either rotted or were so soaked in black mud, I could not find them. I actually think what ever the string was made of was candy for night crawlers as the few I found when pulled were no longer attached to anything and about half as long as they once were. I also think one is still buried but will just wait till a sprout pops up to locate it. The ones that did best were the ones so stiff that canes poppped up out of the dirt so they were easy to find, but up-righting them was not hard because I had to dig up the rose, but I had to dig a hole behind the rose to upright it. I have done this more than once before but this was the worst of the worst, in a year when it should have been very easy. The Oxalis comes from seed pods but I am worried the Straberries took a real hit. It took four years for them to cover one fourth of the rose bed.

I was hoping that someone from Florida would answer, because I live in a hot, dry zone and yours is humid. I water twice a week during summer, because of drought water restrictions. But we are allowed to water more to establish a new plant, so when I see signs of wilting, I water newly established plants more. Summer is very difficult on young plants, so I try to plant in the fall, so they can gain some growth of their root systems and foliage before facing summer. Someone once told me a trick about watering: Water a plant thoroughly and then count the days until you see signs of wilting and water again. If the plant wilted at day five, then water at day four next time. The problem with this is that variations in weather, i.e. wind, heat, etc. can change watering needs. When I first started out, I bought a watering probe. It was very useful at the time. Now I hardly need to use it. Best wishes for your roses and garden :-)

Glad to help! If you're happy with how the rose looks there's not usually a wrong way to do such things. In my yard, I probably am not as enthusiastic about cutting my laterals way back unless they're actively annoying me, since I want to keep the laterals as the blooming canes when convenient. I just bend those laterals sideways like I bend the main cane sideways, and then the laterals put out more laterals that put out more laterals...and the climber starts building that fan shape. You don't have to do that, but it helps increase the blooming over time. Those skinny lateral canes will fatten up if you leave them, rather than making that cane start over to produce new blooming canes. Not wrong to remove them if they bug you, but there's a tradeoff in blooming profusion and frequency. I also don't cut back canes where the leaves are unsightly since you want maximum canes to support more leaf and bloom development. If you can't stand the sight of the leaves it's OK to remove them, but the plant still benefits from the leaves even if there are holes. There's some sort of formula for maybe 35 leaves to support one bloom to keep in mind to increase blooming. Not set in stone of course, but I like to leave as many healthy canes and tolerable leaves as possible when pruning. Sounds like you did a great job getting things tidied up. Having a garden that brings you joy is part of the point of the activity and it sounds like you were getting tired in a good cause. Cynthia