Humboldt Rose Society

Heroes in the Garden
By Pat Hamilton
2006 National Award of Merit winner

This year seems to be a continuation of one rain storm after another. According to the weather bureau we have had 153 per cent of normal rainfall. In our own garden December thru the first week of February we had only six days that were free of some type of precipitation. This was followed by ten wonderfully warm spring days, hallelujah!!! We waited a couple of days until the ground didn’t suck at our shoes when we walked on it and then we finally planted our bare root roses that were setting in pots of potting soil because we had despaired of ever getting enough dry weather to put them in the ground. Needless to say, by then we were way behind on our pruning so we got at it as fast as we could go. Fortune smiled on us and we finished 350 roses before the rain made a three day return engagement. Next we were hit by a couple of weeks of hard freezes every night, this took care of a lot of new tender growth and some total classes of my perennials. Now we are on the next to the last day of February and we are being deluged with
rain again. Click here for the full text of this article

Why Roses ... By Gaird Hamilton
2004 National Award of Merit winner

With the rain pelting down and the wind whipping the tops of the basically bloomless roses covering a vast portion of our yard, “why all these roses” can be a silent question in our brains. We can easily visualize all of the work involved in pruning, spraying, weeding, fertilizing, and so forth, and it is hard to see in our heads just how gorgeous they will be during their long season of bloom. Like that old saying in sports, “what have you done for me lately”? While this kind of thinking isn’t really fair to the roses, we may fall victim to this attitude from time to time during the short stormy days of winter... Click here for the full text of this article

With annual membership, receive ten issues of Roses in the Redwoods

Learn the secrets of growing healthy roses on the Northcoast. Editor Pat Hamilton compiles the best bits of wisdom, helpful hints, recipes, and informative articles from Humboldt's finest rosarians in our rose society's monthly newsletter.

Articles from Roses in the Redwoods have been featured in newletters across the country and several have even been awarded the American Rose Society's award of merit for journalistic excellence. Read columns from your society's president, reports from consulting rosarians, and find out about the rose of the month.

Read below for a sample of articles, then visit our Join HRS page to find out how your mailbox can be coming up roses all year long!

Putting in a Rose Garden
By Sue Silva
2004 National Award of Merit winner

When you are a rose nut like me you have to constantly think of where you are going to plant those new roses you are planning on buying this year. The roses I have are all so special to me that I hate to dig them up so I just keep looking for new places to squeeze them in. This past spring I made the decision to add a whole new area to my rose garden so I would have room not only to use this year but maybe have room to save for the next few years... Click here for the full text of this article

Soils... By Pat Hamilton

The New Year arrived with new hope for a deer free garden. Gaird, David and Jake(our grandson from Fortuna) were working on a seven foot high deer fence. This turn of events instilled excitement about the rose garden, and hope for a vegetable garden once again. My brain began to go into overdrive mode with plans for changes that I want to make, however they all have to be cleared by Gaird as my partner in “Rosaholicism.” We need to be on the same page and I know not all of my plans will ever pass muster, so to speak... Click here for the full text of this article

Spraying Tips for Lazy Rosarians
By Dr. Stan Baird
2005 National Award of Merit winner

Of all the many tasks involved in growing roses, there is nothing I hate worse than spraying! I am definitely a lazy rosarian, so in that sense, perhaps I am qualified to address this subject. We sometimes read advice in The American Rose that we should promote the idea that our beloved roses are easy to grow! Who are they kidding? ... Click here for the full text of this article

The "Why" and "How" of Rose Pruning
By Dr. Stan Baird

Yes, once again it’s that time of year when dutiful rosarians face the daunting task of pruning their roses. But those visions of a bountiful and colorful crop of exquisitely formed roses encourage us to venture forth with pruning shears in hand to brave the vengeful stabs from rose thorns - not to mention the aching backs and sore knees that accompany the pruning process for some of us!. But make no mistake - whether you are an avid exhibitor or grow roses for your own enjoyment, timely pruning is absolutely essential for a summer of glorious blooms and healthy bushes. ... Click here for the full text of this article

Love, Honor, and Cherish
By Sue Silva
2006 National Award of Merit winner

When I was a little girl growing up on a dairy ranch in Oregon, one of my earliest memories were the pretty flowers in our yard. We also had fruit trees and my mom always raised a big garden and did a lot of canning because she always had extra mouths to feed with a hired man and hay crew. I guess I just thought everyone had the knowledge of growing plants and I just thought that it was part of life, and as I grew older helping with the planting and weeding of the garden became one of my chores ... Click here for the full text of this article

Roses, A Lifetime Obsession
By Gaird Hamilton
2006 National Award of Merit winner

Pat and I had both grown up in the country. She was from Southern Oregon and I was from the foothills of the Sierra Nevada mountains of Northern California. In 1965 after being married four years, living in a series of rentals, and having a growing family, we wanted more space. I was working out of the area, but on the weekend I spotted an ad in the paper for a house with acreage. Pat checked it out on her own during the week, I looked too the next weekend, and thanks to the G I Bill, in a couple of months we were moving in... Click here for the full text of this article

Our Private War With Downy Mildew... By Gaird Hamilton
2002 National Award of Merit winner

If you read in the average book about the care and raising of roses you will find that it will probably say that there are three main fungus diseases of roses. These are blackspot, powdery mildew, and rust. Since these diseases are very prevalent wherever roses are grown, there will be instructions on the various ways to rid your garden of these problems. This is usually a regular spray program either of an advanced spray which can be very effective, or a more environmentally friendly spray which can keep these diseases down to an acceptable level. Only a very few up to date books mention downy mildew at all... Click here for the full text of this article