walsh@ihuxi.UUCP (10/24/83)
I live in the Chicagoland area, and need some advice for protecting my 15 rose bushes (hybrid tea and floibunda). Last year, I bought rose cones, cut back the bushes, punched air holes in the cone tops, covered the bud unions with earth, covered the roses with the cones, and awaited Spring. Alas, when I uncovered them in the Spring, all but one had died to the ground. A nursery recommended a mulch that would allow greater air circulation, such as leaves. Unfortunately, I live in a new subdivision with virtually no trees large enough to produce enough leaves. Can anyone recommend an alternate means of protecting the roses this winter? Thanks, B. Walsh
padpowell@wateng.UUCP (PAD Powell [Admin]) (10/27/83)
Mulch:
If you cannot find leaves, try a bale of straw...
Another alternative is to rip/cut newspapers into long strips.
You should then cover this mess with a ground sheet of some
kind. My neighbours use an old canvas tent over their roses.
They ripped the seams and then cut it up into sections.
Patrick ("Ever seen 100 hectares of rose bushes?") Powell