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The Rose, the Robin and The SpiderRead the article this discussion is about
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» WilliamG - I guess I need to put more effort into the lawn ... Hello Adriela,That is only because I can't seem to talk my wife (and the Homeowners' Association) into letting me turn the whole lawn area into a rose garden [vbg]. Of course, I do need to look into that as right now I do have a lawn care service which turns up about 4 times each year to put on the fertilizer and weed and feed. However I do try to stay organic and work to feed the soil in my rose beds, flower beds and the potted roses. I do not spray insecticides or fungicides except for an occasional application of neem oil. My normal routine for feeding the roses is to feed fish and kelp emulsion, and other organic foods including Mills Magic Mix, and my own concoction which I make using kelp meal, alfalfa pellets, rock phosphate, greensand and other natural sources for the NPK and epsoms salt. I normally disolve the epsoms salt in water and do a foliar feed on that. One reason I shy away from alot of sprays is that my gardens principally consist of roses, herbs and other edible plants. that includes daylilies, marigolds, garlic, chives, a variety of culinary herbs, mints, etc. Thus I do not use a number of the recommended fungicides to combat blackspot and mildew, spider mites, aphids, and other insects which eat roses. Instead I encourage lizards, toads, ladybugs, lacewings, etc. In spring and fall I might spray some neem oil products (Rose Defense or Fruit, Nut and Veggie spray from Green Light). Other than that it boils down to selection of the varieties of roses and avoiding practices that promote fungal diseases. So, HERE, HERE for the robins, spiders, and roses! -- posted by WilliamG » CarolWallace - Getting rid of the lawn William - have you tried to talk herinto a formal rose garden design with nice, wide, grassy paths? That way she gets her green and you get more room for roses! (It worked with my husband, anyway. . .)-- posted by CarolWallace » Adriela_Sakamoto - No... Here, here for you, William! Good job on trying to keep it all organic. I thank you, and I know the little world your garden has become thanks you.Adriela -- posted by Adriela_Sakamoto
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