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I've been gardening for 35 years, and for 30 of those years I wouldn't grow roses because they were too much work––spraying weekly to prevent foliar diseases, covering or burying them to get them through the winter. That's not for me. If a plant can't make it on its own through the winter, it doesn't belong in my garden!

Well, times have changed. Rose breeders in northern states and Canada have been hard at work breeding new cultivars that are not only hardy here, but also disease resistant, fragrant and beautiful, and bloom for most of the summer, as well. And, of course, the local growers and garden centers have been bringing the best of these roses to market for us to plant in our gardens and enjoy.

Horticulturists at the U of MN Landscape Arboretum and Horticultural Research Center in Chanhassen have been evaluating new cultivars and "Old Garden Roses" since 1989. Many of the older roses were planted in the 50s and 60s. An extensive publication, “Roses for the North," lists all the roses they have grown and ranks them according to hardiness, disease and insect resistance, size and form, fragrance and color. It also has lots of information on planting and care. It's available online at: http://www.extension.umn. edu/distribution/horticulture/DG6594.html.

Shrub roses vary in cane hardiness - extent of winter dieback and ability to recover and bloom. The past couple of years, with very little snow cover for insulation, have surely put roses to the test. The hardiest plants suffer very little dieback - only slight damage, if any, to the tips of the canes. Others die all the way to the ground; however, those that do die all the way back send up new vigorous canes in the spring and manage to bloom beautifully all summer! As it says in "Roses for the North" those cultivars that die back to the crown are limited only in ultimate size of the plant, not in their ability to delight the gardener with blooms! And, limited size is not necessarily a bad thing for those with limited garden space!

I now have five different varieties of hardy shrub roses in my garden and plan to add two more this year. I have been more than satisfied with my choices, so far. "Chuckles" is probably my favorite. It has died all the way to the crown the past couple of years, but grows new canes vigorously and sports abundant large, semi-double (6-14 petals), almost neon pink, fragrant blooms way into fall. All roses have thorns, but in the case of "Chuckles," those thorns are large, bright red and add to the attractiveness of the plant.

"Nearly Wild" is a small shrub rose which suffers some dieback. Its flowers are numerous, light pink, single (5 petals), and resemble the wild rose, as you might expect from its name. "Champlain" has gorgeous bright red, fully double (15 or more petals) blooms that more resemble the form of hybrid tea roses. "Blanc Double de Coubert" is a medium sized shrub rose, has very fragrant, pure white, double flowers, is very disease resistant and has never had any winter dieback in my garden.

"John Cabot" requires support. I have it trained to a trellis. Its flowers are fragrant, dark pink and fully double, and grow in large clusters. Only planted last year, I was very surprised how early it leafed out this spring, with no winter damage on any of the canes! It had no winter protection and is planted where it is exposed to harsh winds off the lake. What a tough rose! I have photos of my roses on my personal website.

Take a look at: http://homepage.mac.com/mebcdb/Garden_Menu. (Be sure to use capital letters and underscore in "Garden_Menu".)

Thursday, June 23, I will be giving a slide presentation on "Shrub Roses and Flowering Shrubs" at the Fairview Lakes Regional Health Care Center in Wyoming, from 6:30-8 p.m. We will discuss selection and care, as well as fitting them into the flower garden and landscape.

This presentation will be the second in a series of six classes on flower gardening to be presented by U of MN Extension Service Master Gardeners on the second and fourth Thursday evenings of June, July and August. The cost is $4 per session or $15 for the entire series. For more information on the "Summer 2005 Flowering Gardening Series" and how to buy tickets, call 651-674-4417, stop by the Chisago County Extension Office, 38780 8th Ave, North Branch, or visit our website to download a ticket order form: www.extension.umn.edu/county/chisago.

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Ways to access information

Master Gardeners will be offering free plant clinics every Monday night from 4:30-8:00 at the Extension office in North Branch. Stop by 38780 Eighth Ave. (the Anderson Chiropractic Building) or call 651-674-4417 to speak with a Master Gardener.

www.extension.umn.edu/county/chisago Check out the 'Hot Topics' box in the middle of the page for current Chisago County Master Gardener news and events.

You can also click on 'Ask a Master Gardener' next to the cute little flower on the right hand side of the page. Here you can search 1000's of answers from Master Gardeners around the state. If you don't find your answer you can submit a question online or search for University publications.

Bell Museum of Natural History

For information about snakes, skunks, raccoons or other wildlife around your yard, call the wildlife information line at (612) 624-1374 or www.bellmuseum.org.

To see the latest Yard and Garden newsletter, go to: http://www.exten sion.umn.edu/yardandgarden/YGLNews/YGLNews.html.

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