I hope you and yours are well and happy to begin this new year.  I am so excited about the prospects that the new year bring. 

 I spent some time looking through some on line rose offering this morning and something became very apparent.  Roses inc. Tulsa offers one on the largest selections of rose varieties in the United States and we do not sell liners.  All of our Roses are sold as large bare root plants or in #3, #5 or larger pots.  Please check out our on line catalog at http://rosesinctulsa.com for a complete listing.  We also have a few copies of our paper catalog left for $15.00 each that is refundable with your first purchase of 4 or more potted roses. 

Best wishes for a great and healthy new year.

Mark  

  

  

Pocket Gopher

 

Cotton Tail

  

Vole

These three critters do more damage to wintering roses than all of the other pest put together except under those conditions where deer are present.  Each of these harm the roses by eating them.  The Pocket Gopher eats roots.  Your rose may look great one day and then the very next day it be wilting and dying.  The pocket gopher lives entirely under ground except when it is changing locations or mating.  They are very territorial and most of the time there is only one tearing up your beds and they are not very picky.  They eat roots off many of your flowers and vegetables.  Their presents in your yard can be detected by large mounds of soil in the yard with a tell tale indention somewhere around the perimeter.  They are best poisoned because trapping them invites new gophers to the already made tunnels.   

Cotton Tails are very numerous in the Tulsa Area and do not mind having their cousins, nieces, nephew and all other extended family dine with them.  Rabbits generally eat new growth and are therefore very problematic in the spring and early Summer months.  In the Winter they will strip bark and eat leaves.  They leave a noticeable bare line around the plant up to the limits of their reach.  Trapping them or killing them with a pellet gun are the most effective means of ridding yourself of these pest.  Baring those methods you can try and use 1 inch web wire around the perimeter of the area you need protected.

This is an example of a fence built by Roses inc to preclude cotton tails.

  Last but by far not the least worrisome critter to your rose bushes in the winter is the Vole.  Voles leave little trace of being around that are noticed by the casual eye.  They do leave trails on top of the ground and burrow holes near their nest.  They will nesty under building and around just about any structure.  Voles do tunnel and eat roots, especially if the roses are well mulched or the earth is very friable.  Voles are not especially afraid of people and in fact before I realalized what they were eating a long time ago, I had a couple that would come right up to me a I prunned in my garden.  They would set an watch me for a long time and scamper and play.  Treat them the same way as you treat gophers.

Be careful when purchasing product for critter control.  There are many on the market and only a few that really work.  Sonic or windmill chasers are seldom if ever effective and products containing caster oil will tend to run the critters to another part of your yard or the yard of your neighbors.

If you are having problems with these or other rose pest or just having trouble identifing which one is bothering your garden.  Give me a call or e mail me at astelljes@cox.net and I will give you some help.

  

  

  

Things that should already be done that you still need to do.

  

Mulch, 4 inches deep over the entire bed.  Shredded pine bark is great for this and we have it in stock for the diy among you or we will do it for you.

  

Tie Climbers, Climbers should be securely attached to the structure they are growing against to protect them from heavy snow or winter wind damage.  Remember to leave a fingers space inside the tie.

  

Water, We got a little rain last night but be sure your soil does not dry out.  The roses use little water while they are dormant even if they have not dropped their leaves.  Just make sure the soil around them is damp not wet.

  

Spray, A good cover of dormant oil will go a long way to having pest free roses in the Spring.

  

Do not try and remove snow from on or around the roses.  You will do much more harm than good.  It will melt off eventually and serve as insulation while it is there. 

  

Look at the over 400+ varieties of roses we will offer next Spring here at Roses inc. and place your orders now for the best price.  25% off until January 31.  We start potting February 1 and our winter sale is over.