“I wish I had this when I planted my rose garden twenty-five years ago. I am now about to plant another garden, full of wonderful rose varieties and I intend to follow Peter's advice wholeheartedly.” —Martha Stewart Have you tried to grow roses, only to give up once you realized how dependent on pesticides they are? In this lush guide rose expert Peter Kukielski highlights 150 rose varieties that excel in gardens without the use of chemicals. Roses Without Chemicals features information on planting, pruning, and pests; plant profiles that include a color photo and details on color, growth habit, and fragrance; and helpful lists of roses organized by color, growing habit, and region.

Forget the fuss and embrace modern roses as you learn how to grow and care for rose hybrids in a guide that also lays to rest common rose myths and flawed rose care instructions.

"Growing Roses Organically" Not many gardeners can resist the beauty of a rose-- a flower so divine and graceful in appearance and, in many cases, so wonderfully fragrant that it evokes thoughts of love and romance at first encounter. Many gardeners, however, also see a fussy plant that's hard to grow and needs special attention, as well as a host of chemicals to keep diseases and pests at bay. In" Growing Roses Organically," Barbara Wilde challenges the myth that growing roses has to be a time-consuming task that you can't do effectively without using chemical fertilizers and pesticides. In fact, she takes the intimidation out of growing roses by sharing her well-rounded, holistic approach for success. Wilde starts with tips for choosing healthy varieties, including hints for buying the best bareroot and container plants. She guides you through careful soil preparation and proper planting techniques and offers advice on how to gently intervene when it comes to pest and disease problems. Wilde also demystifies pruning-- a task that perplexes many gardeners. Her step-by-step explanation of various techniques makes this task doable for every gardener, including beginners. You'll also find invaluable information in A Gallery of Roses, an eye-catching identification guide that boasts more than 100 roses best suited for organic gardening techniques. Each entry in the gallery includes a detailed description of the rose and its best uses, as well as ratings for fragrance, disease susceptibility, and shade tolerance. To round out "Growing Roses Organically," you'll discover how to incorporate roses into your garden. Wilde dismisses the notion that you need to grow roses in aformal setting and instead presents four garden designs that incorporate roses with everything from perennials and wildflowers to trees and shrubs. Her design do's and don'ts along with winning plant combinations demonstrate how naturally roses fit into the landscape. In sharing her wisdom and experience, Barbara Wilde shows that growing roses doesn't have to be labor-intensive or frustrating. By choosing the right varieties and providing proper care, roses really can be a welcome part of every garden-- including yours. n0 About the Author Barbara Wilde has been gardening organically since the age of 17, when her Swiss grandmother first introduced her to gardening. As owner of a midwestern specialty plant nursery, Barbara spent 10 years exploring garden design and ornamental horticulture and growing heirloom and European fruits, vegetables, and cut flowers organically. As a garden designer and education specialist for a premier midwestern landscape firm, she developed staff training curriculum and pioneered organic landscaping techniques still in use by the firm today. Barbara has written for "Horticulture" magazine and Rodale publications and is the regular garden columnist for "Indianapolis Woman" magazine. A frequent public speaker on horticulture, she is known for her ecologically sensitive designs that use a wide variety of unusual plants. Barbara currently lives in Paris, where she maintains her own Web site, www.frenchgardening.com. At the site, you can find articles on French gardens, practical gardening advice, favorite plants, kitchen gardening, her life in Paris, and even cooking-- her (barely) subordinate passion. When not writing content for the site, Barbara spends her time traveling throughout France searching for traditional French garden seeds and artisanal products, including tools, books, and decorating items, which she sells on her Web site. She also gardens with her companion, Denis, on their Parisian terrace and on weekends at an old Normandy farmhouse.

“A fascinating and informative book for anyone who loves roses but wants to avoid spraying them with toxic chemicals” (The American Gardener). A winner of the World Federation of Roses Literary Award, this work brings together experts from around the world to inform gardeners about developments in the new, irresistible—yet long overdue—trend toward creating environmentally friendly and enduring rose gardens, with “sustainability” as the key. The queen of flowers, the rose—by presidential declaration, America’s National Floral Emblem—was initially left behind as “green consciousness” and the concept of sustainability took hold among the gardening public. But the rose is now making up for lost time. From the workshops of breeders—both in the United States. and abroad—a new generation of disease-resistant and low-maintenance rose varieties has emerged in the last decade to fill popular demand. In this book, you will learn how to make your own sustainable rose garden. With thirty-eight lavishly illustrated articles and descriptions of the best new—as well as old—rose varieties designed for the sustainable rose garden, this is a must-have book for today’s new generation of avid but environmentally conscious gardeners. “Finally, we have a book that addresses the notion of growing roses in an environmentally friendly manner . . . Nothing about sustainable rose culture has been presented as well as it has been in this book.” —Pacific Horticulture Society

Many gardeners dream of filling their garden with lush, healthy roses—but growing roses can be tricky, especially under the Northwest’s moody skies. Luckily this definitive guide will help you build your garden sanctuary without the use of pesticides or chemicals. Growing Roses in the Pacific Northwest guides you through every step, including choosing rose varietals for your climate, landscape design, planting, harvesting, and basic care, as well as invaluable tips for nurturing a show-stopping rose garden. Growing no-spray roses has never been easier! The book features information on popular rose types like David Austin, Hybrid Tea, Climbing, and Old Garden, and such stunning cultivars as Boscobel and Lady of Shalott. With full-color illustrations of the 90 best cultivars for the region, this visual guide is a go-to resource for everyone; whether you live east or west of the Cascades in Washington, Oregon, or British Columbia and are an urban gardener or have room to spread out, you’ll soon be surrounded by roses in full bloom.

In this eloquent plea for compassion and respect for all species, journalist and gardener Nancy Lawson describes why and how to welcome wildlife to our backyards. Through engaging anecdotes and inspired advice, profiles of home gardeners throughout the country, and interviews with scientists and horticulturalists, Lawson applies the broader lessons of ecology to our own outdoor spaces. Detailed chapters address planting for wildlife by choosing native species; providing habitats that shelter baby animals, as well as birds, bees, and butterflies; creating safe zones in the garden; cohabiting with creatures often regarded as pests; letting nature be your garden designer; and encouraging natural processes and evolution in the garden. The Humane Gardener fills a unique niche in describing simple principles for both attracting wildlife and peacefully resolving conflicts with all the creatures that share our world.

A former curator at the New York Botanical Garden describes 150 different varieties of roses that can be grown without the use of pesticides, fungicides or fertilizers and provides information on planting, pruning and caring for these gorgeous blooms. Original.