Brad Jalbert, Rose grower, Select Roses

Greenhouse roses, florist roses, are bred for that specific purpose. Garden roses are bred for the garden. Some can be used for dual purposes but most often the rose brought from the florist doesn't look the same when grown in the garden.

Own-rooting a rose is actually very simple. Some roses including hybrid teas (most florist style roses) will root, some will become good plants, others will whimper along but will not be as good or as hardy as a grafted (budded) rose of the same variety.

To own-root a rose, use a softwood type cutting that has flowered or is close to opening its flower. A pencil size cutting is ideal. Strip all but the top set of leaves as you don't want the cutting to dry out before it roots. The critical thing is keeping the humidity at 100 per cent during rooting. This is achieved by growers with mist systems but the home gardener can place the cutting in a plastic bag and mist it daily.

The use of a rooting powder #2 strength at the base of the cutting also helps. The cutting or a few can all be placed in one pot (use a good potting soil not garden soil) and then covered with a plastic bag or jar. Keep in a well-lit room but out of full sunlight as this will cause the little "greenhouse" to overheat.

Conway Lum, Certified hortucultural technician and GardenWise plant troubleshooter

Recently I answered a similar question on astilbe flower colour. It is important to remember that astilbe by nature is a water hog, so moisture must be consistent throughout the growing season. Astilbe actually works well as a waterside planting for ponds. Make sure your soil has good moisture retention capacity with lots of organic matter. Or grow your plants close to a water tap!

Sharon Hanna, GardeWise writer & blogger

It's often been said that "Greek" oregano is only good (maximally flavourful) for a year or two. It loves to be stressed - prefers rocky, infertile soil like in Greece – it loves heat too. Pots would make it feel too mollycoddled, especially with potting soil. Try mixing some sand and rocks and poor soil—at least half of that—into potting soil.

Brad Jalbert, Rose grower, Select Roses

I'm having fun picking rose hips from my current season’s crosses now. "Just Joey" is a very tender rose at best and so will need to be well protected in zone 7. The larger the container, the better any plant does over winter.

The time of the freeze, the length of it and the wind are also important factors. A rose can take a few degrees of frost without any problems in large pots. My experience is that once we have a chilling period of around -10°C (14°F) for any length of time, you will suffer losses of unprotected container roses.

Move the pots to a protected site out of the heavy winds and rain if possible. Dig them into the ground if you can, or bury them in some type of mulch. They would do fine in a cold-storage shed and would just need to be watered if the soil becomes very dry.

Carolyn Jones, GardenWise horticulturist

How lucky for you to have a peach seedling germinate in your garden and grow into a mature, productive tree that seems well adapted to our rainy climate. Peach-leaf curl is certainly a problem here, and since your tree is 12 years old, it would probably have contracted the disease by now.

The tradition of cultivating new fruit trees from seedlings is an old one. Europeans who came to Canada generations ago brought apples with them, and then planted the seeds ("pips"). They selected and shared the best cultivars with their neighbours and took them when they moved across the country. Apple
names such as 'Cox's Orange Pippin' (an English cultivar) recognize this type of origin.

Since your peach was a seedling in your garden, it cannot be an existing peach cultivar, which means that you can name it. Cultivar names often reflect the best qualities of the fruit or the person who originated the cultivar. Alternatively, the name might suggest the tree's geographical origin. This way, years from now, gardeners will know where it came from.

You might begin by getting the tree propagated and then test it in a variety of locations. Peaches are usually bud-grafted onto a particular rootstock, often to control size. Or you might want to grow it "on its own roots," as they say. In this case, making cuttings would be the way to go. Orchardist Derry Walsh (wchase@interchange.ubc.ca) may be able to help with propagation.

It might be fun to offer a plant to the University of British Columbia Botanical Garden to test in their food garden. The Curator of Collections there is Douglas Justice (Douglas.Justice@ubc.ca)
GardenWise contributor Hugh Daubeny (hdaubeny@shaw.ca) bred raspberries and strawberries for markets around the world. He would probably have some ideas about getting your peach to a wider audience. The other interesting option might be to contact the British Columbia Ministry of Agriculture and Food, as they have a variety of fruit-tree programs.

Brad Jalbert, Rose grower, Select Roses

The bush has done what most older rose bushes do, colour-coded its canes! This makes pruning out the old wood very easy. Just like with people, the older wood starts to look rather tired and picks up a silver colour (as seen in the photo). The young shoots are smoother and fresher-looking.

Those older canes are not nearly as productive and should be removed right to the crown of the plant, so that the energy goes into the younger canes. If there is a strong young cane growing out of the older cane you can then prune down to wear the young shoot emerges from the old wood.

I would suggest cutting the over all plant back by at least 50% in order to encourage the bushy to grow in a more pleasing dense manner. This should be done each spring, around March when the Forsythia blooms.

Conway Lum, Certified horticultural technician and GardenWise plant troubleshooter

Lupines (Lupinus) are usually short-lived in the landscape, with lifespans typically lasting less than five years. These plants require deep soil and do not like to be transplanted due to their long root system. Lupines do not like dry, hot weather and prefer moist soil and cooler environments. To prolong the blooming season, deadhead old flowers and provide deep watering with a topdressing of mulch.

Insect and disease problems can occur when these plants are under stress. Keep an eye out for powdery mildew or stink bugs, and immediately discard any infected or infested leaves. You can also prune your plants to the ground to give them a fresh start.

Wim Vander Zalm, Horticulturalist, gardening personality and an owner of two Art Knapp Plantland locations

Unfortunately you’re not going to be able to separate the cedars. They have obviously been growing as a hedge in that spot for quite some time. Cedars have a very fibrous and matted root system. The roots will be so intertwined from tree to tree that they would be impossible to separate and cutting the roots to the extent that you would need to would undoubtedly kill the trees.

The other issue would be trying to piece the large and very heavy specimens back together so that the barren sides don’t show. This is important as otherwise the hedge would look quite unpleasant.

Cedars grow quite fast when they’re young and slow in annual growth as they mature. They also will send out a flush of growth in the spring, go dormant for summer and then throw a second flush of growth in the fall. So annually you can see a substantial increase in their height. My advice would be to purchase new 6-ft. (1.8-m) plants as soon as possible and start fresh. I think that you would save money with the only drawback being that you’ll have lost some height for up to three years on their way to a mature 12 ft. (3.6 m).

Senga Lindsay, Principal, Senga Landscape Architecture

Think of your garden spaces as an opportunity to provide what I call a “stage set” and use a planting composition to set or complement the theme of your deck and garden accessories (like your birdbaths). Do your homework and look at images in magazines, books and on the internet for ideas that will work with your theme. You will be begin to see that certain plants or compositions of plants lend themselves to a particular look. Go with your “gut instinct” as to what works with your vision.

As you are new to perennials, part of your homework is to look at what I call “bomb-proof” perennials: low maintenance, drought tolerant and not bothered by common pests and diseases. One of my favourite palettes is ornamental grasses. Depending on what you select you can create everything from a contemporary to an English-garden look.

Be sure to repeat plants throughout the garden. This will unify your space and avoid a spotty appearance. Plant in drifts of the same species – with a minimum of three to five plants per grouping. And like a painter, pick a colour palette. Colour is very psychological and creates a mood or ambience. For example, in our garden I have a large outdoor lounge area where chocolate-brown wicker couches clad in red cushions and sheltered by red umbrellas play off of drifts of blue lavender and gold rudbeckia. As you will see in the photo, this creates vibrancy, excitement and energizes the space for our outdoor gatherings and parties.

In short, focus on three key steps: Do your homework, pick a colour palette, and plant in drifts of “bomb-proof” plants.

Read Senga Lindsay's "Gardens & Landscapes" blog >

Sally Ferguson, Bulb expert, Netherlands Flower Bulb Information Centre

You’ve discovered the fun of growing hyacinths on water—no soil is needed to grow these fragrant flowers with colourful waxy florets. For a stylish look that’s fresh and modern, try forcing your entire hyacinth in glass, instead of on one.

One: Place bulbs atop several inches of gravel. Add water to a level just beneath the bulbs, but not touching.

To root, cover the vase with a paper bag and place in a cool dark place approximately 7°C (45°F) for 11 to 14 weeks. A refrigerator works fine if you banish apples and ripening fruit; they give off an ethylene gas harmful to young flowers. Check the water level periodically.

When well-rooted and green growth begins, move the vase to a cool bright room.

Two: Enjoy hyacinth growth, contained for easy viewing “under glass.”

Three: Gorgeous hyacinths! Keep cool for longer enjoyment. Freshen water periodically, tip out and refill to a level “just not-touching” bulbs.

Optional: add a dash of activated charcoal to keep water freshest, look for it in the fish department of pet shops.