Day 263: Yesterday I began another experiment in horticulture. I slipped. Which is to say that I took semi-hardwood cuttings from a climbing rose, trimmed each one a little bit below a node and stripped off the thorns to create small wounds, dipped each slip in growth hormone and pushed it down into a rooting sponge. The sponges (five) were placed in a vented seed-starter, and now I'll sit back and wait for roots to develop. The rose flowers were leftovers from the process, so I put them in a vase. Why waste a good thing? Although I'm not big on roses as such, this one is an eye-catching, vibrant shade of blood-red. The photo does not do the colour justice. It is also a time-tested "heirloom" variety with a strong resistance to both disease and pests, perfect for someone who doesn't want to fuss with roses but wishes to partake of their fragrance. If the slips survive, this rose can ramble along the fenceline as another pollinator attractor.
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