| | Gayle Brooks, Connie Killian and Bonnie Smith sread organic compost. |
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| | Gayle Brooks and Jerry Hunter pick out the diffrent kind of roses |
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| | Jerry Hunter, Benny Holmes, Connie Killian, J. L. Ham and Gayle Brooks spread mulch around the roses and over the drip irrigation. |
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Background
Dr. Steve George started teaching and practicing the principles of the Earth Kind Roses at Texas A&M University. His goal was to produce landscapes that require minimal maintenance while providing maximum protection to the environment. To do this, he combined the best of organic and traditional gardening techniques to create a horticultural system for the future based on proven research.
Guiding Principles
Base horticultural decisions on a deep respect for the environment and on the latest scientific research information. Earth Kind techniques of plant selection and culture help to avoid pest problems before they occur, and use pesticides only as the last resort.
NELMG’s Involvement in the Program
To get started, Dr. Ron Robbins contacted Dr. George for approval. Jim Brooks was named team leader so efforts could be coordinated between NELMG and Rose Trials' primary contact Michelle Shook, who put us on the roster as an MG applied research organization. Next, by entering into an agreement with the Calhoun Research Station, we secured a good site for our project.
The site was prepared to accommodate 24 plants, the minimum required. There are eight different cultivars and three plants of each cultivar. We tilled in about 4 inches of compost in July 2005. Final preparation for planting started late in September 2005. On October 3, the plants were purchased from Chamblee’s Rose Nursery. On October 5, the roses were planted, drip irrigation was installed and the roses were mulched. We will water when needed and inspect the beds regularly this winter.
The Future
We will water as required and begin rating the roses in early spring 2006 and continue through fall. We will record data on an Earth Kind Rating Form and keep the hard copies as documentation to study. An Excel file will be used to keep records, too. Ratings will be posted monthly on the Earth Kind Rose Web site for everyone to view. Data will be collected through fall 2007 or longer.
Project Team Members
Team members committed to the project are: Jim Brooks – team leader, Jerry Hunter, Connie Killian, Benny Holmes, Gayle Brooks, J.L. Ham, Jeanette Hernandez, Bonnie Smith, Mickey Frost, Chris Brooks, Jeanette Robbins and Amy Simmons.