Question
My husband and i just bought a house, in long island. i love to garden and spend time outside, today i realized we had three rose bushes alongside our driveway. this area is about 50 feet long, and four feet wide. there are hydrangeas, and some green shrubs along the backside. i need to know if it is too late for me to plant four more bushes, and what would be the best type to get? i like perfumed, and colorful roses. size does not matter, i would like a vareity..:) thank you so much!
help,
jen

Answer
Welcome to the Island, Jennifer.

Best rose stand on the Island is the farmstand on 25A/Northern Boulevard, in Old Brookville, just half a mile or so West of the overpriced but dazzling Martin Viette Nurseries (which I do not recommend). It is owned by two elderly Viette family sisters who have gardened since kingdom come in that strip of land and sell hundreds and hundreds of rose bushes.  They sometimes put out a sign that says "Roses" but I do not know the name of their business.  They have been doing this forever.  The so-called "Martin Viette" business is no longer family owned and they run an aggressive landscaping business that caters to a silk-stocking money-is-no-object I-drink-pesticides-for-dinner crowd.

Real gardeners shop at the little Viette sisters farmstand, which is still in the Viette family and owned by Real American Gardeners.  For trademark reasons I don't believe they are legally allowed any more to use the word "Viette" in their trade.

Let me know if you need a list.  I am happy to oblige.  I will even obtain their telephone number and legal address if you need it, as I have to drive past there this week to pick up gas near CW Post.

I mention this because there are nurseries everywhere selling those J&P roses in square boxes with minimal root systems.  You want to start with a big healthy root system where possible, potted with lots of soil, watered carefully.

These ladies will order your Rose if they do not have it in stock. They do business the old fashioned way; if they know you, they will just do the order on a handshake and wait for you to come back and pick it up.  They and are absolutely adorable.

You can plant and even bloom your Roses this year. The most important part of this exercise however is the soil preparation. Since you have moved to new real estate, why not get your soil tested in the spot you want to plant your Roses - you can bring it to Hicks Nurseries on Jericho Turnpike and they will send it over for you or do it themselves for a modest fee.  They have the Island's most extensive Organic Gardening supplies section and they sell Ladybugs, which you will need to eat the aphids on your Roses when they start to bud.

Make sure the site you want to use has lots and lots of sun.  Dig down 16 inches or so and get rid of stones, weeds and miscellanea while you wait for your soil report.  The results will recommend things to do to make your soil better.  Roses are high maintenance; starting them off with great soil is the best way to keep them on track.

I would happily issue a list of my absolutely favorite Roses.  And I can even recommend my favorite current book of Roses: "Beautiful Roses" by Marie-Helene Loaec, available at Amazon,com, which happens to namedrop my top Rose, Mme Isaac Pereire in its book jacket (although I differe with their description of Pereire's pink blooms as "red").  The reality of this shopping experience is that you will start seeing so many Roses you will probably throw all lists out the window in favor of "a bird in hand..."  I did buy my Pereire Roses from the Viette Sisters incidentally.  They many others to choose from that I expect you will also love.

If that drive is too far for you let me know and I will send you a mail order suppliers list.  Mail order Roses unfortunately do not ship well, no matter who you buy from it is a big gamble every time, especially in this season.  You will enjoy a visit to the Viette Sisters.  It is a little farm stand with a deep, deep acreage on one of Long Island's most golden of Gold Coast neighborhoods.  My stepfather worked for them as a teenager, in another lifetime.