Question
I live in Boise ID which is zone 6.  I have roses that are constantly invaded by grass from the lawn.  No matter what I've tried I can't keep the grass out.  I wonder if a ground cover might work.  If it will what ground cover will work with roses?

Answer
Nothing stops grass as it will creep along and invade, unless their is a barrier to stop it. If you just used groundcovers, you would find that the grass would choke them to death. In a fight, grass always wins.
In parks they cut the lawn at a 45 degree angle away from the flower beds. This keeps the grass away from the flower soil because the roots are exposed and killed. You just take a shovel and cut the grass on a slant away from the roses leaving a small trench. This makes it difficult for the grass roots to jump accross. The other way to solve the problem is to buy 5 or 6 inch black plastic edging which is placed against the grass so that only the rim is showing and that will definately stop anything from invading. It looks attractive too and the price is reasonable. I get mine at Wall Mart. Hope this helps. Lynnette