I agree with the above, both regarding aphids and using horticultural oil-based sprays. I steer clear to the oils because of the potential to fry my poor plants. I will never use Neem oil again after badly burning all my roses one May years ago. I don't know how hot your conditions get, though. Aphids look a lot scarier for roses than they really are. Because they reproduce so quickly, it can look awful to see thick clumps of them on baby florwer buds, and you do want to do something about them, but like was said above, you don't need to (nor should you want to) eradicate them all, because they are the primary food source for many good garden preditors, and it really does take a lot to do much damage to the roses. They squish easily between you thumb and fingers, but if that is too gross for you, your idea of spraying a mild dish soap solution frequently is not a bad one. It will suck the moisture right out of their little soft bodies. The main down side? You will be left with crusty dead aphid shells on you flowers. You could also just blast them with a strong jet of water. That doesn't kill them, but it knocks them off those tender new growth tips and buys you a little time for the good insect populations to catch up and to find and eat the aphids. Usually it is just a matter of 2 or 3 weeks between the spring emergence of the aphids and the arrival of preditors to keep them in check. I try to only use chemical insecticides when I see really damaging pests (for me that means caterpillers, thrips, spider mites, etc.) Aphids are small potatoes. : ) Mike

Hi, Kelly & Vapor, @celeste/NH Thank you for your ideas! i checked my friend’s location and she has humidity, too, so I am reworking my list. Rugosa are good. Kordes are great for no BS in humidity. Do you know what Old Garden Roses are best for zone 4 and humidity? @Kelly Tregaskis Collova Earth Angel & Madame Anisette are zone 5, but you have grown them in your zone 4. Are you zone 4a or 4 b? Where in your yard can you grow them? Maybe if you grow them on south side of home it keeps them warmer since they are not nade for your zone? However, climate has warmed all over and temps may not be getting as low as we are zoned, either. Also, did the cold winter get your Olivia? Olivia does really well in humidity. I have humidity & she gets no BS. Princess Alexandria of Kent gets BS, so I will not recommend for her. The DA roses list in my post above are zoned 4, but maybe DA are just not very hardy? Lichfield Angel, though, may be their most hardy rose-I have her and she grows no matter what where I have lost other roses. Yes, I heard less fragrant DA newer ones-thanks. Maybe if planted on south side home they will keep warmer in zone 4.

I know next to nothing about insects, but yesterday I happened to notice the creature that has been feasting on the foliage of one of the Asiatic lilies--one of the few to escape being eaten by the red squirrels, I might add. The bug I saw is bright red, and very fast; it is still on the loose. This thread caught my interest, and I ended up finding an interesting site (bugguide.net), and a thread on red insects, which led me to ponder someone's suggestion that the red bug in question might be (one of many stages of) a "true bug." If anyone cares to check 'em out, there are some photos from a search on bugguide.net for "true bug" at: http://bugguide.net/index.php?q=search&keys=true+bug What a fascinating world, the bug world, that is... Maureen from Maine

I found another one! I believe it to be the same kind/color/size of the originals. So now my question is- how to house it until it hatches/emerges. All I remember from my childhood bug collecting days are a jar with airholes, grass, leaves, maybe a stick. Any advice? Are coccoons demanding a Fung Shue consultant be brought in for their container designs these days? LOL And would a bright or dark corner of the garage be okay for storage? I appreciate any help here.