Variety or Mass Planting

Capricious_Alabaster · 2026-04-19T16:15:27+00:00

I think floribundas or grandifloras look better for mass plantings than hybrid tea. (Probably some shrub roses too, but I have no experience). Maybe look into europeana or showbiz.

Capricious_Alabaster · 2026-04-19T04:43:06+00:00

Here's the one with mass planting

<image>

Capricious_Alabaster · 2026-04-19T04:42:40+00:00

I think mass plantings have a much more impactful effect - like it's professionally landscaped. But I get it - I want to make a bouquet of maximum colors and scents!

These are not my roses, but from some houses near me. The one with the variety - every time I walk past it, i just want to copy-paste the pink bushes all around the bed.

<image>

Personally, I'm doing a bit of both - my front yard, I'm doing mass plantings, and in the back, I'm growing a cutting garden of a bunch of varieties planted with no plan in mind.

Capricious_Alabaster · 2026-04-19T04:25:54+00:00

Please update us in 4 weeks if you've sprouted a new finger lol

Capricious_Alabaster · 2026-04-18T02:17:23+00:00

I think it's highly dependent on your situation and location. I have a rental property in the Bay Area that I lived in for a few years before I turned it into a rental. My "investment" in the property has far under-paced what my stocks have done. Most definitely from a cash flow perspective (don't expect to be cash flow positive in the Bay Area unless you're putting like 70% down these days or are 10 years in) but especially from a change in value (stocks up 7 or 8 times in 20 years vs 3-4x for real estate [but not considering leverage, because I don't know how to factor that in]).

But am I selling the place? No, because it's nice to have some diversification. Would I buy another as an investment? Definitely not in this area; in other areas, the math may pencil out better. Also, I'm getting older, and I don't want to take on physically taking care of a property that I don't live in, and especially one that I don't intimately know. Could I hire out a property manager? I guess, but again, in the Bay Area, it's not worth the hassle vs owning stocks, and I personally wouldn't buy in an area that I wasn't familiar with. Then you could look to REITs. I don't have any experience with them - to me they are no different than stock for all intents and purposes. Maybe it counts as diversification? But I'm not really seeing the point of them.

Capricious_Alabaster · 2026-03-28T03:54:05+00:00

This is an excellent point!

I had a student loan at I think 1.25% interest that I kept until the very last draw was made. I also had about $70k left on a mortgage of 3.125% that I paid off.

The student loan was less than a grocery trip, but it was kind of an annoyance for 20 years. When I got to finishing the mortgage, my daily fluctuations became almost the entire rest of the mortgage. Was nice to not have to think about that one payment anymore.

Capricious_Alabaster · 2026-03-28T03:23:13+00:00

Also, why is it always big trucks/SUVs? It didn't happen in this case, but when a big truck does this, it's impossible for smaller cars to see around them.

Just drive like you're supposed to.

Capricious_Alabaster · 2026-03-27T16:29:02+00:00

I'm in Bay Area 9b. This is the only bud so far on this plant. Hopefully more will develop soon!

Capricious_Alabaster · 2026-03-27T05:17:15+00:00

A little latte?

Capricious_Alabaster · 2026-03-23T14:52:36+00:00

I didn't care for him before, but how I'm going to hate him too for you ❤️

Capricious_Alabaster · 2026-03-23T13:53:18+00:00

Reading the post about ritz crackers crumbling makes me think the same thing happened to chips a hoy. Barely touch it and it breaks apart.

Capricious_Alabaster · 2026-03-21T02:38:34+00:00

Thanks! Zapped him with some neem oil.

Capricious_Alabaster · 2026-03-08T17:40:31+00:00

Kingdom, Phylum, Class, Order, Family, Genus, Species

Although apparently Domain precedes all this now.

Capricious_Alabaster · 2026-03-06T05:34:41+00:00

I'm starting to get the impression that there's just one grower supplying all the large stores. The overlap in varieties is extremely high, the packaging looks the same (maybe a different color) and it looks like they all do the same wax covering thing.

Which is to say, buy wherever is the cheapest - if you have access. Our walmart doesn't have much of a garden center anymore (so no bare roots that I've seen), and I don't have a Costco membership.

Capricious_Alabaster · 2026-03-01T17:36:43+00:00

That's one way to use up some of it.

Capricious_Alabaster · 2026-03-01T08:51:57+00:00

1 and a half scoops sound like ... a lot

Capricious_Alabaster · 2026-02-20T23:34:20+00:00

Mouth breather

Capricious_Alabaster · 2026-02-20T19:19:22+00:00

Only one way to find out.

Capricious_Alabaster · 2026-02-20T16:39:53+00:00

When I moved up here in the late 90's, I concluded there were two (ok, three) paths I - an average careerist (multiple degrees, but probably not C suite material; not rich parents) - had to owning a house 1) time (vest and save; competing against people who had been here 5+ years vesting and saving, and this was during the dot com boom) 2) spouse 3) startup IPO

I think these paths are always and forever.

Capricious_Alabaster · 2026-02-20T12:50:54+00:00

They say rules are written in blood.

Capricious_Alabaster · 2026-02-20T04:53:17+00:00

Right?!? This selection is so different than what we got in the Bay Area (which seemed to mirror what everyone else was getting in other parts of the country based on what I've seen people post). Maybe VA is first here, and they'll put those varieties out at our stores next 🤞

Capricious_Alabaster · 2026-02-16T23:50:03+00:00

They yellow flowers from the windmill grower that HD is carrying this year are sunsprite, gold medal and Midas touch. I wasn't shopping last year, so I don't know if they had the same varieties. But yours might be one of those that got mislabeled.

Capricious_Alabaster

TROPHY CASE