On Friday, my book Dawn in the Orchard is being released! Just so you know. But this post is not about that.

This is about things like…roses. I live in North Florida, but I used to live near Orlando. Bougainvilleas were easy to grow down there, and gorgeous (despite their incredibly thorny personalities), so when I had wall space and needed some decor on the front of the apartment, I naturally went with bougainvilleas.

So, really, it’s my own fault the poor things died. The winters here — go ahead, laugh it up — were too much for them.

Now, in Orlando, roses are the difficult ones; it’s just too hot all the time and only really robust or pampered bushes will thrive there (like, you know, at Disney). So I totally did not reverse my brain, and think, “oh! Roses love North Florida! I will buy me some climbing roses!” because, well, roses. I have spent most of my life avoiding them.

So when the lightbulb finally came on, a full year after I ganked the bones of the bougainvilleas, I…stalled. Climbing roses? What? Which? How?

So now I’m doing research on which ones really do like North Florida, and bloom a lot, and look pretty. And when to plant them. And…stuff like that. I’m no master gardener, so it’s pretty intimidating.

Suggestions?