Bugs provided the first challenge to their plan to go organic.
Roses are vulnerable to a large number of pests, especially in Taiwan’s warm and humid climate, making it nearly impossible to grow roses here without chemical pesticides and fertilizers.
During their first three years in business, they generated no income at all. They became something of a joke among the neighbors, who laughed that they couldn’t tell whether they were growing flowers or weeds.
They signed up for classes at the Tse-xin Organic Agriculture Foundation to learn how to cope with the bugs, and also learned how to make organic fertilizer and utilize biological controls. They received additional help from an unexpected quarter. Tired of seeing the couple struggle, two researchers with the Taichung District Agricultural Research and Extension Station, Chang Long-zen (now deputy director of the Taichung Agriculture Bureau) and Chen Yann-ray, studied up on powdery mildew, a common disease in roses, and showed Zhang and Guo how to control it by managing moisture levels.
At one time or another, they’ve used chinaberry oil, narrow range oil, sex pheromones, glue boards, Bacillus thuringiensis, chili pepper water, sunflower oil, and soapberry extracts in their fields. Experimenting as they went, they slowly developed a method for cultivating roses organically.
By 2008, the farm was beginning to find its feet. Zhang and Guo started utilizing natural agricultural techniques, completely eschewing any kind of pest control. When aphids attacked their plants, they waited for ladybugs to eat them. “Nature deals with them when the time is right,” says Guo.
Excepting their applications of a homemade liquid fertilizer that they use to stimulate the development of their plants’ root systems, they don’t fertilize much. “If your plants have a robust root system, they’ll find the nutrients they need themselves.” Guo backs up her argument by noting that trees grow to enormous size without any fertilizers at all.
Zhang and Guo’s rose-colored dream originated with a vision of rose-themed menus. That hope continues to bolster their resolve when confronted with adversity.