Feeding Roses a Homemade Fertilizer

Roses are fragrant flowers that come in an assortment of colors. In fact, Purdue University states that roses are so popular that the 1986 the U.S. Congress named them the national floral emblem. If you have roses growing in your landscape, or in a pot inside your home, you will need to fertilize them to keep their blooms big and bright. This can be done with a homemade fertilizer.

You will need the following items to make your homemade rose fertilizer:

6 egg shells
Watering can
1 gallon hot water
1½ tbsp. fish meal
1 tsp. powdered seaweed
1 tbsp. dry molasses
1 tsp. Epsom salt
1½ tbsp. apple cider vinegar
1 tbsp. gypsum

Follow these steps to create your rose fertilizer:

Step 1:
Crush 6 egg shells until they are in powder form. You can do this in a blender. Place the powder in a watering can. The egg shells provide calcium for the roses.

Step 2:
Pour 1 gallon of hot water over the powdered egg shells and stir until dissolved.

Step 3:
Add 1½ tbsp. fish meal, 1 tsp. powdered seaweed, 1 tbsp. dry molasses and 1 tsp. Epsom salts to the watering can. Stir until combined. These ingredients provide the roses with essential nutrients, such as nitrogen, phosphorous, potassium and sugar.

Step 4:
Stir 1½ tbsp. apple cider vinegar into the watering can to complete the homemade rose fertilizer. Apple cider vinegar provides the roses with the acidic soil they prefer.

Step 5:
Pour over the soil surrounding your roses at a rate of 1 quart per rose bush.

Tips:
If you can't make your own rose fertilizer, use a 5-10-5 fertilizer at a rate of 1 tsp. per plant.

Substitute 1 tbsp. gypsum for the crushed egg shells. Gypsum is also a source of calcium.

References:
Diane's Flower Seeds: Organic Rose Fertilizer Recipe
"Gardening" Online Magazine: Homemade Fertilizer Tips
Purdue University Cooperative Extension Service; Roses; Rosie Lerner, Michael N. Dana, Cliff Sadof and Paul Pecknold