How to Prepare Soil for Planting Roses

If your roses are planted in the correct location and well tended, they will live for many years. Unfortunately, even constant care will not make up for planting them in the wrong type of soil. Here are some tips to help you prepare the soil for planting roses that will be beautiful for many years to come.

It only makes sense to prepare the soil for your roses. You invest money and time into the plants, getting them into the ground, and taking care of them to help the grow and thrive. Giving them a comforting home is just another step in helping them to flourish.

When you prepare the soil for your roses you want a bed that does not drain too quickly. However, it has to have enough space for air for the plant roots. A sandy soil has air space, but drains too quickly. A clay soil has no air space and could have drainage problems, as well.

To find out what type of soil you have pick up a handful after a few days of rain. Squeeze the soil in your hand and observe how it reacts. If the soil is in a ball, then you have clay soil. If the soil falls apart, then you have sandy soil. If it only partially falls apart, this type of soil is called loam. Loam is the perfect soil for growing roses.

The pH level of your soil is very important to making sure the plants will flourish. It makes a huge difference in how well the plants will absorb nutrients from the water in the soil. For your roses to grow best, they will need a pH level of 6.0 to 6.5. This is slightly acidic, but near neutral. You can purchase soil pH test kits at your local gardening store or nursery.

The soil where you plan to plant the roses needs to be prepared a couple months in advance. This will allow the soil to settle. It will also give the organic matter you have added a chance to blend well with the soil. If you are going to dig up any grass, it needs to be done the year before, if at all possible.

Once the area is clear of any debris and grass, add the organic matter to the soil. This can be rotted leaves, rotted manure, or compost. The ratio should be one-third organic material and two-thirds soil. You can either use the soil in another part of your garden, or leave it in place and have a raised bed for your roses. A cupful of alfalfa meal per plant will make sure there is enough nitrogen in the soil for your roses. And, it will stimulate growth and add trace elements to the soil that your roses will consume. A steady application of organic matter or compost should keep your soil in the correct pH range.

If your soil is very acidic, just adding compost will not solve the problem quickly enough. To raise the pH level of your soil by 1 point, add 5 pounds of garden lime for every 100 square feet of garden space. Be sure the lime you use is calcitic or dolomitic. Never use hydrated lime, or calcium hydroxide. This will damage the roots of your plants.

To get your soil to drain well, but not too fast, you first need to know how fast it drains as it is. Fill a hole with water and allow it to drain. Then, do the same thing again, immediately afterward. See how long it takes for the water to drain the second time. If it takes 6 to 8 hours, you should add some organic matter to the soil to help the slight drainage problem. If it takes longer than 8 hours, you might want to consider building a raised bed to help with the drainage. Less than 6 hours indicates there is not a huge problem, but you can still add organic matter to help the roses thrive and keep the water from draining too quickly.

Getting the soil into shape will do wonders for your roses. You will be very pleased with their performance. Hopefully, these tips will help you prepare the soil for your roses so they can bring color and beauty to your home for many years to come.

SOURCE

Editors Rodale Organic Gardening Books. "Rodale Organic Gardening Basics Volume 4: Roses. St. Martin's Press. 2000. Pennsylvania.