Success with Roses

When buying roses for your property, take care to get the best. Buy unwaxed nursery stock. With roses, it is true that you get what you pay for. By starting right, you can save yourself some struggles further down the line.

When choosing a location for planting a new rose, make sure the location has appropriate drainage and average garden soil. Roses need at least half a day of quality sun exposure, and if possible shelter from the wind.

When digging the hole for your new rose, make the hole large. At least 20 inches wide and 18 inches deep is about right. The hole needs to provide enough space to accommodate the roots of the rose without crowding. Do not forget to save the topsoil.

When ready to plant, fill the hole around one third of the way with a quality peat moss, a small handful of super phosphate and some of the saved topsoil. Create a mound in the bottom of the hole with this mixture. Then place the roots on the mound so that the graft union or bud is at, or slightly below ground level. Add more soil and peat moss to the hole, so that there is a little less than a third of it left to be filled back in. Water slowly to allow the soil to gently settle around the roots and eliminate air pockets without compressing too tightly around the roots.

Before finishing to planting process, I recommend washing down the rose canes with a mild solution of soap and water just before you cover them. Then you can add more soil and peat moss to completely fill the hole the rose has been planted in and repeat the slow, gentle watering. If you are in an area or season that risks severe weather striking and damaging your new rose, you can cover the entire plant with a mound of soil for protection. If there is a risk of heavy frost or freezes, you might want to protect your rose by covering it with a rose cone or a soil and leaf mixture.

If you later need to move your rose, the best time to do so is while the rose is dormant. The rose is dormant when the leaves have dropped and scales have formed over growth buds in preparation for the next season. It is best to make the move in the early spring, prior to the start of any new growth.

Pruning should also be done while the rose is dormant and can be done at the same time as you relocate them. Relocated roses should be re-mounded with soil to help them maintain moisture while the roots take hold in the earth again.