Rose Planting and Care

How To Plant And Care For Your Dormant Packaged Rose General Planting & Care Instructions (All Roses) Step 1: Choose a location that receives at least half a day of sunlight, and avoid locations under trees or next to hedges. There should be no competing plants next to or growing in the bed with the roses. Step 2: Plant roses in the winter months unless the ground is frozen. Early spring planting is best for colder climates. You can plant later in the season with good results if you use well-grown plants in containers. Step 3: Prepare a raised bed, approximately three to 12 inches above the surrounding area. A double row in each bed makes care and maintenance easier and promotes maximum blooming and growth. In preparing the bed, remove grass, weeds and other growth for a width of about four feet (if planting a single row) or six feet (for planting a double row of roses). In most climates, it’s best to have only two rows together, leaving a walkway of about five feet between rose beds. A lawn area between the beds is very good for the appearance, growth and care of the plants. Prepare the soil in the bed by mixing ground pine bark, peat, rotted manure or compost to the extent of about one-third organic material and two-thirds soil to a depth of about twelve inches. Step 4: PLANTING YOUR DORMANT PACKAGED ROSE Plant the bush as soon as possible after purchase. Remove the plant from the package and packing material. The canes and roots have been pre-pruned for planting. If any browning of the cane tips has occurred, prune any darkened area. Soak the roots for several hours (but not for more than one day) in water before planting. Soil is the key to healthy roses. When planting, surround the root ball with a healthy mixture of two-thirds soil and one-third organic material (compost or manure). Start with a hole that’s big enough for your rose to grow into: at least 12 inches deep and 30 inches around. Plant the rose bush so that bud union is just above the raised bed. Surround the roots with the enriched soil. Pack the soil in by tamping and watering. Leave a small basin around the rose bush and water at least twice a week until the plant starts growing. Step 5: Protect your roses by spraying to prevent diseases and insects. Roses should be sprayed every seven days with a good rose-quality fungicide to prevent diseases. Spraying should begin at the time of planting and continue weekly. Spray the underside of the leaves as well as the upper, and lightly spray until the leaves drip. Generally, the spraying cycle can change to every 14 days at mid-season, if no disease or infestation is apparent. Always follow the instructions provided with the fungicide or insecticide. Step 6: Blooming roses require a lot of moisture. Your newly planted rose should be watered twice a week until it starts growing. Water roses during dry periods, and you’ll see continuous blooming throughout the growing season. If rain isn’t sufficient, sprinkle to be sure your rose receives at least an inch of water a week. (Sprinkling should be followed by the application of a fungicide within 24 hours.) Step 7: Fertilizing is best done in the spring after growth has started. Repeat every six to eight weeks, as growth requires. Fall treatments are not advised. Granular fertilizers (such as 10:20:10 commercial or similar analyses) are recommended only if soluble or nearly so, and then not more than one tablespoon per plant per treatment. Step 8: Pruning helps keep your rose bushes in shape, but severe pruning of growing bushes may dwarf or restrict new growth. To shape your established plant, prune just prior to the start of new growth in the spring. A good average time is four weeks before the last expected killing frost in your area. Prune dead or diseased canes any time they occur, but avoid severe pruning in late summer or fall. Prune old blooms as close as possible above the leaf joint. The basic technique for most season-end pruning is to cut one-quarter inch above the nearest outward-facing bud, with the cut at 45-degree angle (the higher point above the bud). During winter months, prune only to prevent wind whipping and cane damage. Remove all old clippings from around the plant since this material could support disease and insect growth that would infect the healthy plant.