One of the most popular plants in gardens is rose bushes. They can come in a variety of shades and colors, allowing you to decorate your property in whatever shades you choose. When you plant roses, your options of rose bushes grow substantially.
Before planting them, it is critical to have an understanding of when they should be planted, what the appropriate conditions are, and what type of roses you will be planting. Once you have an understanding of what you want to add to your garden, your newly planted roses will be rose gardens before you know it. Keep reading for the best time to plant roses, and how to take care of them so your rose beds remain strong and healthy.
When to Plant Roses
If you have some potted roses that you want to get planted, one of the best things for growing roses is to plant roses at the appropriate time. If you have some container roses that need to be planted, it is best to get them in some loose soil in early spring.
During this time, the roses are able to take advantage of the air circulation that is happening in the soil as it is getting warm. Bare root roses are one that seems to take the most advantage. Container grown roses are also looking for the soil to have air and moisture flowing regularly.
After a few touches of frost, the temperature will start to rise in the spring, and it will be the perfect time to plant roses. Like other flowers, you want to wait until after the frosts and at the start of the growing season to not stress the root. Be aware, however, that this means the upcoming summer heat sooner rather than later. Spring rains will keep the soil moist, especially in mild climates.
Another time to plant roses is during the fall season. Know when the last frost date is expected for the season and plant at least six weeks out. This allows root growth in the roses so that they can produce roots prior to the temperatures dropping. You want to be sure that your roses can sustain hardiness zones and weather temperatures that could be damaging if they were not planted at the proper times.
It is a good idea that if you are going to plant roses, you should consider container roses to be planted, as they can be hardier and withstand any issues outside of proper planting.
Below are the steps to take:
- Remove your container roses from their vessel and prepare them for the rich soil they will be planted in. This soil should be made of organic matter and have enough water to be drought tolerant if the approaching weeks are dry.
- Once placed in the ground, roses grow when there is slightly acidic soil. Roses prefer this atmosphere so that they can develop a strong root system in the rose garden.
- Make sure to keep the plant's roots hydrated and the plants healthy with dry wood chips around the roots and morning sun to brighten them.
You want to avoid planting when it is still too cold out in the spring before the last frost dates or too far out in the Fall, where they will get too cold before the roots can be properly established.
Where to Plant Roses
If you are looking to plant your roses in the dirt, you want to choose a location that will provide an atmosphere for healthy air circulation, and the loose soil is available. Also, consider a location that will give a solid morning sun to the roses.
Full sun is only ideal for moderate climates that are not overly warm. Areas that can get really hot in the summer should consider an early sun location so the rose garden can get the sun they need without all of the additional heat generated from the direct sunlight. In an area where water and rain could be scarce, a rose that can manage droughts may even have a difficult enough time.
Most hardiness zones opt to plant roses in gardens as a way to help the roses grow and allow them to grow off of each other. If there is too much clay in the soil, many rose varieties will lose the water they need in the soil, making it difficult for them to blossom and survive the summer season.
Weather and Soil Conditions
Once your roses have established roots in the ground and are healthy, they can often withstand a variety of different weather conditions.
Where they are planted will determine if you have beautiful roses planted. The healthiest roses have access to a moist and humid environment. The drier the climate, the harder the rose.
The soil that you use for your roses must be well drained soil to grow roses. While there is a need for moisture and air, excess water needs to drain away from the roses to maintain healthy roots.
Bare root plants allow dormant roses to slowly come to life in these areas so that you can give your growing roses more time to develop. This also allows them to get adjusted to the changing weather conditions in your area and keep from getting too hot too soon.
Another thing to keep in mind is that having slightly acidic soil for your roses is not a bad thing. In fact, they seem to enjoy a bit of this soil type, having more blossoms and overall growth. What you do want to avoid is the sandy area in your garden or areas that may be heavy on the clay side.
Clay will not properly drain the water in the soil. This opens your plants up for rose diseases that will attack the roots and then move to the blossoms.
Pick the Correct Rose Style and Variety
Once you know that you want to plant some roses, you need to know what style works for your garden and landscaping preferences. You can have multiple roses planted on your property, but you need to make sure they are taken care of and be in an environment that will support their needs.
Climbing roses
Climbing roses are a type of rose that is used often like vines. They are ideal for planting and then giving them a trellis to continue climbing in the direction that they are manipulated. They are beautiful for entryways and taking advantage of small spaces if you do not have a lot of space.
Hybrid tea roses
These are your traditional red roses used for gifts and symbolize affection for others. On the hybrid tea rose, you have a long stem accompanied with thorns and then a large beautiful blossom at the end of that stem. They are all grown on a rose bush and are often cut for flower arrangements. A good thing about this type of rose is that it can come in many colors and sizes of blooms.
Miniature Roses
These are smaller versions of the hybrid tea roses that most have come to love. These blossoms are much smaller, making them ideal for decorating cakes and other items instead of a flower arrangement. It is important to keep in mind that it will be the same size as others when planting this rose bush. The size difference is only in the bloom.
Shrub roses
These are often used for landscaping, as they are not meant to be picked and used for arrangements. The blossoms on these shrubs are spread out and used more for ornamental decoration in your lawn or garden. They are some of the hardiest roses, so they are ideal for climates where traditional roses may be hard to grow.
Taking Care of Roses
Once you have purchased roses, it is critical that you begin taking care of them right away so that they can sustain any impending conditions and continue to grow in a healthy manner. There are more steps to managing these plants and their needs outside of planting. That is just the first step you take before moving forward to return year after year.
Planting Roses
To plant roses is not something that can be done at any time. You want to make sure that if you plan to remove your rose bushes from container roses to planted roses, you must do that when it is ideal so that they have a good chance of making it through after the last frost date.
Once you have the roses planted, it is time to keep up with the rest of the necessary maintenance required. There is more to flowers than just planting them in the dirt, as some assume to be newly planted roses.
Deadheading Roses
Healthy roses will continue to develop blossoms and grow around the old. One of the best ways to encourage new growth is to deadhead your roses. What this means is to cut back the dead blossoms that have come out and then snip the retired flower blossom from the plant.
At that moment, the plant will stop generating so much energy into the existing blossoms and redirect that growth to new blossoms. You can manipulate how your roses will spend their energy moving forward.
Once your rose bush comes out of dormancy and begins growing again, it will grow in the way that you encouraged it because you removed the deadhead.
Watering Roses
Roses are a flower that loves after and loves for it to be available regularly. This does not mean that you need to flood your roses, but they need to be watered properly to generate a healthy root system.
Depending on how you prefer to water your roses, you can do this yourself with a water hose, or you can have your roses planted along your irrigation lines and have the sprinklers water them daily. What you want to do is make sure that the water is showered so that it is not dumped all at once on the rose bushes. This can cause unwanted powdery mildew.
Shower Setting
With the shower setting, they are able to get the water they need, no matter what rose variety you have, and properly circulate the water through the soil. As the temperatures start to rise in your area, you may want to consider watering your roses earlier in the day as a way to reduce the stress on them from the heat.
If your area has experienced a lot of rain recently, you may want to skip a day or two of watering your roses to prevent overwatering. This could flood the roots and destroy the roses you have worked hard to grow.
Feeding Roses
Like any flower or plant, your roses will need to be fed with fertilizer periodically. This is essential since they will start to drain the soil around them of nutrients in order to maintain their blossoms and steady growth.
Organic Fertilizer
You want to feed your roses once a season if you have access to organic matter for compost and soil. These roses need a handsome amount of nitrogen and phosphorus in order to maintain their look and growth at their maximum potential.
Commercial Fertilizer
If you choose to go with commercial fertilizer, then you risk burning your roses with unwanted chemicals. Not to mention the fact that you will need to make multiple feedings a season because the nutrients are often lacking compared to organic options.
When you feed your roses, make sure you put the fertilizer along with the plant's crown so that it seeps into the ground around the rose and is available when they need it.
Pruning Roses
Once you have mature roses that have been planted and have survived their first season of changing weather, it is time to prune them to grow healthy branches. Before they come out of growing season in early spring, you can remove any branches that were causing crowding and encourage new growth.
When the roses are active in the summer months, you can still prune them. Many of these roses will have dead branches that the plant is no longer supplying nutrients to and is crowding the bush.
When you prune roses, you want to make sure that you are using a sharp pruner that will take off the branch in one clean cut. Dull pruners will rip at the branch and cause unnecessary distress. This opens the roses up to diseases like powdery mildew.
What to Avoid
Keep in mind when pruning roses that all of them need to be pruned regularly except for climbing roses. Climbing roses are not required to go through pruning until the winterizing of roses later in the year.
Winterizing Roses
Once the roses have started to settle and the winter months are quickly approaching, you need to make sure that you winterize your garden roses right away. There are several steps to keep in mind during this process.
Part One of Winterizing
Avoid pruning the bush at the top. This can make the bush vulnerable to unwanted infections because it does not have time to heal properly.
Part Two of Winterizing
Do one last step of pruning by removing the leaves on the plant. However, keep the hips on and intact, as they are essential to get the plant through the winter.
Part Three of Winterizing
Take some plant twine that will not add stress to your rose bushes, and tie the bush up. You want to do this right at the time you are making a mound of your compost, mulch, and pine needles over the crown of the rose bushes.
Part Four of Winterizing
Once the mound has been applied, it is critical that you collar your plant with a wire so that it stays in place, having that supporting device.
If you live in a climate that will get extremely cold over the winter, wrap some burlap or other material around the mound to keep the crown warm throughout the winter.
Great Compost Goes A Long Way
One of the best things that you can really do for your roses, however, is to offer them natural fertilizers from compost that will reduce their exposure to diseases and powdery mildew. If you have a lot of food waste that you generate in your kitchen regularly, you can manage that waste and make quality fertilizer with the help of Lomi.
Sitting on your counter, Lomi is continuously breaking down food waste and biodegradable material so that when the time comes for you to provide quality nutrient-rich plant food, you will have it available. Rose plants need the best options available so that you are not resorting to commercial fertilizer for these plants.
Final Thoughts on Planting Roses
Because this flower is so common and very popular, it can be highly desirable for those who are looking to improve their overall garden. No matter which rose bush you decide to grow on your property, the best thing you can do is choose the best time to plant, when to plant, and how to feed your roses. With the help of Lomi, you will have access to the best food out there, so all you have to worry about is the other parts of taking care of roses.