There’s one plant that every gardener should have – the Queen of them all, which comes in endless colours, smells, shapes, sizes and varieties and usually forgives the biggest mistakes. Yes, the rose.
It is the emblem of England, the present that says “I love you”, and the plant that never stops giving. For any occasion, sad or joyful, it is perfect in one of its many guises.
To get the best is to wisest to follow certain recommended paths. I find that following them provides more than just the joy of seeing the eventual flower as there is something therapeutic about following the simple but precise horticultural rules on pruning, dead-heading, feeding and over-wintering.
Taking care over the initial stages of planting will almost always guarantee success.
Bare-rooted is Best
I recommend buying bare-rooted varieties, although almost all rose producers, garden centres and mail order companies will try to sell roses that are already growing in containers.
Before you do the planting it is important to think about where in the garden the rose will be planted and the purpose you have in mind for it. It may be a covering for a wall or fence, to place in a mixed bed, to hide an ugly shed, or simply to add to other roses and create a wonderful display.
There is something elegant about placing ramblers and climbers along a trellis or growing them around arches or pergolas, blending them in with other climbers.
Now is the best time to plant the bare-rooted rose in the UK, before the ground has become too hard with the frosts and the plant becomes dormant for the winter and before the spring when the soil begins to warm and the plant awakens.
Planting Roses
Dig a hole large enough for the root mass, gently picking the roots apart and spreading them around the hole, making sure the plant will be at the right ground level. Make sure the A tip I always follow is to sprinkle a large handful of mycorrhizal fungi – which is readily available in most garden centres – around the bottom of the hole to give the roots an extra boost when they begin to grow. Bone meal would be a decent alternative.
When the plant is placed in the hole, tease the strands of root apart before filling in the hole. Make sure to give it a good drink, allowing it to absorb the water before applying the final covering of soil. If you live in a colder area, plant a bit deeper and consult neighbours who grow roses. It is amazing how much you can learn just by asking around.
While now is generally the best time for planting there isn’t really a “best time” for potted roses. If you are replacing old roses make sure you dig out the soil to a depth and width of a couple of feet and exchange it with soil from a different part of the garden as roses can suffer from replant disease, also known as soil sickness.
Time to Prune
Come the spring, usually late February or early March, depending on frosts, the rose will want a prune. For this have the best pair of secateurs you can afford close to hand. Cuts to any plant should be precise and clean, and for this the secateurs need to be sharp.
The main requirement is to keep the plants free of wood that is dead, diseased or damaged and to avoid crossing or rubbing branches and spindly growth. So make cuts about a quarter-inch above an outward-facing bud.
Avoid excessive build-up of older, unproductive wood that is causing the centre to become crowded, removing one or two older branches from the centre if necessary. If they become leggy and bare at the base, remove one or two stems back to near ground level, which will usually encourage new growth from the base.
And if you don’t get it right, don’t worry – your rose bush is so forgiving of pruning mistakes that it will still flower and you will do a better job next time.
Bob’s Ultimate Gardeners Gift Wishlist
by Bob Graham
The post Gardening: Bob’s Expert Guide to Perfect Roses appeared first on Felix Magazine.
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