SOUTHERN LIVING USA

Taking proper care of your roses can seem like a very taxing, and time consuming thing to do… but the results of such care far more than make up for it.

Unfortunately, roses are the most difficult flower to manage and keep healthy; however, all good things require high maintenance.

There are many small things that have to be done to keep your roses looking their best, but all of those small things add up to one very large one.

Here are some great tips for the regular upkeep of your roses:

1. You should prune your roses in the early spring…or at least once the others start budding because the buds will eventually become new branches later.
2. You should cut the dead and damaged branches first. Next, you should cut all but five of the leftover healthy branches. They should end up at about the thickness of a pencil.
3. Cut the bushes by approximately one third or one half, depending on how tall you want them. Cutting above the outward facing buds, which is the buds that are on the outside of the rose bush because this will help the bud to grow upward; which will make the center of the bud open up for better air circulation and shape.
4. You should always sharpen your hand shears before pruning, and prune the climbing roses with caution. The branches have a tendency to overlap and you wouldn’t want to prune the wrong branches.
5. Mulching is necessary because it helps to keep your maintenance down a bit. Mulching requires your roses to need a lot less watering, weeding and helps prevent diseases. The best mulches are organic ones like wood chips, pine needles, and grass clippings.
6. Protect your roses during the winter months by adding a few extra inches of soil to the base of your roses. This should provide the extra needed heat in the winter.
7. You should avoid the white plastic cones when doing your winter protection because they trap too much heat during the winter thaw. They are also quite unattractive.
8. You should feed your roses water often, but lightly. When you water your roses, avoid directly watering the foliage because it will cause fungal diseases. Water your roses at the roots.
9. Keep the area around your roses cleared to prevent them from getting locked in an area that doesn’t provide enough circulation.

It is really important to fertilize your roses. That is how your roses get their much needed nutrients. Roses are much like people in the things that they need in order to remain healthy. Just like people they need water and food (fertilizer).

Most types of roses have to be fertilized frequently to keep them growing at a fast pace. You should fertilize with a fertilizer that is slow to release like “Furtilizer”, fish emulsion or Osmocote at planting time. Be certain to follow the instructions properly from the label.

Avoid over fertilizing during the winter because by trying to promote new growth in the winter will make your roses more available to freeze damage.

Important Tip: You should never fertilize plants that are heat or water stressed. Water stressed plants that grow under a lot of heat will cause leaf and bud burn.

You want a steady temperature of approximately 70-80 degrees because your plants will get the most nutrients that are available to them. During the growing season, you should give your plants a liquid fertilizer like “Furtilizer” every two weeks.

NOTE: Many thousands, if not hundreds of thousands of gardners and plant enthusiasts prefer to use the product “Furtilizer” as their all around fertilizer for all plants, lawns, and trees. Go to the link below to learn more detailed information about “Furtilizer”.

You will learn why you’ll agree with the majority, and the experts in the know. Give it a risk free try… ask for it at your local ACE Hardware store or Click Here to get more information or to order online from your authorized “Furtilizer” distributor.

The art of planting roses doesn’t have to be a complicated thing to do…especially when you have the right knowledge, there is no limit to how beautiful a garden or rosebush you can create.

In this series, you will not only have all of the right skills at your fingertips, but you will get over a hundred tips that you can use to grow your very own bed of roses.

With this extensive guide at hand, you will never have to buy another bouquet again. Now you will have all of the beauty and delicious fragrance that roses can give you with you all the time.

Here are some of the best ideas and tips for planting your roses.

1. Check with your local gardening center or florist for the best type of roses to grow in your climate. If you are a novice, you should look for disease resistant types of roses because they require a lot less maintenance.
2. When planting roses, you want to pick a spot that is well lit in the morning. You also want an area that is sunlit for at least 6 hours a day. Roses need a great deal of light if they are to grow properly.
3. Pick an area that has plenty of well drained soil. Great soil has a PH level where the amount of acid in the soil is at about 5.5-7.0. You can get a testing kit for your soil at any garden center.
4. Organic matter like manure or lime helps to nourish the roots of your roses. You should soak the roots in water or puddle clay for many minutes, and cut off the root’s ends that are broken.
5. The first 3-4 weeks after planting your roses, you should water them often. Usually this is when the top 2 inches of soil is dry. Roses need a lot of hydration and food to remain healthy.
6. Four weeks after planting, you should start soaking the bed every 2 weeks or so. You should do this in the morning for the best results.
7. Begin fertilization approximately 3 months after planting. Use 3-6 inches of mulch to control the moisture, temperature, and to stops weeds from coming up. Mulch also helps to lock in the vital nutrients your roses need in order to remain healthy.
8. Planting in the Spring is the best.
9. You want to plant your roses in an area that is well circulated with air. Your roses will not grow in an enclosed or tight area.
10. Dig a hole that is two times bigger than the amount of space that your roses take up. It makes it easier to plant them and creates a spaced area for them to grow with freedom. Poor circulation for your roses can cause fungal diseases. Using a larger hole also makes it easier for you to pull them up later and pot them if you’d like.

Watering Your Roses
Watering your roses can be a tricky thing. It is one of the most important aspects of taking care of your roses. Roses need almost as much water to stay healthy as people do. Of course there are quite a few things that must be considered before you water your roses. They are as follows:

Like people, roses need more water during the hotter weather than during the colder ones. Heat makes the soil dry faster and your roses get “thirstier”.
Keep in mind that even during the rainier times, roses still need to be watered with fresh water because rain alone cannot provide the right amount of moisture for your roses.
You want to water your roses in a manner that goes deep enough into the surrounding soil so that it reaches the roots. Try going approximately 45cm deep.
You do not want to water the petals directly or the canes because it can cause fungal disease in your roses.
To help you lower the risk of your roses getting diseases, mulch is a nice way to keep the soil moist, without allowing all of the fungal problems that too much moisture can cause.
Watering your roses in the morning also helps to dry the dew off of the leaves.
Once your roses are fully established, you should water them once a week. You should do it twice a week in the hotter months.