Growing And Caring For Roses

Roses I think we’ll all agree are one of the most beautiful flowers in the world. Most of us love to receive roses and it’s even better if we can grow roses. That way we can enjoy them on a regular basis. Growing and caring for roses is not as difficult as you might think.

There may be many different types of roses but a rose is a rose when it comes to growing healthy roses. Plan to plant your rose bushes where they will get lots of sun. They require a minimum of 6 hours of sunshine and more is better. Roses are not shade plants!

When you water your rose bushes be sure not to get water droplets on the leaves. Drops of water cause burns which lead to a disease called black spot. Always water your roses at the base. Water your roses lightly every day and give them a good soaking at least once a week. If you live in a very dry and hot climate you may have to water more than once a day.

That said don’t over water because you can drown your roses. If you water lightly in the morning and then again a few hours before dusk you should be safe. This gives them moisture during the hottest part of the day and allows excess moisture to evaporate before night when it can chill the roots.

Roses can be planted as soon as the frost is gone and you can work the soil. Early spring is fine for many areas. Dig down the depth of a spade, fill 1/3 full of compost and then place the rose bush roots in the hole and pack the soil into a mound around the base. Roses do well if you break up the soil at least once a month.

Part of keeping roses healthy is to pick off leaves with black spots and leaves that are dying. You should also gather the petals that are withered. You can prevent black spot by spraying rose leaves with a mixture of 1 tablespoon liquid dish soup and 1 tablespoon baking soda mixed in a gallon of water.

You need to prune your roses through the growing season. Do this by using a hand pruner to cut away suckers and ¼” above any branch that has a bud. Removing the suckers will allow the nutrients to concentrate on the rose bush itself.

Long stem roses need a couple of additional pruning steps to keep the stems growing tall. They need a heavy pruning both in late winter and early spring just as the new growth begins to show. You also need to remove all the damaged stock that’s in the center of the bush. To protect the cane in the winter you should surround the mound with straw or other insulators.

Roses are available in many colors. Red and yellow are the two most popular colors. And even within those two opposing colors are many different shades and varieties. A quick search online will reveal many web sites that carry a great selection of various rose types.

Hybrid tea roses are tall and have long stems. They are perfect for cutting. These are often seen at Valentines. Generally there is one to a stem and they are considered the traditional cutting rose.

Floribundas were developed a century ago and have large blossoms that are very showy! They bloom freely and in clusters and are very spectacular to see. They are versatile and fit well anywhere where there is enough sunshine.

Shrub roses have changed the way people think about roses. They are hardy, disease resistant and will grow in a variety of climates with only minimal attention from you. They produce beautiful flowers that bloom all season long.

Ground cover roses grow low and cascade over walls and rocks. They are the perfect addition to flower beds, containers, and rock gardens.

The climbing rose has very long stocks that can be trained to climb a trellis or fence easily. They look awesome grown over an arched trellis or adorning a window.

Which ever roses you decide to grow following this simple advise will provide you with beautiful roses all season long!

Deon Melchior is the Editor and Publisher of Article Click. For more FREE articles for your ezine and websites visit ArticleClick.com. Article Click is a free content article directory. This means that as a publisher you may reprint the articles that are included in our site, as long as the article is unedited and the author box is included with it's live hyperlinks.