An old proverb sums it up –
“Take time to smell the roses.”
The beauty and fragrance of a rose makes us stop for a minute to enjoy life.
Growing your own roses can be a challenge but here are a few tips to help you be successful.
Tea roses are not hardy for our zone. Years ago they were our only option. They required a lot of care and winter protection and still did not fare well over winter. Knock Out Roses were marketed as hardy for our area but they do require a protected spot and are still susceptible to hard winters.
At Natural Plus we carry a few varieties of roses that are much more hardy, disease resistant, and rebloom. Here are some of those varieties:
Easy Elegance Roses : Easy Elegance roses are very hardy, highly disease resistant, and colors are stunning. Some varieties that we carry include:
Coral Cove – Coral colored, everblooming, grows 24”
High Voltage – Bright yellow, recurrent blooms, grows 3-5’
Kashmir – Dark red tea like blooms, grows 2 ½-4’
Music Box – Stunning yellow and pink blend, grows 3’
Paint the Town – Everblooming, medium red, grows 2-3’
Nearly Wild – Nearly wild roses are one of our most hardy varieties. They bloom all summer. Blooms resemble the bloom of a wild rose. If there is a particularly hard winter, they usually come back from the root. Grow 2-3’
Purple Pavement –Purple pavement is a rugosa rose with fuschia colored blooms that grow in clusters. They are very fragrant and plants are extremely hardy. Blooms turn to beautiful red “rose hips” in fall. Grow 3-5’. Lotty’s Love is smaller variety of this rose.
Climbing Roses: At Natural Plus we carry 2 varieties that we feel are the most hardy: William Baffin is a prolific bloomer with medium pink blooms. John Cabot is a deep red colored. These require a trellis.
Care of Roses
Roses need full sun to get optimal blooms. Adequate watering, usually 2-3 times a week is a must, especially for newly planted roses. It is also advisable to treat with a “Rose RX -3 in One” rose care product. This product provides protection from aphids, spider mites, black spot fungus, and powdery mildew. It is listed as organic.
Fertilize roses 2-3 times a summer starting in late May with an all purpose fertilizer such as “Miracle Gro” or “Rapid Gro”.
Trimming Roses
Best time for trimming roses is early spring before they leaf. Trim to the desired size. After they leaf, trim out any dead wood that remains. They can be lightly trimmed during the summer to achieve optimal shape.
Overwintering Roses
Care over winter is a must. Be sure that roses are adequately watered going in to winter. Water once a week in the fall up until the ground freezes. Mulch roses heavily at the base in the fall. This also helps protect from winter kill.