Caring For Roses

Roses are some of the most beautiful and beloved flower that graces our gardens and our lives. Unfortunately roses have a reputation for being a hard plant to care for. While some rose plant owners find this to be true, others take steps to find out the proper care that is needed for their roses.

Roses do require regular attention to keep the plant looking its best but, after learning the proper steps to take in caring for roses, helping a plant to look its best is easy. The most basic necessity that most people understand that plants need is water. All plants need water and roses are no different. Roses will bloom and look their best if it is well watered. Roses need to be provided with about one inch of water per week. It is the roots of the plant that really need to be considered during this step. Roses have roots that go deep into the ground. Because roses have deep roots they are capable of extracting water from the sub-soil even when the surface is dry. This helps them to tolerate dry spells. Watering the roots of the roses encourages them to grow deep into the soil. Sometimes when a plant owner only offers their roses frequent, light watering, the roots of the plant will grow to be shallow within the soil. This results in the plant not being able to handle the drying of the upper layer of soil due to droughts.

Proper rose care also means fertilizing. Most species of roses are capable of going years without feeding when they are planted in good soil. Plants feed on nutrients that are produced by organisms living in the soil. By over using man-made fertilizer you can smother those beneficial bugs. Plus, your plants can become dependant on fertilizers forcing you to constantly provide them. Instead, owners can apply a slow-release fertilizer to the soil just as the plant is coming out of its dormancy period in early spring. You can also apply a small bit of fertilizer after the blooms go away and the plant is storing up energy for next season. But don’t fertilize after midsummer. Roses do well with both inorganic and organic fertilizers although organic fertilizer materials can be digested by the helpful bacteria and fungus within the soil resulting in your soil permanently becoming more fertile. The most effective combination of inorganic fertilizer is 5-10-5 or 4-8-4.

Pruning is extremely important in the care of roses. It is usually done in the spring, after the plant has been dormant for the winter. At this stage pruning is done to remove the dead, broken, or diseased wood from the plant. This helps to provide the plant with space for the air can move through it as well as keeping it healthy.  Pruning is also done to shape the rose plant. The next stage of pruning occurs after the plant has bloomed. Pruning the actual flowers themselves encourages growth and by removing the flower buds it helps to establish a new plant.
Caring for roses does take time and commitment. It also takes patience, skill, and knowledge. But, there is nothing better then to be able to display your hard work for all to see. The rewards of being able to show off these gorgeous creations right on your front lawn are priceless.

Deb St. George is a Rose Gardening expert. For more great information on Caring for roses, visit http://www.seniorhealthportal.com.

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