Where and how you plant your roses will have a direct impact on how well they do.
Choosing the site
A rose needs sun to do well- choose a site that gets at least five hours of sun each day.
'Movement of air' the old fashioned expression for good air circulation around the bushes will help to reduce mildew and black spot which thrive mildew and poor air circulation, but don't plant in the full blast of the southerly or you won't have many blooms to admire, nor many branches on your roses.
The idea of swags of roses climbing through trees is harder to achieve than it may seem. Tree roots may not leave much nourishment or moisture in the soil for the rose, and a strong vigorous rose may prove too much for a tree, causing branches to break and the tree to collapse.
Rose Replant Disease
Rose replant disease occurs where you plant into soil where roses have been grown before. The new roses often don't establish well and fail to thrive.
Don't plant in soil that has grown roses in the prior three years. If your design demands a rose be planted in the same position, excavate the soil and replace with fresh.
Planting
A good rose has three to five stems each about 25-45 cm long, and with good fibrous root structure. Watch for roses with roots or stems on one side only. Container grown plants should have a good covering of soil i.e. no roots showing above the soil level, and no sign of moss or weeds.
Give the roses a good soaking in a bucket of water while you prepare the planting hole. Prepare some soil/compost mixture to add to the soil, giving the new plants a boost. Make this of one part of good compost and soil, plus a handful of bonemeal per plant. You can use manure instead of the compost, provided it is well rotted.
Dig a hole twice the size of the rose roots or container, add some of your mixture manure to the base of the hole and mix with the soil. Place the plant in the hole- with bare root plants spread the roots evenly over the soil. Gently tease out the roots of a container grown plant to encourage them into the soil.
Watch that the graft union is 2-3cm below soil level. Add the remainder of your planting mixture and firm gently. Fill the planting hole with the soil dug out, taking care to gently firm around the roots to eliminate air pockets.
If your rose has all its roots growing strongly to one side, a result of more mechanised rose growing, do not try to spread these across the hole but plant the rose to one side.
Standards and Climbers
Standard or half standard roses need a stake 60cm into the ground on the windward side of the plant so the stake holds the plant in windy conditions.
Climbers need to be planted 45cm from the wall or support they will climb - the soil against the wall will be hot and drier than in a border. Place the rose with its roots spreading out towards the moister soil and the growing shoots pointing towards the wall, supported with peasticks.
Planting distances for bush and climbing roses depend on the eventual size of the plant, most rose growers indicate an eventual height and spread on the label and use this as your guide. If not, most bush roses can be planted about 45-55 cm apart.
Old roses tend to be larger and are pruned less, so make sure you give them enough space, again the label should be a guide. Planting too closely will encourage mildew and blackspot as the air circulation is reduced.
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R. 'Sally Holmes'
A lovely perfume and large, creamy blooms open wide from pink flushed buds make this a very desirable shrub rose. A wonderful rose in the border or as a specimen.
Cultivation: Plant in a sunny position, add well-rotted compost to provide a good loamy soil. Prune lightly and it will attain 1.8m.
Propagation: Cuttings
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R. 'Meg'
Large, almost single flowers of buff-pink with a peachy flush set off by the dark anthers. Dark green semi-glossy foliage on an upright & bushy climber. A splendid rose with a slight fragrance, repeat flowering.
Cultivation: Plant in a sunny position. 2.5m x 1.2m Will tolerate lighter soils.
Propagation: Cuttings
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R. 'Madame Gregoire Straechlin'
(Syn. R. 'Spanish Beauty') A vigorous and wide climber with very large almost double flowers in pink with a deeper shade to the reverse. Very fragrant, repeat flowering and with wonderful hips in autumn. Dark green, matt foliage.
Cultivation: Plant in a sunny position, although will stand some shade and can be planted on a south-facing wall. Tolerates lighter soils, to 4.5m x 3.0m.
Propagation: Cuttings
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R. 'Jean Ducher'
Cultivation: Prefers a sunny, warm position and is very suited to growing against a wall. Plant in good soil, adding well-rotted compost to provide a good, loamy soil. Disease resistant it is relatively trouble free. Prune lightly and only to remove dead and tangled growth. To 1.2m
Propagation: Cuttings
R. 'Jean Ducher' |
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