Over the winter you have carefully read all websites and catalogs and made your selections. You’ve patiently waited for your new roses to arrive, and now the big day is here. A box arrives from UPS and you can’t wait to open them up and get them in the ground. But a little extra patience now can pay off big time in the quality of roses that you get the rest of the year.
Most of the roses that you receive through the mail from the major nurseries are bare-root roses. Bare-root roses are roses that are dug in fields in autumn of the previous year, placed into cold storage, and then shipped direct to you by mail, UPS, or 2nd day air. When they arrive, you will find them wrapped in plastic, perhaps with moist newspaper or some other moisture retentive material.
Typically they have no leaves and have been pruned to 3 to 5 green canes about 6″-12″ long. Some of the canes may appear very small, but don’t be fooled. Most of the time they will grow into hearty, healthy roses.
Gardening Tips: Planting Bare-Root and Potted Roses
Their roots should be substantial with a brown, moist texture. If any roots are damaged or black and soggy, they can be removed with a hand pruner. If the roots are totally dry, or if the canes show signs of desiccation (dehydrated canes will look wrinkled and dry or brownish), notify the mail- order company immediately for instructions on replacement or for a refund. Many companies will offer you a refund or replacement even if the roses are planted and don’t grow (assuming proper care on your part!). However, it is best to notify the company immediately if you believe the roses did not arrive in good condition.
Once the roses have been inspected, soak them in water with a bit of root stimulator or “Ortho Up-start” (available at all garden centers) according to directions. Adding a cup of bleach to the water will also help disinfect the roses in case any disease spores are present. Immerse the roses so that most of the rose and all of the roots are in the water. This will “rehydrate” the rose after its long shipping ordeal.
Plant immediately if possible. If weather conditions are not favorable or if you do not have time to plant them, bury the roses in loose dirt so that all the roots and the bottom half of the canes have dirt on top of them. This is referred to as “heeling in”.
Another solution is to pot them up in 3 or 5 gallon pots and wait several months to plant them. Planting a bare-root rose is a bit different than planting a potted rose. First, dig a hole about 2 feet deep and 2 feet wide. It preferable to prepare the soil in the Fall so that the soil has time to “mellow” before the roses are planted. Digging a big hole is necessary so the roots will have lots of room to grow.
If you are planting the roses in raised beds, subtract the height of the bed from the 2 foot depth. For instance, if your bed is raised above ground one foot, then dig down into the native soil one additional foot.
The soil needs to be amended so that you will get the most out of your roses. The soil mixture should be approx. 1/3 native clay soil, 1/3 sharp builders sand or perlite, and 1/3 organic matter such as peat moss, aged manure or bagged manure, compost, Nature’s Helper (available at most garden centers), mushroom compost, Jungle Growth or Majestic Professional mix– even grass clippings or shredded leaves are good Other gourmet goodies like cottonseed meal, alfalfa meal, Milorganite, or Mills Magic Rose Mix can also be added. (See issue #7 for more on soil preparation).
Or, you could purchase some pre-mixed soil from bulk distributors like Green Bros. Earthworks that are listed in the yellow pages. These pre-mixed soils are relatively cheap (except for the delivery charge) and can usually be custom mixed to your specifications. For small gardens, you may want to use a pick- up truck and pick up the mix from the distributor.
Once the soil is in place, you will need to check the pH (the soil’s acidity level). Native soil has a pH of 5.3 which is quite acid. Roses grow best with a pH of 6.0 to 6.5 which is slightly acid. Use dolomitic lime according to directions on the bag to raise the pH. You can take a soil sample to your county extension office and they will analyze the soil for you and give you proper recommendations. If you don’t have your soil tested, a cup or two of lime per rose mixed into the soil will usually be adequate; although, this is not an exact method of raising the PH to the desired level.
Adding a good shovel- full of gypsum to the soil will also benefit your roses by improving the clay in the soil.
When you plant your bare-root rose, build a cone at the bottom of the hole so that when you set the rose on the cone and spread the roots around the cone the bud union (the swollen part of the rose just above the roots and root stem…see illustration) will be just above the soil level.
I recommend clipping about one inch from the tips of the roots before you plant the rose to help stimulate growth of new feeder roots. Use a shovel handle or stick and lay it across the hole to judge how high the bud union is. Put a little triple superphosphate or bone meal in the bottom of the hole. Also, mix a 1/2 cup of triple superphosphate into the remaining soil mixture, then fill the hole with this soil mixture.
Water the rose well with 1-2 gallons of water with root stimulator, this gets rid of any air holes in the soil. Then pile up a mulch like mini-nuggets over the bud union and the bottom half of the canes to keep them from drying out until the roots get established.
Remove this dirt or mulch 3 or 4 weeks later once new growth has started and water your roses if less than 1″ of rain falls per week.
When you water your roses, water an entire 20″ circle around the rose so that all the roots get water.
Do not fertilize your new roses until at least one month after they are planted and then only use a liquid fertilizer to start off with until the roots are fully established.
Fish emulsion is a good starter fertilizer that your roses will love. After that, any good rose fertilizer will suffice.
If the roses you ordered were potted roses, or if you just buy potted roses from a local nursery, the routine is slightly different. Potted roses can stay in their pots for as long as it takes you to plant. In fact, many roses you buy locally may have been grown in Florida and may benefit from a few more weeks in the pot to get used to our climate and to avoid any setbacks from an occasional cold night in March or April.
Soil preparation is the same for potted roses as it is for bare-root except that you don’t need to build a mound to spread the roots on. Just dig the hole to the proper depth and put some triple superphosphate in the bottom of the hole. When you take the rose out of the pot, it is important to try and not disturb the root system. This can be done by cutting away the pot or turning the pot upside down on the palm of your hand and then inverting it into the hole. I like the inverting method, but it does take a little practice.
Water the potted rose with root stimulator and then make sure the ground does not dry out over the next few weeks while the roots are getting established. This means watering it deeply every few days if it does not rain. And by all means, get a rain gauge so you know how much it has rained during the week. They are inexpensive and they eliminate the guess work. Believe me, it is hard to determine how much rain falls at a time…a rain gauge is a must.
Finally, mulch around the potted rose, but it is not necessary to pile mulch over the lower part of the canes or the bud union like you do for bare-root roses. Just make sure the mulch is a few inches thick around the rose to help conserve moisture and stabilize the soil temperature.
Well, that’s all there is to it! Once your roses are in the ground, get set to be dazzled with gorgeous blooms. Oh, just one more thing, your roses will need proper maintenance to perform at their peak, but that is another topic for another issue.
