Tips For The Rose Gardener

Rose gardens are probably the most popular type of garden in the world, ranging from Marie Antoinette’s famous gardens before the French revolution to a few shrubs tucked in a tiny backyard. With their wonderful scents and lovely blossoms, it is no wonder these surprisingly sturdy plants are so popular. After all, no other flowers are used as frequently as roses to symbolize love and friendship. If you’d like to grow beautiful roses in your yard, try a few of these simple rose gardening tips.
1. Roses need to eat regularly, just like any other living thing. Start feeding your roses before you even place them in the planting hole by adding a scoop of compost.
2. Use specially formulated rose food to help your roses really bloom. If you prefer organic methods, give your roses each a small scoop of Epsom salts, a banana peel, and some rotted compost. They will absolutely love these homegrown garden remedies.
3. Roses need to breathe. Be sure you don’t allow other plants to get to close to your roses. Keep weeds away from the base of your roses with a 2 to 4 inch layer of rotted compost or chip mulch, but be sure you don’t place these weed barriers right against the rose’s stems.
4. Mulch also helps keep your roses from getting too dry. Mulch retains water, so your roses need to be watered less frequently during the summer months.
5. Trim out dead wood. Rose canes that are brown and dead may even be harboring insect pests, so remove them immediately. Always make a clean cut instead of crushing the canes as you remove them.
6. Prune out canes that cross over other canes. Those sharp thorns damage the rose’s outer skin as easily as they snag your hands. Always prune a cane above a bud that faces away from the inside of the plant. This bud will react to the pruning by sending out a new shoot.
7. If your roses are infested by aphids, spray them with insecticidal soap.
8. Always remove pruned canes and spotty leaves from the ground. If you don’t, any fungus on them will re-infect your roses when there is a heavy rainfall.
Finally, the most important rose gardening tip may just be to wear long sleeves and thick gloves when you are working with your roses. A rose thorn can really hurt, especially if it becomes deeply embedded in your hand.