Rose Gardening: Varieties, Care & Maintenance, Rose of the Year
ALL ABOUT ROSES
Fertilizer + Care + Pruning + Roger's Favorite Varieties
Fertilizer
• The key to having constant rose blooms throughout the season is regular fertilizing. Fertilizing is important to help keep roses healthy and colorful.
• Using a flower fertilizer will give them what they need to promote beautiful foliage and blooms. We carry a few different rose fertilizers. Our Down to Earth Rose & Flower is granular and easy to use, simply sprinkle the root area of the plant once a month February - November. We also have a water soluble, kelp-based Sea Grow Flower & Bloom that is easy to dissolve in a bucket of water to use either diluted weekly or regular strength once a month. Malibu Compost Tea that you leave overnight in a bucket of water and then either strain and use as a foliar spray or just pour onto plants when watering. Keeping the plant healthy will keep pests at a minimum.
Care & Maintenance
It's true that roses take a little more care but the beauty they share is worth it. Basic maintenance is below for hybrid tea and floribunda varieties. For more complicated issues, consult with our horticulture team.
January - February:
o This is the time for annual pruning, followed by spraying the plant and the raked soil beneath it with liquid copper to help prevent rust, a contagious fungal disease on roses.
o You can fertilize after pruning, adding Epsom salts to help with magnesium and plant greening. Epsom salts should only be used every three months, if you like, but regular fertilizing should begin at this time.
March – June:
o Usually this is the time when you will be dealing with pests, like aphids, and maybe some powdery mildew. Adding earthworm castings in the soil twice a year, can help make plants less tasty to aphids, and improves the health of your soil. If you're finding aphids on your plants, an insecticidal soap or horticultural oil applied once a week for 4 weeks should help. For powdery mildew, make sure to water only at the base of the plant. Water on the leaves can aggravate mildew by keeping a moist environment, which is how powdery mildew takes hold on leaves, and eventually prevents them from converting sun into energy for the plant (photosynthesis). Using a fungicide like Neem or Disease Control Spray can help but sunny weather helps too.
o All roses will occasionally have old, yellow leaves towards the center and bottom of the plant. This is not a concern if the rest of the plant looks healthy. However, if you have a lot of yellow, spotty, splotchy leaves it is best to figure out if it's disease, insect or nutrition related.
Summer (July-ish):
o This is the time to when the leaves may start looking a little like Swiss cheese, which means rose slug/sawfly larvae are on the rose plant. Using a product with Spinosad will help eradicate the small green/white "worms". Use the spray once or twice a week for 3-4 weeks. Only spray the top of the leaves as the larvae will ingest it and die.
o Rust appears as tiny, orange spots underneath the leaves, eventually showing on the top of the leaf as a circle and will prevent the leaf from photosynthesizing. Treatment involves removing all foliage, buds and blooms, then spraying with copper spray, including the cleaned-up soil underneath the plant. Treat all roses but if that feels intimidating, at least treat the roses next to the one infected, as rust is easily spread with wind and even pruning. *To prevent spreading, it is very important to clean your tools with a diluted bleach or other cleaning solution between each plant's maintenance.
October- January:
o Most roses are beginning to wind down for the year and will continue blooming sporadically.
Pruning
• January is the time to prune your rose plants by cutting the plant down to about 12-18", removing cross branches, keeping 4-7 main stems and doing your best to create a bowl or vase shaped plant. All foliage and flowers should be removed, ground should be raked, plant and soil should be sprayed with copper fungicide. Applying worm castings at this time should be part of the annual maintenance as well.
• Climbing roses: Cut everything back to 4-6 main canes. To promote continual blooms, pruning throughout the bloom season is necessary to keep your plant healthy and contained to the size you prefer. Prune back well after blooming by cutting at on an angle (to keep water from settling on the cut area and prevent disease). Cut back to where you would prefer new growth and blooms. Well intentioned people will share many "truths", myths and must do advice about roses but deadheading regularly and keeping the plant pruned back enough to spray easily when issues arise are the key methods to having healthy blooming roses.
Roger’s Favorite Varieties
Favorites is a delicate subject, as each rose lover will have their own list of favorites. Our horticulturist lists of favorites will change each year based on each one’s taste and experience in their gardens.
• Sarah’s Favorites: ‘Distant Drums’, ‘Carding Mill’, ‘Colette’, ‘Cecile Brunner’, and ‘Bolero’
• Suzanne’s Favorites: ‘Distant Drums’, ‘Lady of Shallot’, ‘Sally Holmes’, ‘Colette’, ‘Cecile Brunner’, and ‘R. Californica’
• Jordan’s Favorites (RG Rose Expert: ‘Le Petit Prince’, ‘Distant Drums’, ‘Just Joey’, ‘Cherry Parfait’ and ‘Sea Foam’
Roger's Gardens has a lot of favorites based on their fragrance, like ‘Yves Piaget’, ‘Neil Diamond’ and ‘Princesse Charlene de Monaco’. There are also roses that are known for being disease and pest resistant, like ‘Easy Does It’ and ‘Living Easy’. ‘Iceberg’ roses have become the garden classic with their year-round blooms and easy-to-care for maintenance.
There are 100’s of varieties of roses. Discover what you like and what grows best in your garden.
o This is the time for annual pruning, followed by spraying the plant and the raked soil beneath it with liquid copper to help prevent rust, a contagious fungal disease on roses.
o You can fertilize after pruning, adding Epsom salts to help with magnesium and plant greening. Epsom salts should only be used every three months, if you like, but regular fertilizing should begin at this time.
• Types of Roses
o Hybrid tea - generally a large single rose on a long stem
o Floribunda - usually multiple smaller roses on one spray
o Miniature - smaller varieties that can be trained for pots or smaller scale.
o Climbing - for growing on a trellis, wall, fence or to hang down over a large pot
o Shrub - smaller, more compact for landscaping
o Ground cover - Water-wise, low growing and easy for large areas like hillsides or borders.
o David Austin English, Romantic, Cabbage, Peony-like - these are bred for multi-petals, vintage or antique look and can be shrub or climbers
ALL ABOUT ROSES
Fertilizer + Care + Pruning + Roger's Favorite Varieties
Fertilizer
• The key to having constant rose blooms throughout the season is regular fertilizing. Fertilizing is important to help keep roses healthy and colorful.
• Using a flower fertilizer will give them what they need to promote beautiful foliage and blooms. We carry a few different rose fertilizers. Our Down to Earth Rose & Flower is granular and easy to use, simply sprinkle the root area of the plant once a month February - November. We also have a water soluble, kelp-based Sea Grow Flower & Bloom that is easy to dissolve in a bucket of water to use either diluted weekly or regular strength once a month. Malibu Compost Tea that you leave overnight in a bucket of water and then either strain and use as a foliar spray or just pour onto plants when watering. Keeping the plant healthy will keep pests at a minimum.
Care & Maintenance
It's true that roses take a little more care but the beauty they share is worth it. Basic maintenance is below for hybrid tea and floribunda varieties. For more complicated issues, consult with our horticulture team.
January - February:
o This is the time for annual pruning, followed by spraying the plant and the raked soil beneath it with liquid copper to help prevent rust, a contagious fungal disease on roses.
o You can fertilize after pruning, adding Epsom salts to help with magnesium and plant greening. Epsom salts should only be used every three months, if you like, but regular fertilizing should begin at this time.
March – June:
o Usually this is the time when you will be dealing with pests, like aphids, and maybe some powdery mildew. Adding earthworm castings in the soil twice a year, can help make plants less tasty to aphids, and improves the health of your soil. If you're finding aphids on your plants, an insecticidal soap or horticultural oil applied once a week for 4 weeks should help. For powdery mildew, make sure to water only at the base of the plant. Water on the leaves can aggravate mildew by keeping a moist environment, which is how powdery mildew takes hold on leaves, and eventually prevents them from converting sun into energy for the plant (photosynthesis). Using a fungicide like Neem or Disease Control Spray can help but sunny weather helps too.
o All roses will occasionally have old, yellow leaves towards the center and bottom of the plant. This is not a concern if the rest of the plant looks healthy. However, if you have a lot of yellow, spotty, splotchy leaves it is best to figure out if it's disease, insect or nutrition related.
Summer (July-ish):
o This is the time to when the leaves may start looking a little like Swiss cheese, which means rose slug/sawfly larvae are on the rose plant. Using a product with Spinosad will help eradicate the small green/white "worms". Use the spray once or twice a week for 3-4 weeks. Only spray the top of the leaves as the larvae will ingest it and die.
o Rust appears as tiny, orange spots underneath the leaves, eventually showing on the top of the leaf as a circle and will prevent the leaf from photosynthesizing. Treatment involves removing all foliage, buds and blooms, then spraying with copper spray, including the cleaned-up soil underneath the plant. Treat all roses but if that feels intimidating, at least treat the roses next to the one infected, as rust is easily spread with wind and even pruning. *To prevent spreading, it is very important to clean your tools with a diluted bleach or other cleaning solution between each plant's maintenance.
October- January:
o Most roses are beginning to wind down for the year and will continue blooming sporadically.
Pruning
• January is the time to prune your rose plants by cutting the plant down to about 12-18", removing cross branches, keeping 4-7 main stems and doing your best to create a bowl or vase shaped plant. All foliage and flowers should be removed, ground should be raked, plant and soil should be sprayed with copper fungicide. Applying worm castings at this time should be part of the annual maintenance as well.
• Climbing roses: Cut everything back to 4-6 main canes. To promote continual blooms, pruning throughout the bloom season is necessary to keep your plant healthy and contained to the size you prefer. Prune back well after blooming by cutting at on an angle (to keep water from settling on the cut area and prevent disease). Cut back to where you would prefer new growth and blooms. Well intentioned people will share many "truths", myths and must do advice about roses but deadheading regularly and keeping the plant pruned back enough to spray easily when issues arise are the key methods to having healthy blooming roses.
Roger’s Favorite Varieties
Favorites is a delicate subject, as each rose lover will have their own list of favorites. Our horticulturist lists of favorites will change each year based on each one’s taste and experience in their gardens.
• Sarah’s Favorites: ‘Distant Drums’, ‘Carding Mill’, ‘Colette’, ‘Cecile Brunner’, and ‘Bolero’
• Suzanne’s Favorites: ‘Distant Drums’, ‘Lady of Shallot’, ‘Sally Holmes’, ‘Colette’, ‘Cecile Brunner’, and ‘R. Californica’
• Jordan’s Favorites (RG Rose Expert: ‘Le Petit Prince’, ‘Distant Drums’, ‘Just Joey’, ‘Cherry Parfait’ and ‘Sea Foam’
Roger's Gardens has a lot of favorites based on their fragrance, like ‘Yves Piaget’, ‘Neil Diamond’ and ‘Princesse Charlene de Monaco’. There are also roses that are known for being disease and pest resistant, like ‘Easy Does It’ and ‘Living Easy’. ‘Iceberg’ roses have become the garden classic with their year-round blooms and easy-to-care for maintenance.
There are 100’s of varieties of roses. Discover what you like and what grows best in your garden.
o This is the time for annual pruning, followed by spraying the plant and the raked soil beneath it with liquid copper to help prevent rust, a contagious fungal disease on roses.
o You can fertilize after pruning, adding Epsom salts to help with magnesium and plant greening. Epsom salts should only be used every three months, if you like, but regular fertilizing should begin at this time.
• Types of Roses
o Hybrid tea - generally a large single rose on a long stem
o Floribunda - usually multiple smaller roses on one spray
o Miniature - smaller varieties that can be trained for pots or smaller scale.
o Climbing - for growing on a trellis, wall, fence or to hang down over a large pot
o Shrub - smaller, more compact for landscaping
o Ground cover - Water-wise, low growing and easy for large areas like hillsides or borders.
o David Austin English, Romantic, Cabbage, Peony-like - these are bred for multi-petals, vintage or antique look and can be shrub or climbers