PLANTING NEW ROSES IN YOUR GARDEN, BARE ROOT AND POTTED
Planting Bare Root Roses
First, let’s provide some information about planting Bare Root Roses. Most of you will not be buying bare root roses, but some of the local nurseries sell them bare root and most of the packaged roses should be treated as Bare Root Roses. Also, if you choose to mail order roses you will more than likely receive them as bare root plants.
To ensure that your roses fulfill their potential, care should be exercised when planting them. Step 5 of these instructions is often misunderstood and thus, not followed closely, but it is of utmost importance to ensure that your roses thrive during their first year of growth. So please read and follow the instructions closely.
If your new roses can’t be planted immediately, they can be kept in the shipping carton in a cool location (35-55 degrees) for 2-3 days. If you won’t be able to plant your rose bushes for more than 3 days, they can be kept for up to 10 days by submerging them in a bucket of water. Make sure you cover the roots with water, and if your bucket is deep enough, it won’t hurt to have the stems submerged as well.
1. Prepare the planting hole and soil. Select a planting site that receives at least 6 hours of sunlight daily and has good soil drainage. The more sun a rose gets, the more flowers it will produce. Prepare planting holes approximately 15-18 inches wide and 15-18 inches deep. If the roses are to be planted in a bed, prepare the soil of the entire bed for the best results.
If the soil is very heavy, mix organic matter, such as compost or peat moss, up to 1/3 by volume with the soil that was removed from the hole. If an entire bed is prepared, mix organic material into the upper 16 inches of soil. Adding organic material will lighten the texture of the soil and allow for air flow to the roots. Oxygen (air) must be able to penetrate the soil for the roots to grow. Without oxygen, the roots will suffocate and the healthy growth of the top part of the plant will suffer greatly. Sand, or a mixture of sand and organic matter, can be used to accomplish the same result, producing a lighter texture and thus better soil for the roses. Next, place some of the soil mixture into the planting hole to form a cone shaped mound. The mound in the planting hole should resemble the conical shape of the rose roots.
Do not add any commercial fertilizer to the soil or put any fertilizer in the planting hole!
Doing this may result in the death of your new rose plant.
2. Tidy up the roots and check the hole depth. Remove the roses from the shipping carton or bucket and cut off all binding strings, if any. Then, prune the canes to 6-8 inches in length. Prune the roots to remove any broken roots and overly long roots that will not fit easily into the planting hole. Place the rose over the cone shaped mound of soil in the hole and adjust the height of the mound so that the rose sits at the proper planting depth. The graft union, that area of the rose plant where the canes originate, should end up about 2 inches below the surface. When the correct height is established, spread the roots out over the cone of soil and make sure that none of them are twisted or crowded.
3. Cover the roots. Begin refilling the hole with soil mixture. As the planting hole is filled, firm the soil around the roots with your hands to ensure good soil-root contact.
4. Fill the hole. When the planting hole is almost full of soil, (about 2 inches from the top), fill the hole with water and let it drain away. The water will cause the soil to settle around the roots thus eliminating any air pockets. Check to see if the rose is still at the desired planting depth. If not, adjust as needed. Finish filling the hole with soil and firm the soil with your hands. Please no stomping with your feet, we want to avoid damaging the young rose.
5. Cover the canes. Bare root roses are dormant, or inactive, when shipped, so they must be protected from drying out until the bush adjusts to its new environment and roots become established in the ground. The greatest danger of drying, and thus dying, occurs during warm sunny weather. But even if the weather is cool, all it takes is one sunny, warm day during the several weeks after planting to cause considerable damage to the newly planted rose bush. To protect your young rose bush from the elements, completely cover the exposed canes with bark dust, compost, peat moss, or soil. This covering will protect the canes from drying out while the roots become established.
In two to three weeks (sometimes longer) you’ll begin to see shoots growing through the covering material. It is then safe to remove the covering material by carefully pulling it away from the base of the rose bush or by washing it away with a hose. If the weather is very warm by this time, it may be best to remove the covering material a little bit at a time to let the tender young shoots acclimate to the sun. Water your newly planted rose bushes often to insure that they get a good start. When the rose blooms, in about six to eight weeks, it will be time for the first fertilization.
PLANTING POTTED ROSES
1. Prepare the planting hole. Site preparation is the same as for bare the root roses outlined above. Prepare a hole that is larger than the diameter of the pot and a little bit deeper. Most roses in pots have their bud unions well above the lip of the pot. Just as with bare root roses, the bud union in our area should eventually be 1 ½ to 2 inches below the final soil level. You can check to make sure your hole is at the proper depth by placing the potted plant into the prepared hole to see if it is too shallow or too deep, then add or remove soil until you reach the appropriate depth.
2. Place your rose in the hole. You should be able to slip the established rose from its pot. This is best accomplished by turning the pot on its side and then pulling it gently from the pot by grasping the canes close to the soil. Do not pull too hard because you do not want to break off any of the new growth. If the rose does not come out of the pot easily, tap the edges of the pot gently as you turn it and the soil should loosen and be able to be removed from the pot. If it still resists being removed, it may be necessary to cut the pot open by slicing down the side of the pot. Once the rose is out of the pot it can be carefully picked up and placed into the hole. If at this time you notice a lot of roots on the outside of the root ball, gently loosen the roots using your fingers. Adjust the soil so that the bud union will sit at the right height. Putting the bud union below the soil level is usually all that is needed to protect it from the cold winter temperatures that might occur here.
3. Fill in with dirt and water the hole. Fill the hole with the dirt you took out (and amended with compost, peat moss, or sand if needed, same as in planting a bare root rose). Water well to settle the soil around the roots.
Since a potted rose is not dormant and is already growing, there is no need to cover the canes with mulch and it should not be done. However, remember that this rose will continue to act as a potted rose for at least two months and will need to be watered frequently, maybe as often as every other day until its roots have had a chance to grow out into the surrounding soil.
Check the rose regularly during hot weather to be sure that it does not wilt. If you see any wilting, it will be necessary to water it even more frequently. After the rose has become well established, watering can be cut back to every couple of weeks or to whatever schedule your other roses are on. These new plants can be fertilized on whatever schedule you use for your other plants. The roots are mature and will not be affected by the use of a commercial fertilizer applied at the recommended rate.
