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Roses

Characteristics

Rose Groups

Planting

Care

Growth Types

Hybrid Tea

Situation

Mulching

Flower Types

Floribunda

Timing

Training

Flower Colours

Patio

Soil Preparation

Pruning

Petal Shapes

Miniature

Plant Preparation

Watering

Flower Shapes

Ground Cover

Planting Mixture

Hoeing

Rootstock

Climbers and Ramblers

Planting

Disbudding

Flowering Period

Shrub

Transplanting

Cutting

Dead-Heading

Avoiding Trouble

Thinning

Feeding

Rose Groups

Group

Description

Hybrid Tea

The most popular group; available in bush and standard forms. Long flower stems. Shapely medium to large sized blooms with many petals forming a central cone. Single blooms or with side buds. Habit is upright and rigid and they are often ruined by bad weather. Bloom less often and less colourfully than Floribunda roses and the number of blooms is often disappointing.

Floribunda

Flowers in trusses with several blooms being open at one time on each truss. Very colourful, reliable, long-lasting blooms. Provides excellent colour for the garden. Hardy and easy to care for. Blooms are smaller and usually less fragrant than the Hybrid Tea.

Patio

A relatively new group; originally small varieties of Floribunda. Low growing, approx. 50cm high, they are ideal for pots or the front of a border. Both flowers and leaves are in keeping with the size of the plant.

Miniature

Both leaves and flowers are small and with a maximum height of 40cm are ideal for growing in pots or a rockery. Can be grown as a houseplant.

Ground Cover

A spreading rose which repeat flowers and is resistant to disease. Some varieties are very low growing so good for growing between taller shrubs or used to cover banks.

Climbers and Ramblers

Climbers have stiff stems which bear large flowers, many repeat flowering. Ramblers have long pliable stems which bear small flowers on large trusses in one single summer flush. Both require to be tied into strong supports. 

Shrub

Shrub roses consist of a large group of bush roses which are neither Hybrid Tea nor Floribunda.

Bare-root plants: The planting hole should be 20-25cm deep and 60cm wide. Spread out the roots evenly, add a small amount of planting mixture and gently shake the plant to ensure the mixture gets between the roots. Place a cane across the top of the hole to ensure that the bud union is level with the surface of the soil. Half fill the hole with mixture and firm down  gently, add more mixture until the hole is full and firm again. The bud union should be 2-3cm below the surface.

Container-grown plants: Dig a hole large enough and deep enough for the soil ball plus a 10cm layer of planting mixture. Place the plant in the hole and fill in the space around the soil with planting mixture. Firm well. Water well and continue to water until the plant is established.

The first step is to firmly drive in a stake approximately 3-4cm across and as high enough to come below the head of the tree. Place the stake on the side of the prevailing wind. Secondly, plant as for bushes above. Thirdly, fix the tree to the stake using expanding ties.

Prepare the soil well and dig a hole approximately 40cm away from the wall or fence and below any damp course. Plant the climber with the roots sloping away from the wall.

Caring for your Roses

Mulching

Mulching is the application of organic matter on any exposed soil between plants and shrubs and should be carried out while the soil is warm and moist.

Training

Climbing roses must be trained as soon as they are planted to ensure they are secure and growing in the correct direction. Main shoots should be trained horizontally to induce lateral branch growth and subsequent flowering.

Pruning

Most plant require some pruning but it is essential for rose bushes in order to encourage the regular development of strong, healthy stems. There are two methods of pruning. The easy method is just to simply cut the plant to half it's size using secateurs or a hedge trimmer, remove dead wood if required. The traditional method: cut out all dead or diseased wood (the cut surface should be white not brown). Cut out all very thin or unripe stems and any branches which are rubbing against each other. Remove suckers. Prune the remaining healthy stems to half their length for established bushes or to 3-4 buds from the base for newly planted roses. Newly planted climbers should not be prunes, as they establish you can cut out dead and diseased wood and reduce it's height if required. Pruning should be carried out in early spring but you can reduce the height of particularly large bushes in November to avoid wind-rock.

Watering

Keep your roses well watered during dry plans to ensure good growth and big blooms. Never water little and often, use at least five litres for each bush and 15 litres for climbers.

Hoeing

Hoeing keeps down weeds. Avoid damaging roots by not going deeper than 2-3cm below the surface. Deep soil disturbance should always be avoided.

Disbudding

Many Hybrid Tea roses produce more than one flower bud on each shoot. For larger blooms remove side buds by nipping out with the thumb and finger as soon as they appear.

Cutting

Roses make wonderful cut flowers. To avoid weakening the plant don't take more than one-third of the flower stems and always cut just above an outward-facing bud.

Dead-Heading

Repeat flowering roses should have the dead blooms removed to avoid energy going into the production of hips. When the flowers have faded remove the whole truss, cutting the stem just above the second or third leaf down.

Thinning

Occasionally two or more shoots develop from a single bud, remove all but one by rubbing gently with the fingers.

Feeding

To ensure good strong, healthy plants feed your roses every year. Mulching will provide humus and some nutrients but extra food will be required. The best way to provide this is to use a proprietary compound fertilizer containing nitrogen, phosphates and potash. Feeding should take place in spring before the leaves are fully open or during June or July. If you have a large number of plants to feed use a diluted liquid fertilizer and apply with a hose feeder each month between April to end July.