You’d be hard pressed to find a gardener who has included rose bushes in their floral repertoire and didn’t walk away thrilled with the return on investment received for their efforts .
Few garden icons compare to the rose in charm and richness. Grown for thousands of years in almost every corner of the inhabited world, roses have long been considered a symbol of elegance. With some basic knowledge of rose bush care, even beginning gardeners can reap the benefits that all successful rose growers have come to know.
Whether you’ve inherited your rose bushes by moving into a home with an existing garden, or have just planted your first variety, understanding proper rose bush care is simple and rewarding.
There are so many different varieties of rose bushes, your biggest obstacle may be choosing which one is best for your yard. Color, size, shape, you name it, and you’ll find a rose to fit it – and you’ll probably really enjoy yourself in the process.
Roses fare best when they’re planted in good soil, in a sunny spot where they are assured of getting at least six hours of direct sunlight every day. Those varieties of rose bushes that are said to do well in shade still need four to six hours of direct sunlight daily.
Deep watering, about one inch per week, is critical in keeping your rose bushes healthy. The root systems of roses grow deep, and so must the water you give them. Surface watering will not do any good, since there is no way for the roots to extract water at ground level.
Rose bushes are vulnerable to many different kinds of damaging insects like mites, caterpillars, Japanese beetles, and aphids to name just a few. There are several options available to gardeners when it comes to pest control, and the more you learn about each method, the better equipped you will be to handle it with ease.
First, identify the invader. If there is one or two wandering the plant, pick them off with your fingers. There is a chance that eggs have been laid on the plant’s leaves, so remove the leaf on which you saw the insect to be safe. You can choose between man-made and organic pest control methods, but it makes sense to learn what you can about both options before making a choice.
Be hyper-vigilant when reading over the labels of any pest control chemical you purchase, since even some organic remedies can be toxic to people, pets and local wildlife. Carefully follow the package directions whenever using these types of chemicals. Most experienced rose bush growers believe that infestations can be remedied naturally without any chemicals at all. The pests that attack your roses have their own enemies in nature. Ladybugs, for instance, eat many of the insects that plague roses. Frogs, lizards, snakes, even certain species of wasps are nature’s way of keeping harmful pests off of your rose bushes.
Deadheading, or pruning, is another important part of rose bush care. Deadheading your blooms after they fade makes room for a new bud to flower, which will keep your rose bushes vibrant all through the season. Pruning also rids your rose bushes of dead twigs and other garbage vegetation that will only stunt your rose bush’s flowering and growth.
