UNDERSTANDING YOUR ROSES
Get tips straight to your inbox. Subscribe for updates!
Roses love the sunlight and should be exposed to the full sun for at least 4 hours everyday. Keep this in mind when selecting your planting position so your rose plant can thrive.
When planting your new rose plant, Till the soil well and mix in cow manure, organic compost and Seamungus. This should be prepared 6 weeks prior to planting your new rose.
Pruning your roses back hard should only occur in their most dormant period. Remove all leaves and apply “White Oil” and “Mancozeb” to protect from fungal problems. Spray the remaining laterals after pruning and also surrounding soils.
After dormant pruning, apply Seamungus and cover with a generous amount of organic mulch. This will stimulate the development of a healthy root system that will deliver nutrients for your plants needs.
Roses need around 20 litres of water weekly during the growing season spread over 2-3 waterings and even more during extended heat waves. We recommend early morning deep waterings to reduce any heat stress that may occur.
A great way to encourage repeat flowering is by dead heading. Remove the spent blooms down to the second 5 leaf set to extend your flower flushing period.
Fungal infection mostly spread in humid conditions and also with large fluctuations in day to night temperatures. Preventative spraying prior to these weather conditions will help protect from infection.
Always spray in calm weather conditions with low to no wind especially using herbicides that can affect or kill your plants from drift or overspray.
Water shoots grow strong from the bud union. Allow this growth to flower before pruning only the flower head. This lateral will add structure to the plant giving strong flower production. You may need to tie or stake the water shoot for support as they can break suddenly in windy conditions.
If your rose appears to grow a sucker shoot, it will come from under the bud union or below ground level. Remove completely with a sharp knife or if let go out of hand, the sucker will take over your graft variety.
