Clippings From Bill and Patty
Taking Care of Roses
- Pruning: Oh, to the last rose of summer. How we hesitate to stop your bloom. In San Diego roses could bloom all year long, if we let them. But like many other plants, roses need to be pruned to thrive in spring.
If you have not yet trimmed back your roses, please do so as soon as possible. Pruning promotes new growth and flowers. (See your November/December newsletter for pruning basics or stop by and see us at the nursery.)
- Clean up: Dispose of the cuttings and rake up all debri in the rose garden. (Leaves with rust or other fungus can fall to ground, decay into the soil, and winter-over creating disease in the garden in spring.) Pull weeds from thet area and build trenches around the roses.
- Fungicide: Spray the roses and ground with a good organic fungicide like neem oil or copper spray. This important step will help prevent fungus. When new growth on the rose is at least one inch, reapply the fungicide to the plant and ground.
- Fertilizer: This is also the time to give the roses a boost to promote healthy growth. An initial feeding is important to promote strong canes. We suggest using a combination of hte following fertilizers for each plant: 1 tablespoon sulfate of ammonia, 1 tablespoon magnesium sulfate and 1 cup organic fertilizer like Milorganite, cottonseed meal or alfalfa meal.
The sulfate of ammonia will push new growth, and the magnesium sulfate will make that growth sturdy. The organic fertilizer adds trace minerals, helping the plant all year long. If you have an organic garden, skip the chemicals and use 2 tablespoons corn gluten, 2 tablespoons blood meal and 1 cup of chicken manure. Apply your combination of fertilizers when the ground is moist and water well.
After your initial "boost" feeding, continue fertilizing your roses throughout the year. We suggest using 4 ounces of Best Rose and Flower Food per plant every four week. For purely organic gardeners, we recommend Fox Farm Big Bloom Liquid. Mix 4 Tablespoons per gallon of water and apply with every watering.
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