The marvelous month of May brings myriad wonders to the rosarian. In warm climates, the first flush of bloom is past, but the remainder of the growing season promises new delights on a daily basis. Spend a few minutes each day enjoying the color and fragrance your roses offer, and cut a few flowers to give away. Your bank teller, your dentist, or the clerk at the post office will think you’re an amazing gardener! Deadhead spent flowers promptly to make way for the next new flower that’s waiting to grow. Cut long stems on both cut flowers and deadheads so the new stems will be fat enough to support the big flowers yet to come.

Cold climate rosarians have completed their pruning and are watching strong, healthy new canes and leaves growing rapidly. You’ll have your first bloom in early- to mid-June.

For all rosarians, it’s the rose season!  
Unlike other perennials, which have a much shorter blooming season, roses will continue to grow and bloom until cold weather forces them to slow down. This means that they need more fertilizer than other flowers in the garden. But it means much more enjoyment, too! Season-long color in the garden and flowers to pick!  It’s a gardener’s dream!

For the strongest plants and the biggest flowers, once weekly is not too often to fertilize your roses. Always apply fertilizer to the roots— not to the foliage. Organic fertilizers alone don’t provide enough of the macro-nutrients and micro-nutrients roses need, but they do keep the soil active and healthy. Organic materials add important good bacteria to the soil, which help break down the vital chemical fertilizers for use by the plants. So a good rose fertilizer that provides both chemical and organic nutrients is the best to use. Or supplement your chemical fertilizer with fish emulsion, liquid seaweed, or well-composted manure.

Rose feeder roots grow fairly close the surface of the soil, and they must never be allowed to dry out.  If the soil is dry when you stick your finger in a couple of inches, it’s time to water the roses. The well-drained soil in which you’ve planted your rosebushes will assure that the plants have plenty of moisture, but that the soil isn’t soggy.
Roses are members of the huge Rosaceae family, which includes lots of flowers and fruits such as apples, strawberries, and cherries. Robert Frost wrote a nifty little tongue-in-cheek poem:

The rose is a rose
and was always a rose;
But the theory now goes
That the apple’s a rose,
And the pear is, and so’s
The plum, I suppose.
The dear only knows
What will next prove a rose.
You, of course, are a rose,
but were always a rose.

Robert Frost, “The Rose Family”.

Unfortunately, bugs, mites, and fungal diseases are as fond of these plants as we are. And because roses have such a long growing season, they’re vulnerable to a whole season’s worth of pests. There’s no such thing as a free lunch, as it were! But really, spraying your roses isn’t a big deal anymore. Newer, safer, easier to use, and used-less-frequently spray materials make short work of the spraying chore, and keep your roses and other plants mite, bug, and disease free all season long.

Preventive spraying is definitely the way to go. By the time you see blackspot damage, dry, brown foliage at the base of the plants from spider mite damage, or flowers and leaves with chunks bitten out of them, the deed is done and it will take a big part of the season for the plants to recover and start producing again. It’s best to establish a regular preventive spray regimen that will keep pests from ever gaining a foothold.

If you’ve never tried it, making flower arrangements with roses is fun and satisfying, soothing that creative urge that might be hidden away in the depths of your soul. The rules for rose arrangements are pretty much the same as those for other flowers, except the roses predominate. You can use only roses, or mix them with other flowers and foliage from the garden. Make dining table arrangements low, so guests can see each other across the table, but go wild with arrangements for the entryway or on the piano.

As always, drop me an e-mail if you have rose culture questions! GG

Ann Hooper is the president of Primary Products and will always answer your rose culture questions by email at This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it . Request a Primary Products catalog at www.primaryproducts.com or by calling 800.841.6630.