Some Basic Tips For Growing Roses

If you were to ask what the most beloved flower in the world is, chances are most people would say the rose! This perennial flowering shrub can now be found all across the world and is thought to have evolved around 30 million years ago in the Oligocene Epoch, with a range spreading across the then-connected European, Asian, and North American continents. It’s fun to imagine that the dinosaurs walked among the roses, and one can’t help to wonder if they enjoyed their fragrance as much as we do.

Growing roses is a favourite pastime of gardeners everywhere, if you look inside most quality garden sheds you are sure to find the implements needed for their production!

If you would like to join the rose growers of the world in their quest for beauty, here are a few tips to get you started on your journey:

Choose The Right Rose – There are many kinds of roses, each with their own special needs and characteristics. One of the most important of these is disease resistance, beginners should choose a variety that isn’t susceptible to common fungal diseases like powdery mildew and black spot so you can spend your time enjoying your roses instead of fighting to keep them alive!

Give Your Roses What They Need – The average rose enjoys being grown in well-drained soil that’s rich in nutrients. They like to drink a moderate amount of water applied directly to the root zone, never on the surface of the leaves as that can cause fungal diseases. Roses like a minimum of six hours a day of full sun, and the morning sun is their favourite.

Prune To Provide Structure – Proper pruning is the key to maintaining a healthy rose bush. In the early spring prune in a way that opens up the plant’s centre to promote the penetration of light and to provide better air circulation. This will give you healthier, stronger blossoms while discouraging the development of fungal diseases. 

Keep Your Rose Garden Tidy – Be sure to clean up any dying, diseased, and dead plants and parts of plants from your garden. Fallen leaves and petals can give fungal spores a base from which they can infect the entire plant!

Welcome And Unwelcome Garden Visitors – There are bad bugs and there are good bugs, and it’s best to know the difference! Some insects and other creepy crawlies can pose a threat to your roses and should be eradicated before they can breed and spread. There will always be a few around, so it’s important to make sure that their natural predators are also part of the ecosystem! It’s also a good idea to add some plant allies to your rose beds, certain helpful species will naturally repel pests as well as add some variety to the scene. Also, be sure to make your garden a safe space for bees, they are your rose’s dear friends!

For more information on garden pests in Australia check the government’s official Outbreak page. We hope this inspires you to plant some roses, they will be a source of joy, and you can stop and smell them whenever you need a boost!