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Q:
Planting Roses in the Fall?
Can I plant roses in the fall in my area (zone 6?) Any thoughts? And when is the absolute cutoff date to be safe since I am a chronic procrastinator and never seem to finish all my gardening projects on a timely basis!
A:
My experience with fall planted hybrid teas was not all that great. Same varieties planted in the spring did better. Roses from the major suppliers are harvested too late for us in colder zones to get them in the ground soon enough to see any benefit from fall planting and any growth that may appear is not hardened off and gets frozen and dies. I can see where fall planting is helpful in warmer southern or western zones where there is no or mild winters. In Cold zones where the soil freezes you may as well wait until spring to avoid possible loss.
Q: Spraying Fungicide and Fertilizer on the
Same Day?
I spray weekly with
fungicide, and also usually fertilize weekly with a water soluble food. I know
the roses need to be hydrated before spraying, so my question is can I fertilize
that morning and then an hour or so later spray with fungicide, or would this be
too much for the roses? Also, I just bought some Mills Magic Mix, is it too late
in the season to spread it, since I'm in Florida and we have such a long growing
season, I wouldn't think so, but it's almost August.
A:
I just mix the soluble
fertilizer with the fungicide and do it both at the same time. In Florida you
can apply the Mill's Magic now for a nice fall bloom.
Q:
But Karl, I have heard that you
should feed each bush 1 gallon of soluble fertilizer, if I do it with the
fungicide in the sprayer, will the roses get enough fertilizer and not too much
fungicide?
A:
Not if you are applying
it as a foliar feed. I use water soluble in a fertilizer injector and add it to
my spray at half strength.
Q: Spray Bottle
Question
I read your articles. It shows that you like roses. Even your car plate reflects that passion.
Anyway, I have a question to ask you. Can I spray roses with pesticides but using
fertilizer spray bottle? ( of course I have two different bottle for fertilizer and one for fungicide )
A:
If you are talking about a hose-end sprayer, you can but you'd waste a lot of chemicals along with getting improper dilution of the chemicals. Fertilizer dilution is not so critical but to be effective it's important to dilute pesticides as directed. You can control 2 tablespoons per gallon in a pump-up sprayer and all the spray would be the same. Improper dilution can lead to the various fungi gaining a resistance to the fungicide. A simple trigger spray bottle such as used with Fantastic will suffice but will require you to mix your chemicals often and in small quantities.
Q: Spider Mites
Having terrible
problems with mites. Sprayed Cygon... Malathion... I do Orthenex
on a weekly basis... Tried Orthene... What next?? My Sevin bottle doesn't say it
kills mites... Thanks...
it is rather expensive though.
A cheaper method is a daily
washing under the leaves with a strong flow of water from a water wand. This
knocks the mites off and breaks their reproductive cycle. After a week of
daily washings they should be gone. The roses like the bath also. Do it early
in the day so the leaves can dry.
I try not to use toxic chemicals
if possible.
Q: Roses Do Not Bloom
Two questions:
1. What is the deal with my non-flowering roses. I have at least 3 rose plants that I planted about 3 or 4 years ago. Two in front have partial sun/shade. One in back, mostly sun. In the last 2 years they have had no flowers. In frustration- a couple of years ago I cut them way back, secretly planning for them to die so I could replace them. But they came back with a vengeance, beautiful lovely green branches and leaves... no roses. What causes this, and is there any thing I can do to promote flowers?
2. Last year I remodeled a corner of the yard into my "rose area". My first batch of expensive well-known (JP) roses died with in a few weeks, even though I knew it was ok weather. I complained to the company, and they sent me a new batch of roses- to my delight. I planted them in a slightly different place, followed the instructions exactly! with much blood and sweat equity. Still, by mid summer a few were not well, and now after the winter, it seems none are living. Ironically, my cheapo WM roses- about 4/6 of those lived. I live in zone 5, next to a wheat field. Any thoughts? I have some new mid-priced roses, getting ready to plant. Any advice?
A:
I suspect your
flowerless roses have died back to the rootstock which is what your roses were
grafted onto so they would grow better. These flowerless bushes will only
bloom on 2nd year wood so if you prune them back each year or they suffer
winter dieback they will never bloom. Also blooms would not be what you bought
the bush for. Depending on the root stock they would be small red or white
clusters of flowers blooming in late spring just once a season. Remove the
bushes and plant something else.
Roses should have about 6 hours of
sun a day, lots of water and winter protection to keep the top part from dying
back to the rootstock. Your roses should be soaked for 24 hours prior to
planting. Then dig a large hole, 24 inches by 24 inches deep. Put horse
manure, compost, organic matter like leaves, kitchen waste and mix with the
soil in the bottom half of the hole. Create a mound in the bottom to set the
rosebush on. The roots should be spread out over the mound. The knob (bud
union) where the canes branch out from (the point where your rose was grafted
to the root stock ) should be 4 to 6 inches below the level of the soil when
finished. Pull the soil back around the rose and fill the hole with water to
settle the soil. Finish filling the hole with soil and mound any excess
over the canes sticking out of the ground. This prevents the bush from drying
out. New growth should appear in no more than two weeks. Water it well every
day until it is well leafed out then every 3 days all season. Watering is not
sprinkling with a spray for a few minutes. I turn my hose on to a trickle and
let it soak in the ground around the bush for at least one hour for each
plant. A 5 gallon bucket filled with water with a nail hole in the bottom
will supply a good amount of water also. The important thing is to
supply a good home for your rose, prepare the hole properly, soak it good
before planting and water it well all season. Using manure for fertilizer is
the best fertilizer you can supply. Except for the planting hole
don't use any more manure until the rose is well leafed out.
Q: How to Have
More Blooms?
Just wanted to say thanks for the advice on the blue and green roses.
I'm seeking more advice. I was wondering if you could give me some tips and techniques on the subject
below.
How do I increase the amount of blooms on each plant? I know that with proper care and fertilizing I can have huge healthy blooms,
but I want to know if there are techniques to double or even triple the amount of blooms per plant. Perhaps it's in the pruning, or even something
like "splitting" the branches towards the top, but I am unsure of this and
am seeking expert advice. I know there has got to be a way to increase bloom amounts, but I'm stuck...
Can't wait to hear from ya!
A:
You start by pruning properly in the spring. Severe pruning promotes larger but fewer blooms on long canes. Longer pruning promotes more blooms and overall taller bushes. Deadheading and keeping the old spent canes pruned back keeps the flowers coming. Spraying a fungicide regularly to keep the leaves on the bush also helps with blooms. Leaves make the food that makes the flowers. If your leaves all drop off due to black spot you'll not have many flowers. Working good organic fertilizers and manure in around the bush supplies the good nutrients needed to keep the bush healthy. I never heard of splitting the branches but deadheading and then watching for new canes to start from the leaf axils will often give you two or three new canes where you only had one and each cane will produce a flower.
Have Questions? Write
to: rosenut@rosenut.com
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