I just got a great deal on some climbing roses. According to the directions on the package, I have to dig a hole 2x the with of the root ball and 1.5x the depth of the root ball. Okay, but cut the tops off? I don't understand what to cut or why. Also, why is the plant, except for the new fresh shoots growing from it, covered in wax?
the wax protects it during shipment and also protects any cut areas from getting wet (which can, sometimes, cause problems). if it's not covering an area where active growth is occurring, i'd just leave it be. directions to make the hole 2x the width and 1.5x the depth of the root ball are correct. you want to loosen up the soil properly so that the roots can grow out and you want it loosened so that the water can get to the roots easily. make sure the 'crown' of the graft is just above soil level. the crown is the spot where the root stock ends and the grafted part (the rose) starts. i wouldn't trim a thing at the moment. prepare the spot properly, add some rose food pellets (follow package directions for amount), cover them with a coating of soil, plant the rose, back fill the hole with the rest of the soil from the holw, tamp down lightly and water well. continue to water at least once daily, right on to the root area, for a week/10 days and then start focusing the water around the plant; not right at the roots. i always let plants grow as they will the first year i put them in...then, either in fall or the next spring, i prune as needed. they're stressed enough as it is...i let them get situated and get the roots established before i worry about haircuts!
Thank you, Joclyn. I read somewhere that cutting the tops off forces the plant to focus its energy on root growth instead of new top growth. I guess that sounds okay, but I like your advice better. I don't know enough to start cutting things. I would rather leave it alone. I planted it and that is enough for this season. Unless a rose-wiz has more to add. I heard something about "you get what you pay for" with roses. I hope that isn't true because these bushes were very inexpensive. How is that possible anyway with plants?
well, they're most probably pretty small at the moment and just coming out of dormancy, so, no real reason to be cutting anything back at the moment. the only reason to cut them back when transplanting is if they are fairly large and are already established and you're moving it to a new location. for a new plant that you just got at a store, it's not going to be large enough to have to worry about. one caveat on that though!! if, after you plant it, it wilts very badly and doesn't perk up again within a couple days, then i would recommend cutting it back by a third. only if it wilts up on you though! and that's not likely if you prepare the soil properly and water thoroughly and regularly. well, sometimes with plants you DO get what you pay for! and that means cheap gives you cheap/dead. that generally applies to any kind of plant. there are always exceptions - on both sides of the statement!! roses, in particular, well, my experience has been the opposite. i bought a rose in a bag for $2.99 10 years ago and it's done nothing but grow like crazy every year!!! i even moved it a few years ago and that didn't faze it a bit!! i bought a $19.99 rose and it barely grew the first year and didn't do a thing the second (as in it died). i planted the expensive rose 4 feet from the cheap rose - so, same soil, drainage, lighting... you'd think the expensive one from the fancy nursery would have fared better, wouldn't you?? with plants you just don't know until you've got it what's going to happen...thank goodness for 1-year guarantees!!
Amen to that! Thank you for the advice and for clarifying the cutting issue for me. I will water and watch carefully, but not do anything else. I hope all goes well for these roses. If not, I guess it is no big loss considering they were so cheap, but I still prefer that everything go well. BTW, about 1 year guarantees, I bought a hummingbird and butterfly garden from Michigan Bulb Co. and all the plants died, except for the butterfly bushes. It was probably my fault, but they have a lifetime guarantee, so they are shipping me another set of 17 plants so I can try again! Cool!
i've found that mighigan bulb is very good about replacing plants on the rare occassions it's needed.
The girl on the phone recommended some fertilizer tablets to drop in the hole when I plant the plants. I am sure that would help. I plan to bury some near the roses when I receive them. Question about those plants: Do I completely bury the plants they send, (balls of roots in little bags) or do I leave the top just at the surface? I left the top uncovered at the surface, and they grew tall, but weak, flopped, and died.
for the roses, use stuff specifically for roses!! i've always used the rose pellets when i first planted...mixed in the bottom of the hole with a light amount of soil, then the root ball, back fill with soil and put a little bit more of the pellets mixed into the top layer of soil. always works for me. then, each spring, i add in a little bit of the pellets around the roses...just lightly mix into the top layer of soil. i don't know about planting depth for butterfly bushes, if that's what you're asking. there should be planting directions in the package from michigan bulb, so just follow what that says. one thing: remember to prepare the location properly...that means to dig the hole a bit deeper and wider than is really needed so that the soil is all loose - that makes it easier for the water to filter down to the roots.
I didn't see directions on the bags. The butterfly bushes came in small pots. Those are the only things that are still alive. The rest of the plants came in small bags of dirt. Those all died. I guess I don't know how to handle those properly. There weren't any planting instructions on them. Only a sticker that said that I shouldn't be alarmed at receiving a bag of dirt. The plants are in there, but are dormant. Once they are planted, they will wake up and start to grow. I do wish I had better planting instructions than that.
there should be a little booklet or a sheet of instructions on how to plant them. i've ordered from them quite a few times and there was always something included. try calling them and asking for it or maybe look on the website to see if they put the info there (instead of including it with the package). dormant plants look absolutely dead!! once you plant them and they've been watered a few times and they've had time to 'wake up' after being in the sun, they'll start to grow. watering thoroughly, on a daily basis if there is no rain, is important to do, too. dormant plants respond to sunlight, heat levels and watering. if all three are happening, that will bring them out of the dormant state and they'll start putting out new roots and once that happens and they're getting proper nutrition from the soil and water, they'll start putting out new growth. takes a couple weeks, maybe a little longer if it's still getting pretty chilly at night. if you're still getting under 50 at night, i'd say plant the dormant items in containers and take the others that are all ready in containers and then keep them inside in a sunny spot until it's warm enough at night to transplant them outside.
So far, the rose bushes are looking good. I have new growth, but I am guessing that I shouldn't expect any flowers this year. I am getting a little nervous. I am seeing some white, dry spots on the leaves. Maybe a bug sucked some dry spots on the leaves? What do you think? But I am still getting some new growth. Some of the new leaves look like they have been chewed on, but for the most part, the rest of the plant looks okay. Also, I got my second shipment of the hummingbird and butterfly garden. I followed the directions in the book and those little clumps of roots are still not growing. I don't know what is wrong. I know that this garden set up is cheap, but Michigan Bulb Co. sounds like a reputable company. I don't think I can keep calling them saying that they aren't growing. I have already done that once. But, what should I do? The only things that aren't dead are the Butterfly Bushes. That is it. What do you think?
I'm a year into my climbing roses and I was brand new too. Want to give you a couple tips I've managed to glean. Wish each rose bush you have, add 4 bananas to the soil. They do seem to love it. I think its the potassium. I chop the bananas up. I have around 10 or 15 bushes so I have to go to the grocery store alot and ask them for any distressed bananas. Just dig it in the soil around 4 inches or more down :) Another nice thing I like to do is go to Starbucks :) LOL! and while I'm there I pick up a HUGE bag of used coffee grounds that they give for free. You put a nice dose of those grounds on the ground around your bushes . Again you will have happy roses. Then I create a regular smorgasbord for the roses and add ONE WHOLE HEAD not toe of garlic but the entire thing into the ground near the base of the bush. It helps to keep away bugs. I dont know if these are old wives tales or not. I'm willing to try anything Good luck. PS In case you bought your rosebushes with no roses on them flowering don't be surprised if they aren't the colour you purchased. I purchased all mandarin coloured roses and ended up with majority yellow roses :/ mixed with pink which is kind of okay . Yellow is totally not okay. I have the odd orangish with pink tinge roses. Just want to give you a heads up that this can happen. I did not know that could happen. Has been a shock to my system
