Roses: Modern, Disease-Resistant Varieties for Every Garden
We're in a Rose renaissance. A generation ago, this beautiful but difficult shrub became a garden pariah due to delicate constitution and chemical dependency. Visionary breeders changed that—proliferating healthier, hardier Roses as carefree as any garden shrub, with new styles of beauty.
Our Favorites
- Landscape Roses: Bred as landscaping shrubs, not specimens. Strongly resistant to common Rose diseases; need only moderate fertilization, spring pruning, and drought watering. Exceptionally free-flowering, many blooming continuously late spring to fall.
- David Austin English Roses: Old-fashioned form and fragrance, but unlike genuine antiques (once-blooming early summer), these rebloom repeatedly through summer.
Using Our Roses in the Garden
Because they're healthy shrubs needing no special care, don't isolate them in a separate bed. Interplant with perennials and annuals; we use them as living trellises for Clematis and other moderate-vigor flowering vines.
How We Ship
#1 grade (top grade) bareroot plants (unless noted) in spring, at appropriate planting time for your area.
Rose Care Summary
- Light/Watering: Best with ≥6 hours direct sun; more sun = more blooms, prevents leaning/leggy plants. Newly planted: 1 inch water/week first season. If rain doesn't provide, you must. Generous organic mulch (compost/composted manure best) keeps soil evenly moist. Water in fall if dry. Never allow foliage to stay wet into evening—water early.
- Fertilizer/Soil/pH: Best at pH 6.5–6.9 in rich, well-drained soils. Planting bareroot: remove/discard packing, soak roots few hours (no longer). Dig hole for root depth/spread. For climbers, hole ~1 ft from trellis. Discard ⅓ soil, replace with ≥equal organic matter (compost, aged manure, leaf mold), mix. Set plant so bud union (graft bulge) or first branch point (own-root) is 3 inches below soil in North, at or 1 inch above in mild-winter climates. Backfill with soil/organic mix, tamp firmly. Water thoroughly. Mound soil around canes 12–15 inches—prevents drying before roots establish. Check canes every couple days for new growth; remove mound gradually as growth appears.
- Fertilizing Schedule: Except species (once in early spring with 10-10-10), fertilize several times: early spring (not first spring after planting), after first bloom wave, early August. South/West: monthly early spring–June, pause summer heat, resume Aug–Sept. Prefer natural fertilizers (fish emulsion, seaweed extract) in solution—slow, even release. Roses adore composted horse manure (but so do weeds—face consequences if used as topdressing/spring or winter mulch).
- Pests/Diseases: Selected for vigor/resistance. If planted/grown as suggested, healthy plants are less troubled. Even if pest/disease strikes, healthy plants endure/recover often without intervention. Some prone to fungus (black spot) in hot, humid areas. Clean up old foliage, cut back affected canes. Bordeaux mixture (copper fungicide) helps once symptoms appear; single lime sulfur application early spring while dormant prevents problems. Japanese beetles/Rose chafers: handpick or systemic pesticide. Spring: check for Rose slugs (sawfly larvae, tiny green caterpillars skeletonizing foliage)—physically destroy or spray superfine horticultural oil.
- Companions: Bloom with Peonies, Clematis, Delphinium, Lilies; ideal with many perennials. Train non-climbing Clematis through larger shrub Roses; grow viticella/texensis Clematis with climbers.
- Pruning: Remove deadwood, control/direct growth, promote flowering. Wait until growth breaks in early spring. Deadwood removable anytime. Early spring for climbers, rugosas, English, modern Roses: remove weak/crossing branches; remove few old canes at base of established climbers to stimulate new growth. If too tall, cut back ⅓–½ to outward-facing bud. Once-blooming old-fashioned: prune after flowering. Except rugosas (attractive hips), remove spent flowers of rebloomers to promote more bloom—cut to first large bud at base of 5-leaflet set. Grafted Roses occasionally send rootstock shoots—remove ASAP.
- Reflowering: Many varieties bloom continuously/sporadically through season. Always remove spent blooms; cut stems to just above first 5-leaflet leaf.
- Transplanting: Early spring when dormant, especially young plants. Large established Roses challenging.
- End-of-Season Care: Best overwintering: choose plants adapted to your zone. If near cold limit on exposed site/rapid fluctuations: mound 2 shovelfuls composted manure/soil/compost/shredded leaves over base after ground freezes. Cover mounds and lower bushes with evergreen boughs. Pull mound away from stem as new growth emerges spring. Don't prune in fall; wait for spring growth to prune winter-injured branches.
Calendar of Care
Early Spring: Plant bareroot Roses; transplant young if needed. Check pH; add lime if <6.5. When new growth appears, prune established: shape, remove dead/damaged, open interior for air circulation. Remove few old canes at base of established climbers. If fungal disease prevalent, spray dormant with Bordeaux mix/lime sulfur/horticultural oil. Fertilize. South/West: monthly early spring–June, resume Aug–Sept.
Mid-Spring: Watch Rose slugs: handpick, spray superfine horticultural oil, or systemic insecticide. Fertilize after first flush. Watch for rootstock shoots; remove. After soil warms, apply generous organic mulch.
Late Spring: Monitor Japanese beetles/Rose chafers; treat. Watch black spot/powdery mildew/foliar problems; treat with fungicides/Neem. Water early so foliage dries before evening.
Summer: Clean fallen foliage; deadhead diligently. Water if rain sparse; keep beds weed-free. Some varieties need support (summer thunderstorms). Tie climber canes to trellis/fence.
Fall: Cold climate, not fully hardy Roses: protect by mounding soil/compost around base after ground freezes, add evergreen boughs. Climbers may be detached, laid down, covered with soil (works on smaller climbers/shorter pillar Roses).
