Grow Roses in Containers

The rose is a classic symbol of beauty and romance, and many gardeners jump at the opportunity to adorn their own gardens with rose bushes. Some roses are larger and, as a result, require more room to grow than others. However, nearly any species of rose can be grown in a container, which is especially good news for gardeners with limited garden space.

Steps

The Container

  1. Choose an appropriately sized container. Miniature roses thrive in a 12-inch (30.5-cm) container, while floribundas and hybrid tea roses need 15 inches (38 cm). Larger hybrids and tree roses need to be in containers measuring 18 inches (45.7 cm) or larger.
  2. Look for a light container if you plan on moving your rose around. A container made of plastic will probably be the easiest to re-position. Choose a light color, since dark colors heat up faster and dry out the soil.
  3. Use a plastic liner with a clay pot. On hot days, soil heats up quickly inside of a clay container. A plastic liner will act as a barrier between the pot and the soil, keeping it cooler.
  4. Opt for a pot that provides good drainage. Plastic and clay pots with holes at the bottom offer better drainage than containers without holes.
  5. Skip the saucer if keeping your roses outdoors. Saucers placed beneath the pot trap the excess water that escapes, holding it in place below the flower's roots. This extra water could lead to root rot.

The Plant

  1. Choose between pre-potted roses and bare-root roses. Pre-potted roses are often easier to work with, especially in warm climates that do not permit roses to reach a completely dormant state.

The Soil

  1. Select a potting soil specifically blended for roses. Many garden supply stores sell special blends, and you may have more success with a potting mix designed to promote rose growth than with a generic soil.
  2. Create your own soil blend.
    • A simple blend includes a sterile non-soil potting medium, like fine bark, mixed in equal parts with perlite to lighten the mixture.
    • Another common blend includes 40 percent topsoil mixed with 30 percent perlite and 30 percent screened compost.

Planting

  1. Place a one-inch layer of medium-sized bark chips or gravel over the bottom of the container. The chips or stones should be larger than any holes in the bottom of the pot to prevent them from falling through. This layer provides your roses with additional drainage.
  2. Fill your container two-thirds full with your chosen soil. Loosely pack the soil into the pot. Do not pack too tightly, as your rose needs room to breathe.
  3. Increase the nutrient level by mixing a cup of bonemeal into the soil. Roses need a lot of nutrients, and bonemeal can provide the fertile conditions your roses need to produce many blooms.
  4. Place the rose into the soil. If working with a bare-root rose, spread the roots out comfortably. Rose roots need ample room to spread out horizontally.
  5. Fill in the area around the rose with more soil. Gently press the soil around the stems. The surface of the soil should match the place where the roots and rose plant meet.
    • The container should be filled so that the soil almost comes to the top. If the rose is too deep in the container, pull it out of the soil and add more to the bottom of the pot.
  6. Water until well saturated. Even though root rot does pose a threat to roses, these flowers also need plenty of moist soil to survive.
  7. Provide a stake for larger rose trees and bushes. Choose a wooden or metal stake proportional to the predicted size of the plant when it matures. Plant the stake deep into the pot, allowing it to touch the bottom.
  8. Tie your rose to the stake using soft ties. Old nylons, green garden tape, and polyfoam coated wire all work well.

Care

  1. Space containers {{safesubst:#invoke:convert|convert}} apart. Doing so reduces the likelihood of spreading fungus-related rose diseases from plant to plant.
  2. Position the container in a location that receives full sun. Roses need at least 7 hours of sun daily to thrive.
  3. Water your roses daily, preferably in the early morning. On very hot days, water the container twice a day—once in the morning and once more in the evening.
  4. Check the moistness of the soil before re-watering. Stick your finger down into the top inch (2.5 cm) of the soil. If potting medium feels dry that far down, your rose is in immediate need of watering.
  5. Avoid wetting the foliage during watering, as this invites diseases.
  6. Spread mulch over the surface of the soil. An inch of mulch, especially in the form of small bark chips, will hold the moisture in the container and prevent it from evaporating out. Mulch also helps discourage weed growth. Remove the mulch at the beginning of the rainy season; as at that time, the soil should be allowed to evaporate in between the showers.
  7. Fertilize your roses for the first time after a month passes. You may use a balanced liquid fertilizer or a slow release granular fertilizer once every two weeks from that point on. Don't forget to water 6 hours before and immediately after fertilizing.
  8. Remove suckers. If roses are grafted, sucker growth will be a common problem.The best way to remove a sucker is to dig down to the root where the sucker is originating and tear it off where it emerges. Cutting suckers off from a higher level only encourages regrowth of several suckers where there once was one. Don't forget to use gloves, while handling suckers.
  9. Prune your roses a month before the flowering season, from the second year of planting onwards. The aim of pruning is to maintain the attractive shape of your rose and to encourage good flowering. Pruning is not a precise science and you can decide its extent according to the plant growth and the desired size. Generally speaking, pruning to 1/3rd to 2/3rd of the original size is recommended, for vigorously growing to moderately growing plants respectively. Make a sloping cut half an inch or less above an outward facing bud, using a clean and sharp instrument and paint the cut end with an antifungal paste to avoid Dieback disease. The cut should slant away from the bud. Also, remove all dead, dying, thin or weak canes while pruning.
  10. Dead-head your roses, if you are in a milder climate, where the rose does not grow very vigorously. This is the removal of spent flowers during the flowering season. Dead-heading encourages repeat flowering and makes a tidier plant. Either remove just the dead flower or cut the stem down to the first full leaf.
  11. Keep your roses together. Rose does not like the company of other shrubs much. Put all your rose containers together at one or more place(s) of the garden, where there are no other plants sited.
  12. Transplant your rose after two years. Roses deplete the soil's nutrients faster when grown in containers than they do when grown in the ground. Some roses also outgrow their containers.
  13. Move roses to a sheltered location during extremely cold weather. A shed, garage, or basement should work well.
  14. Offer container roses a tablespoon of Epsom salts each spring. Sprinkle the salts around the base of the plant. This provides an extra dose of magnesium to spur foliage growth.



Tips

  • Go for varieties that are known to do well in your area or locality. Buying rose plants from local nurseries (as opposed to faraway places) can be quite helpful in this regard.
  • Search out a variety of rose known to do well in containers. Hardy mini roses include pearl palace and leguna palace. Hybrid teas include the Belle, Gold Medal, and French Perfume. Floribundas include Angelface and Gingersnap. Tree roses that do well in containers include French Lace, Iceberg, and Tamora.
  • Get rose plants from reputed nurseries, preferably one you had good results with earlier.

Warnings

  • Avoid potting roses with other flowers. Rose roots are delicate. They are close to the surface and tend to spread out wide, stretching toward the edge of the pot. The roots of other flowers may tangle with the rose roots and choke them out.

Things You'll Need

  • Roses
  • Lightweight container
  • Rose-specific potting soil
  • Bark chips
  • Gravel
  • Mulch
  • Stakes
  • Fertilizer
  • Epsom salts

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