5 brainstorming steps to make sure roses thrive
Where would you plant corn? or tomatoes? same idea. You’ll end up in the land of a hundred questions, but before you pick up a shovel it’s time to bang out these answers on paper. It will pay dividends later in less work.
1. Get a lay of the land: roses like 6 hours of full sun from Feb to Nov.
Find your hardiness zone
On a compass: it should see south
Front yard vs back yard
Light level: needs full sun
Interference: a little from buildings, fences, & trees
Size: a walkable patch, & expandable
Find your hardiness zone on your regional gardening maps. I’ve had the best of luck with Sunset Magazine’s Garden Guide & also Gardenia.Net. They have different approaches, but the practical differences are small. Gardenia will also include Europe and the whole of the US, where Sunset focuses on the Western US. Both are well established resources.
In the northern climates, it’s best to plant facing south, so the path of the sun from east to west each day will give you full sun ( 6 hrs ) at all times. In Arizona it’s nice to have some shade from noon to 4 pm due to the extreme temperatures.
Factor in the seasonal movement of the sun overhead too. In the early spring and late fall in the northern hemispheres the angle of the sun will be much less direct than in the peak of the growing season, so those trees next door may be a factor in spring. Not enough sun aids in disease.
I use a paint stir stick from Home Depot to stick in the ground in my patch to record the full sun and any blockage from buildings, trees or other large plantings.
2. Access to your water and tools
Septic system: inspection & cleanout access
Drain field: avoid piping or use raised beds
Water needs: average like any perennial
Maintenance needs: average + deadheading
Grass edging, mowing, and debris
| Am I on a well or municipal water? | How expensive is my water now? |
| Where’s the hose bib? | Can I coil up the hose next to it? |
| Do I want in-ground water? | Are you okay with PVC piping? |
| Where’s the storage for my tools? | Is it dry for the bag goods? |
| Where will there be steps? | Wooden walkways or stone steps? |
| Do I need to get a mower in there? | Wheelbarrow? weed trimmer? |
| Can I find the septic ports? | Am I near the drainfield? |
3. Actual physical layout items
Garden style: beds and borders
Focal points: eating area, lounge chairs, bench, or birdbath.
Seasons of interest: late Spring, Summer, & early Fall.
Bush types: Hybrid teas, shrubs, sprays, climbers, minis.
| How is this going to look? | Lay out 8 stakes to get the edge layout. |
| What shape will it be? | Lay down a hose as a guide for odd shapes. |
| Will there be climbers? | If so, they will need structures like a trellis. |
| Is there a focal point? | Big pots, birdbaths, and benches work here. |
| Where will we sit? | Benches, tables, chairs, or water features. |
| How much grass remains? | Kids, dogs, cats, time to mow – all matter. |
| Do I need to trim plants? | That bush next to the hose bib? A hedge? |
| What month will be best? | May, June, and July are usually best for blooms. |
4. Things we can assume for a rose garden
Plant type: mixed rose cultivars. Check
Colors: mixed for contrast. Check
Soil is OK for roses. Check
Brainstorming for plant choices
| Mixed Roses = interest | Climbers in arbors, fragrant ones near walkways |
| Mixed Colors | reds, pinks, whites, yellows are all welcome |
The size of the hole in which you plant your roses is one of the key factors to getting them off to a good start.
Whether you are planting bare-root or container roses, you need to dig a hole deep enough and wide enough to accommodate the plant’s roots and to allow for good drainage, since roses don’t like wet feet. If you are planting several rose bushes together, space them at least 3 feet apart to give the plant ample growing room as they mature.
5. What more will I need?
Brainstorming for the next step. You can save some of these for building out later, but this is a good time to allocate space for them.
| Will I need to build a deer fence? | Do I need to build a wall? |
| Do I need a walkway arbor? | Or even a pergola with benches? |
| Can I build more space on a slope? | Terrace using stone or wood? |
| Do I need raised beds? | Am I near the septic system? |
| Do I have walkways for easy access? | Pavers, concrete, gravel, brick? |
| What extras would I like? | Fire pits, big rocks, swings? |
| What companion plants do I need? | Lavender, day lily, bulbs, grasses? |
| Do I want garden art? | Small, medium, or large? |
When you can believe in these 5 , move on to #6:
6. Save your hard brain work: draw a picture
Start with a simple drawing of your lot on graph paper. If you need to squeeze the patch into a tight area, that may mean measuring what you staked out to be precise.
Locate your patch with big dots in the corners of the picture where the patch would go. I like to remove straight edges and sharp corners at this point to make the image softer.
Then do a little imagineering with your eyes closed. Does it work if you plant rose bushes centered every 4 ft? Will you have room to work in between the plants? Take heart, you’re getting somewhere without even using that shovel.
7. Finally, plant your first 7 roses
Setting the rose bush
Select a bush location in the garden that best fits the criteria discussed in the above sections. Color, fragrance, & size all factor into the location. Again I draw a picture of the first 7 bushes with names before picking up a shovel.
7 is a good number of plants to start with. Spacing, height, width, location, color, and watering can be adjusted with just 7 bushes on a cool day.
Find bush details with pictures by name by searching on Help-Me-Find.
Another handy tool is a plant-ID app on your phone. The phone discussion is here.
Start a hole wide enough to easily accommodate the root structure. Then dig down 2X the depth of the shovel blade (called digging double deep.)
In cold climates, set the crown 3 inches below ground level. Locate the crown as seen in the below illustration.
In mild climates, position the crown right at ground level. Amend the dark, rich soil going back into the hole with well-rotted compost or bagged planting soil. If bare-rooted, then place a small ‘hill’ of amended soil at the bottom of the hole so the crown is at the right height. If potted, fill the hole with a little tamp down to get the right height for the root ball.
Use your pruning shears to trim the length of the canes above to the length of the longest root below.
If your rose is potted, prune back to only 5 large canes as shown here, then trim those to the length from the crown to of the bottom of the soil ball.
This cane cutting may seem like a severe idea, but it helps greatly in the planting by balancing the nutrient movement from bottom to top. Use sharp, clean blades to prune rose canes to avoid the introduction of disease and pests.
Remove any shriveled, small, or dead canes.
Refer to the illustration for good locations of your cuts.
Place the plant at the proper height in the hole, like step 1, and fill around the plant to two-thirds full with the amended soil.
Using a gentle stream of soaking water, fill the remainder of the hole. As the water seeps in, it will moisten the roots and surrounding soil, and remove any air pockets.
After the water has completely settled, fill the hole to the top with the remaining soil. Sprinkle gently with water again to remove the air pockets and assure good overall soil moisture. Further tamping, either with your foot or a tool is not needed. The water will do what is needed. Too much tamping often hurts the small feeder roots.
Rinse and repeat to set more of your new roses . . .
Sources: Wikipedia, ARS, David Austin Roses, Weeks Roses, Tacoma Rose Society
