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How to Plant Roses

There are about as many variations to planting instructions as there are recipes for apple pie. Ours are based on our own experience, teamed up with a good understanding of how soils and plants work.

All of our instructions can be slightly modified to fit your situation, except for two things:

1. Don't neglect your plants between the time you receive them and the time you plant them! Open the box and make sure they don't dry out.
   
2. Don't forget to water them in well after they are planted! And don't let the soil that they are planted in dry out anytime during the first three months after planting!

Planting Bareroot Roses

When to Plant. Bareroot plants are best planted in early spring as soon as the ground has thawed and you can dig a hole. Bareroot plants are dormant and can handle light frosts since they don't have any foliage. The roots grow well in cool weather and help the plant start growing under the ground before the air warms up.

Plant Preparation. When you’re ready to plant, soak your dormant plant in a pail of room-temperature water (keep all roots immersed) for at least four hours and no more than 24 hours before you plant (remember, the roots are alive and need to breathe!).

Pruning. Prune off any broken canes or roots. Then, prune back the top of the plant so the canes are about 8-10 inches long. Prune back to a bud that faces out—this encourages the new growth to grow out rather than into the center of the plant.

Site Preparation and Planting. First, a word about soil: No matter what type of soil you have, you can improve it with organic matter. Compost is one of the best sources of organic matter and it is readily available either in bags from your local garden center, or from your neighborhood leaf-composting center, or you can make it yourself. Composted manure is one of the best soil amendments; however, make sure it is well-cured so it doesn't burn the roots. Roses are heavy feeders, so be generous with compost.

Spacing Between Roses. If you're planting multiple roses, here's how to determine spacing between roses. If the mature width of your plant is 4-feet, then plant each plant 4-feet apart. That gives each plant 2-feet on either side of the plant's center. That's enough room for each plant to grow to mature size. If you want a dense hedge, then space the plants closer. This will cause the branches to grow together. If you want to see individual plant shapes, then space the plants further apart.

Planting Steps

1. Prepare the planting site by removing all other vegetation—either mechanically or chemically. A little extra work now will save you a lot of weeding time later.
2. Dig a hole. The hole you dig for your rose plant should be at least 1½ feet deep by 1½ feet wide (yes, that's big) with a mound in the center of the hole on which to place your rose. A large hole allows you to spread out the roots without bending or wrapping them. Keep the topsoil from this hole (first eight inches of dirt) and discard the rest.
3. Mix the topsoil that you took out of the hole with well-cured compost or very good black soil (50:50 ratio) and one-half cup of bone meal or phosphorous (0-20-0). Blend this mix well.
4. Place the plant in the hole to a depth that will keep all the roots about one or two inches below the soil line after the hole is filled in. Spread or fan the roots over the mound in the bottom of the hole. If the roots wrap around the bottom of the hole you can do two things: a) dig a deeper hole to accomodate the roots, or b) prune the roots to fit the hole (as long as the hole is at least 1½ feet deep).
5. Refill one-third of the hole with the amended soil, and lightly firm the soil around the plant (no stomping, please!) Then fill up the rest of the hole with the remaining soil and gently press down.
6. Water, water, water. Slowly pour about two or three gallons of water over and around the base of the plant or until it pools on top of the soil. If the water is running away from the plant and not soaking in, make a one-inch-high wall of soil around the circumference of the plant about one foot from the center. This will keep the water from running away and allow it to soak in around the plant. The most important thing you can give your new rose is water. Water settles the soil around the root system, and helps the roots transport nutrients to the plant.
7. IMPORTANT STEP THAT IS OFTEN OVERLOOKED: Mound up soil over the crown of the plant to about six-inches high so that at least two inches of the canes show. Keep the soil there for about two weeks—it will help keep the newly planted rose from drying out. After two weeks, gently pull or wash away the soil mound. Be careful with this process—new leaf buds can be easily knocked off.
   
   
8. Prune back the top of the plant so that there are only 3 to 4 inches of canes showing above the mounded soil. long. Prune back to a bud that faces out—this encourages the new growth to grow out rather than into the center of the plant.
9. Place mulch around the base of the plant about three inches thick. Some good types of mulch include: wood chips/bark, compost or cocoa bean hulls. Mulch reduces moisture loss, adds organic matter, suppresses weed growth and keeps the feeder roots of your roses cool.

Once planted, your roses should break dormancy in about one to two weeks. The plants are very vulnerable at this stage, so shelter them from wind so they don't dry out. Don't let the soil dry out that your rose is planted in for the first three months!

Important! Newly planted roses are very vulnerable to heat and dry weather so shelter them from wind so they don't dry out.

Tools to Help You Grow Your Roses