To decorate your summer cottage with elegant and fragrant roses is the dream of many. But in order to get a magnificent flowering island, one desire will not be enough. There are many subtleties in their cultivation: from planting new plants to sheltering them during the wintering period. We will analyze the main mistakes that many gardeners make when caring for these flowers.
You leave the vaccine on the surface of the soil
When purchasing a rose with a vaccination for planting, you will have to carefully study the characteristics of the planting. To understand these subtleties, it is important to know that the cultivated plant is grafted onto wild rose hips, which means that any improper manipulations with the rootstock site will lead to unpleasant consequences. The vaccination point itself is a weak spot on the seedling. Its incorrect location during planting can lead to the fact that instead of a fragrant rose bush, a simple dogrose will grow. Now about the rules:
- the vaccination site should be buried in the soil by at least 3 centimeters. Here you should also consider what kind of soil is on the site: if sandy - increase the depth, if clay - then reduce to 1.5 - 2 cm;
- when leaving the vaccine over the ground, young shoots will begin to grow on the stock. They represent wild growth and weaken the cultural part of the plant, taking away nutrients from it;
- with a very deep location of the vaccination, the flower will not be able to take root, the neck of the root during watering will begin to get wet and rot, and your beauty, not having time to please her with abundant flowering, will die in the first year.
You cut the rose for the winter
Pruning should be done during the summer season: remove wilted flowers and decayed branches, cut blind shoots to extend flowering. In general, the best time for pruning roses is the beginning of the summer season, which usually occurs in the spring. Already in April it will be clearly visible which shoots have wintered successfully, and which are sick, or even withered. Removing weakened stems in late April or early May, while the first leaves appear, will allow the flower to gain strength and direct them to the development of healthy shoots. Stems need to be cut to the place of the first bud on the flower, and thin branches under the base.
When preparing roses for winter, it is recommended to prune in the fall, but do not overdo it. It is enough to make a light trimming of the tops. Deeper pruning will cause the growth of new shoots, which will take all the energy from the plant and it will leave to winter weakened. As for the remaining foliage on the roses, then leave it as it is. Let the plant decide when to drop the foliage. It contains a supply of nutrients that are important for the plant during winter dormancy.
You often water a rose
Despite the fact that this queen of flowers is quite hygrophilous, she does not like frequent and abundant watering. Such irrigation leads to the active development of the surface root system and their destruction in the process of loosening. It is better to use melt or rain water for irrigation, and watering from ponds located on the site is also suitable. The bushes painfully react to a lack of moisture - young shoots stop growing, the foliage withers, and the buds become smaller, and they become smaller. Follow the recommended norm: in dry weather, 5 liters per bush with a frequency of 2 or 3 times a week. In rainy summers, the frequency of watering is reduced to 1 time.
Now about preparing for the winter. Already at the end of August, the frequency of watering should be reduced, and in the first days of September it should be completely eliminated. If the summer was rainy, then these dates are shifted to earlier ones. For a good winter, the soil under the rose should be dry. In general, this flower, with all its exactingness to water, does not tolerate moist soils. The longer its roots are in a very humid environment, the more likely it is to die from a lack of moisture. But it will not tolerate wintering, because the root system can freeze, because wet soils cool much faster.
You fertilize before the fall
Rose bushes love fertilizers and respond to their application with beautiful flowering. But everything needs to be done sparingly and in due time. You can’t overfeed them, they are enough for two feeding for the summer season: in early spring and summer. Each fertilizer has its own time:
- The first feed is carried out closer to May, a complex fertilizer consisting of nitrogen, phosphorus and calcium is introduced.
- The second top dressing falls on the first summer days and is needed to activate the growth of shoots and build green mass. Nitrogen is introduced into this period, and as soon as the buds begin to form, add phosphorus and potassium for abundant flowering.
Late nitrogen supplementation - in the second half of summer - will provoke the growth of new shoots that do not have time to grow stronger and freeze in the winter cold. In addition, they will become sick and attacked by pests. Before wintering, around mid-September, top-dress with a phosphorus-potassium mixture that will help withstand diseases and colds, and improve the maturation of wood.
You spud peat bushes for the winter
Preparing this gentle beauty for the winter, you should take care of a good shelter of the root system. It is she who is most vulnerable to frost. And experienced gardeners use earthing up for this, but you need to do this correctly so as not to harm the plant. Do not spud bushes with peat for the winter. It absorbs a lot of moisture and in the warm rainy winter, the roots of roses will wake up ahead of time, shoots will move into growth and this will lead to inevitable death.
Some gardeners cover with dry soil, on the principle of hilling potato bushes. This is not a bad option, but in the process, there is a high risk of damaging the root part and loosening the flower before winter. The task of hilling is to protect the roots from getting wet and aging. Therefore, the shelter should be breathable and natural. Make a mixture of half the earth and approximately equal amounts of river sand and large sawdust, disinfect it and dry thoroughly. At the end of early October, pour this mixture under the bush with a low layer of up to 10 centimeters maximum, and when the temperature drops below zero, pour a real winter blanket over it. A layer of dry soil should be at least 30 centimeters.
If you take into account all the mistakes that summer residents often make when growing roses, you can not only grow healthy bushes in your area, but also create a real pink arboretum and enjoy the lush flowering and delicate aroma of royal flowers for more than one season.
