Hello friends!
In just about a month, we will be entering into fall, which is always an excellent season in the garden! Cooler nighttime temperatures, along with more rain, make for happy roses. If your roses are looking a bit ragged after going through the summer heat, don’t worry, you are not alone! Over the next two weeks is the ideal time to prep your roses for an awesome fall flush! To prepare your rose for the best fall flush, you want to prune, fertilize, and water.
With roses, the fall flush is a period when a rose plant produces a large number of new blooms simultaneously, or has a prolific flowering period. This is often the second flush of flowers for repeat-blooming roses. Fall flushes can be especially beautiful because the cooler temperatures allow the roses to grow without heat stress and the blooms tend to be larger and mature more slowly than in the summer. The softer colors of roses, like pale apricots and pearly pinks, can also come into their own during the fall flush.
Roses generally take 4-6 weeks to flush out, so look at your weather forecast, and prune accordingly. A light prune of up to 1/3rd off of your plant is ideal and tells your rose it’s time to wake up and get growing! Trim any long, overgrown canes back to the canopy of your bush for a tidier appearance, and clean up any dead, diseased, or damaged canes. Always make sure to collect and throw away what you prune off to avoid the proliferation of insects or disease. Go ahead and apply a good dose of fertilizer, according to manufacturer directions, so they have plenty of energy to form nice blooms, and keep your plant well-watered to ensure the push of lots of growth. This is also the perfect time to start taking preventative measures to keep your rose free of pests and disease. Keep in mind it is always easier to prevent rather than trying to treat once it has become an issue.
During this time, we also go ahead and trim up and fertilize any tired annuals and perennials around the garden. A nice late summer clean up can benefit almost any plant in your garden and will make for a beautiful backdrop for your rose blooms!
We have taken the guess work out of beautiful fall roses and put together this Rose Care Bundle that will make rose growing a breeze!
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