We bought bare-root roses on sale from QVC/HSN. We had no idea what they were going to be when blooming.
My helper said he liked the roses I sent home previously, which were from the shrub plants I got at the nursery. Those blooms form fast but they do not last long. I sent him home (one block away) with some hybrid tea roses the second time.
Sassy Sue and I walk past his home once or twice a day. Everyone loves Sassy, especially their little girl. Sassy enjoys their cat's water dish (where she is welcome) and some love from husband and wife, son and daughter.
I forgot about the newer roses. Suddenly, his wife became especially animated and said, "I love those roses you sent home. They are so beautiful and smell so good."
I said, "There will be a lot more." The hybrid tea roses need to be pruned to produce more blooms (John 15:1-10). They now have a great set up for blooming, as the roots get stronger and the soil more productive.
The wood mulch is rotting into the soil, and earthworms are pulling the rot down to digest and excrete as castings. The tunneling effect of their work will allow rain to penetrate more deeply and make way for better root growth. Each rose bush is growing in treated "soil" which is also wood-based. This bagged dirt has slow release N-P-K for growth.
God has provided an abundance of rain to speed rose growth, decomposition, and earthworm activity. The rose garden is a riot of color from the shrub roses and starting to produce hybrid tea roses in yellow, bi-color orange, and who knows what else.
When we had daily rain in Columbus, I had roses growing in the front yard. I was cutting a dozen hybrid tea roses each day, giving them away to children to take to their moms, to Mrs. Ichabod to take to work. And we still had plenty for the church altar.
My favorite story from the wet season is a secretary saying to me, "Look at what your roses did!" Her husband had never been one to give her roses. When he heard about the effect of the daily rose deliveries at the office, he sent his wife a dozen red roses. I was often there to pick up Mrs. I, so I got to see the arrangement of red roses on his wife's desk. She had the same starry eyes as my helper's wife.
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| Olympiad rose - not the best photo - pure red. |
I try to point out the economics of rose growing. A dozen full-sized cut roses are going to cost $50 just about anywhere. I bought bargain cut roses for $10 a dozen at a flower shop. The business lasted a few months.
One hybrid tea bare-root plant will sell for $30 when ordered in advance and will produce two dozen roses in one season. Many roses last over the winter with proper care.
Those who watch for the sales can get left-over bare root or potted roses for much less, giving them a better return, often on surprisingly beautiful roses that are not as popular or heavily promoted. Some of my favorites have been discontinued names. I got to keep them going a few more years.
Aromatic roses were not heavily produced for a long time. They became more popular and growers began including that strain in the new offerings. The old-fashioned aromatic rose was Fragrant Cloud, which can perfume a room with one bloom. Double Delights are aromatic, and various new hybrids are known for their perfume.
Roses are not difficult to grow, a myth that keeps them from being planted. They have preferences.
- They do not like crowding.
- They need moisture, so mulch is a good idea. Mulch will also feed them.
- They need to be pruned to perform well and have a good shape.
If someone knows how to water plants and cut stems, he can grow great roses with little trouble at all.
