All the Tones are good and it doesn't make a lot of difference which one you use. I often use Plant Tone because my local source often carries only that Tone. I notice that my current bag is Holly Tone--don't remember where or when I bought that, but it works good also. I remember once ordering a bunch of Rose Tone online--don't remember that it was better or worse than the other Tones--but the weight of those bags sure drove up the shipping charges, so I haven't done that again.

The usual practice with roses is to use a fairly balanced food--10-10-10 (or 3-3-3 or whatever) is common, or something close to that. I like the combination of ingredients that are in Tone--and I make sure there is some alfalfa in it, whatever I buy. (They may all have alfalfa--I don't know because I have never comparison-checked.)

There are other organic type name brands out there also and they are good also. I use the Tones simply because they are readily and easily available and the others are not--at least, not in my region.

I believe the directions on all the Tones say to use it monthly and specify the amount. Myself, I use it in the spring and then get lazy and switch to a time-released product to cover the rest of the growing season. Each to his/her own.

Kate

Another similar fertilizer I've come to like is Jobe's Organic Knock-Out Rose Food. I tried it when it was on sale (and thus cheaper, at the time, than RoseTone) to use in my potting mix for new bands. While I'm not sure how effective it is, I do like that the Jobe's contains soil microorganisms, and perhaps that's what made the difference in how fast my bands took off when I used that instead of the RoseTone like I did the year before.

:-)

~Christopher

Holly Tone has ingredients which helps acidify your soil. Not usually necessary in this neck of the woods.

Google "Espoma" for information on this product line.

The label dose of one cup a month is more than average rose plants can actually use. I would do that every two months instead.

I don't think there is a better fertilizer product for roses.

I've been buying Holly Tone because it comes in a larger bag.

Dan, why would you say that Mills Mix is "far better"? I think it is a good product, but don't see a great advantage.

Generally, don't mix fertilizer into the soil unless a soil test has shown a deficiency such as phosphorus or calcium. Fertilize at the surface and don't exceed labeled doses. That includes not applying more than one fertilizer in the same time interval--they all provide roughly the same stuff. Usually labeled doses are on the heavy side and you can use less than that. If you fertilize at planting time, use a light dose.