What hope?

10 years ago

I inherited care 5 roses mid-summer last year, after ca 10-15 yrs of my landlord's neglect.

They're hard against a south-facing wall; two are planted in a 6 inch space between wall and concrete walk, the other three were in an equally neglected flower bed.

The only water they received prior to my taking care was whatever fell from the sky.

At irregular intervals they were whacked to the ground.

They have bloomed every year I can remember, in decreasing numbers. Medium large pink fading to white flowers, long arching canes.

I took over last yr after the few scattered blooms had gone, added MG rose food 2-3x, watered regularly, nothing else. Lots of large canes going everywhere.

Last fall the landlord came into the yard and decided to help - by whacking them back to about 1 foot high. He's agreed he won't do that again.

They're showing signs of life this year, green appearing on shoots, red-green on canes.

So - where do I go from here? The eastern-most one gets very little sun, was a real sprawler last year, the others could have used some pruning I think but looked sorta like what I expect roses to look like.

Is it worth trying to save the shaded one?

Will the 3 in the flower bed be compatible with a newly-installed (this spring) perennial garden, or are water/fert reqs too different?

Can roses as old as these (at least 15 yrs) be transplanted successfully if they won't work in the flower bed?

Any care advice from this point on?

Comments (3)

seil zone 6b MI
10 years ago
Where are you located? Can you transplant now? If so and since the landlord has already chopped them off now would be a good time to move any you wish to move. The one in too much shade in particular. The ones in the 6 inch space may be the biggest challenge since most of the roots will be under the concrete and you probably won't be able to get much of a root ball to move. Roses can live for decades so they are definitely worth saving and if given some sun and space and proper care will bloom for years to come.

Roses will do fine in mixed beds and do not really require any special products other than what you would use on the rest of the perennials. Good soil, enough sun and water and a well balanced fertilizer once in a while is all they need to grow and bloom beautifully.
jitsmith
Original Author
10 years ago
Thanks for the hope and advice. I'm in Central Denver, 5b, our official last frost date is May 15 but anything after mid-April isn't very hard.

Since the plants are showing signs of life already, would I be okay waiting to transplant until mid-April, when I'll be planting some store-bought perennials or should I go ahead now?

I'll try to pull the shaded one, think I'll let the ones in the crack go for a year, think about where I might best use them all together.
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seil zone 6b MI
10 years ago
If your soil is workable, thawed and not too soggy, go ahead and move it now. Otherwise you'll need to wait until the soil has improved. I have the same last frost date as you and I plant and move things in April all the time. Although maybe not this year, lol. I still have a good two feet of snow cover everywhere. But if you'd prefer to wait until you plant those perennials you can still move it then instead. Even if it's leafed out some by then it will still be movable as long as you keep it well watered to get it started. Any time in the early spring is usually fine. Just don't wait until it's too hot. That's when it's hardest on them to move them.