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| Last fall I purchased 2 roses each from 2 different nurseries. The roses from Antique Rose Emporium were lovely sturdy plants, and they are definitely growing now (although slowly) and blooming some. The 2 from the other nursery were younger plants. One of them is just starting to put on new growth, but the other is spindly, just one twiggy cane without any new growth. Late this spring I gave all of them some alfalfa tea. So, I'm wondering if I should be doing some more babying of all these roses, and if so, what should I be doing? Also, I'm close to giving up on the one that is not doing anything at all; should I be doing something more before giving up? |
Follow-Up Postings:
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| Small roses should be fertilized but at a fraction of the labeled dose.If you've had so little growth in 5 months of growing weather, I suspect you haven't been watering enough. What is your routine for fertilizing and watering? And did you put rich stuff in the soil at planting time (which would reduce the need to fertilize)? What kind of soil are they in? |
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| Good thought on the watering! I've got them on a drip system, and I'm watering them weekly. We've had an unusually wet spring for us, but maybe I should be watering them twice a week or for longer when I do water. I garden on alkaline clay, but the bed they're in has been amended with a mix of expanded shale and organic material (pre-fab mix). I haven't had the soil tested. |
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- Posted by jacqueline3 9CA (My Page) on Mon, Jun 30, 14 at 18:45
| If they were mine, including the sleeping one, I WOULD NOT GIVE up on any of them - they are way too young. I would make sure they are getting adequate water, and of course sunlight, and are protected from being trampled or eaten by critters, then I would LEAVE THEM ALONE. They should be concentrating on growing roots, not top growth or blooming at this point. I would not feed them or spray them or fuss with them. Some people say you should cut off any buds that appear, to encourage them to grow roots. I don't go that far, but you get the idea. Jackie |
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- Posted by roseblush1 8a/Sunset 7 (My Page) on Mon, Jun 30, 14 at 23:37
| I agree with Jeri. I think growing roots is the key to having a healthy plant. I also wouldn't put it into the ground until it had a solid root mass. In my garden, I have found a big difference in how a rose takes off when I compare the same rose planted in the same bed, but with different sizes of root mass. The one that I had in the larger container took off faster and has always been a stronger plant. Since they were planted at the same time, the only real variable is the size of the root mass at planting time. Smiles, |
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| This is something I haven't quite understood. I know that baby roses have sensitive roots, and as such can be easily burned by giving too much water soluble fertilizer. So the common advice is to just keep them watered until they put on growth before feeding them. And that's what I don't understand -- if they don't have nutrients in the soil, how can they build new roots? Peat-based potting soils with no added fertilizer amounts to not much more than something in which roots can seek water. Without additional N-P-K, there's no "building blocks" to make more roots. I took a different approach. I potted my bands last year in a nutrient-rich mix (equal parts peat moss, Bovung dehydrated manure, and shredded hardwood mulch), then mixed in Jobe's Organic Knock Out Rose food (1/2 cup for 1-gal containers, 1 cup for 2-gal containers), and gave each a soaking in half-strength fish and seaweed emulsion. They got lots of rain and sunshine from the beginning (we still get occasional frosts in April, when most of the bands came), and they grew by leaps and bounds (for the most part -- a few Hybrid Teas and Chinas took their time). If I got bands later in the year, when temperatures reached into the 80s and above, I'd offer dappled shade for a while and gradually acclimate them to full-sun. I understand the caution about applying Miracle Gro and similar water-soluble fertilizers which can burn tender new roots, but that didn't happen for me with the stuff I used. I started a thread about it last year, including pics. It worked for me. When the beds were ready for roses to go in the ground three to four months later, they all had roots running throughout the soil, making nice tight root balls that slipped right out of the pots without crumbling. :-) ~Christopher P.S. Note that the 'Sweet Chariot' shown turned out to NOT be that rose. It's some sort of Multiflora-derived rose which was not at all appealing when it bloomed this year in a big pot and will eventually meet the shredder. |
Here is a link that might be useful: Some before and after showing growth so far
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| You need to know the output of the drip system. In Texas, very small roses could use 2-3 gallons a week in hot summer weather and roses 3-4' wide can use 6 gallons. I agree with Christopher that small roses should be fertilized (at a fraction of the labeled rate). However, sounds like there were some nutrients in your original soil mix. |
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| Thanks everyone. The roses are getting 3 1/4 gallons a week (1 1gallon/hr emitter on each for 3 hours 15 minutes once a week, held when there's been rain). Michael, thanks for the info about how much water the roses need. Most sources talk in inches of water, which is not particularly helpful for drip. I think that once it starts to cool off some in the fall I may fertilize weakly every other week or once a month, quitting before we start heading into winter. Please let me know if that sounds right to everyone, or if there is some alternate advice. |
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