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Rose Gardening- How To Take Care During Winter
from: Beverly KaneWhile winter is the season of hibernation and dormancy for your
roses, it can spell disaster, if you let it face the season with
out taking any precaution.
The tougher varieties like old garden roses and own-root types
normally survive through the bitter cold, but the more delicate
varieties like hybrid teas and budded roses can wither easily,
if left unprotected.
Preparation process for your rose bush, begins right at the time
of selecting the roses for plantation. While browsing the net or
printed catalogues, or even admiring the roses on display at
your local garden store, be careful to choose only those types
which are tough to glide through the harshness of winter,
typical of the area in which you live in. consult the "hardiness
zone maps", if necessary before you make that final selection.
The key to making your roses make it through the harsh winter is
to deliberately make them hibernate or push them into dormancy.
You can achieve this by stopping any fertilizing activity by mid
August, ceasing all dead heading and pruning activities by the
beginning of October. You must let hip formation to further
ensure dormancy.
Be certain to keep your plants in a frozen condition, if you
live in very cold areas. Prevent the freeze/thaw/freeze cycles
to happen repeatedly. To ensure this, never put any early covers
on your plants. Bide your time till the first hard frost hits
and the leaves start falling. Remove all fallen leaves, diseased
leaves and other debris from around your rose bush at this time,
as these insects and fungi hibernate during winter and return to
damage during spring.
Prune and trim the taller roses, before you put on any winter
covering. Do not prune these too thoroughly, as you will have to
prune again to remove dead and disease-infected canes in spring.
You can tie the canes together - this will protect them from the
cold and gusty winter winds.
One of the very popular and easy methods to protect your rose
bush during winter months is called "hilling". This method
involves piling a lot of moisture-free loose soil or compost
around your rose bush. This piling should be around 10 to 12
inches in depth. This is a very good covering for the plants,
provided it is dry.
You should cover the mound with hay, leaves or evergreen
branches, once it has frozen completely.
With this type of dry covering, with moisture-free soil or
compost, your rose bushes have the winter protection that they
need so badly to survive.
After your have successfully put your rose garden to rest for
the winter, take some time off to sharpen your garden
maintenance tools, so that you can start afresh in spring.
Winter is the time for short days and long nights. As you sit
and warm your heels by the fire side, browse through the
websites and printed catalogues to order for next year's roses.
About the author:
Beverly Kane is a staff writer at
Enthusiast and is an occasional contributor to several othe
websites, including
Gazette.
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