CULTURE ADVICE
Plant the roses at 60/70 cm from each other in groups of three from the same variety. Spread well the roots on a heap of soil in the planting hole, as big as possible if your rose is in bare roots. Foresee a hole of 50x50x50 cm. For a good development of your roses, you have to plant them in a rich soil. Do not forget that after the planting, your rose will have to lice many years at his same spot. Mix the planting soil with 3 or 4 kilos of organic grease, type SECRET VERT.
Once
the planting has taken an end, irrigate abundantly (10 litres for each foot).
Do not forget to earth up your roses, with turf for instance, this is very
important for a good renewal in spring.
If you choose
to plant your roses in containers from May till October, you proceed in the same
way for the preparation of the soil and you make sure not to break the sod,
already formed. (let the sod dry for one or two days without changing pots=
easier manipulation of the sod without breaking it). In this way your roses can
continue their development without chocks.
During the first year of growing, you can choose to sprinkle your roses. So the development and the flowering will be stronger.
Irrigating roses means: lots of water, not very often. For instance: 10 litres of water once a week for each plant.
And least, if you ask me, the most important thing, make sure, if you plant your roses, to dig in deep the graft, at least 10 cm under the ground for a better protection in winter, a bigger strength, a good fixing to the ground.
THE FERTILISATION
It’s the most important thing to obtain strong and flowering roses during many years (well fed= stronger to resist to diseases). 4 fertilisation sessions a year:
1/autumn or spring (April) organic muck (Secret vert) it’s the base muck which you can use abundantly (e.g. 2 kilos for each foot)
2,3 and 4 when the roses are in vegetation in May, June and July: a specific fertiliser for roses: a handful for each foot.
So, three fertilisation sessions wit a well adapted formula to the roses will complete the spring organic muck. From August on, every fertilisation should be stopped.
Secret
Vert is a compost of muck-heaps and sea algae, in addition to dried blood, so it
does not burn and possesses a well balanced formula for a base nutrition of your
roses. If you cannot buy Secret Vert, you can replace it by well ripened
compost.
Do never use resinous rinds, which will have a disastrous effect on the health and lives of your roses. More appropriate is the use of cocoa shells as mulch between the roses. Its application fights the growing of weeds. It gives astonishing results.
To
obtain the best result ever, prune as little as possible, simply remove the dead
flowers during the flowering season with at least three leaves under the flower.
In springtime (when the plants new shoots of 3-4 cm): eliminate dead wood, the
branches of two and three years old, as well as the weak ones. As you can see,
you can prune English Roses all by yourself. This way of pruning will provide
you big bushes with smaller flowers but in greater numbers. A short pruning can
nevertheless be done at 20 cm. This type of pruning limits the volume and the
spectacular effect on the rose bush and will give you less flowers, but bigger
than usual. You can, originally, choose to cut your roses to halves and
following year, adapt your Pruning to your own desires.
Anyway,
the pruning of climbing Bush Roses (flowering all year) is done in spring,
March- April (when your roses have new shoots of 3-4 cm).
As
you can see, English Roses are demanding in terms of nutrition, but they live
easily and I am certain they will seduce you in the same way as they did to me,
when I first discovered them in England.
I wish you all lots of satisfaction and pleasure with your roses.
Good planting to everyone.
Daniel Schmitz