June is National Rose Month

If you love roses, Colorado provides a great growing climate so be sure to include them on your garden list.  Because there are so many different types, there are roses to fill nearly every gardeners growing needs.

Types of Roses

Don’t be confused about all the types available.  The main thing is to find a color you like.  Then check the general height for that variety.  Most garden varieties are going to average 24-48” in height.  Hybrid Teas, Grandifloras and Floribundas are all going to grow beautiful traditional roses in a variety of colors and sizes.  Climbers are going to require a trellis or a fence for support as they will grow canes 8 to 10 feet in length.

If you are small space gardening or container gardening, consider growing a miniature variety like the Sunblaze series from Star Roses and Plants, one of the leading rose breeders in the country.  Miniatures are available in a wide color selection and will bloom continuously all summer.  Just keep them well watered and fertilized like all roses.

Another great selection from Star Roses are the ever-popular KnockOut series.  A small space, ground bed shrub rose available in a wide selection of colors.  KnockOuts are very hardy and easy to grow.

Growing Care

Provide high light, including several hours of direct sunlight and plan to water and fertilize your roses regularly for the best results.  Use our Jacks All-Purpose fertilizer mixed in a watering can and applied monthly.  Or use Fertilome 2 in 1 Rose and Flower Food with systemic insecticide applied to the soil at the base of the plant monthly and scratched into the surface of the soil.

Plan on a pest control program as roses can be prone to aphids, mites and powdery mildew.  Use Fertilome 2 in 1 Rose and Flower Food with systemic insecticide.  And spray occasionally during the season with Bonide Eight to keep the critters at bay.

When the flowers fade and fall apart, cut the stem below the old flower right above the second or third leaf below the flower.  That is where a new flower bud will come from.  Cut the tops off the stems in the fall but wait until spring to cut the rose stems down closer to the base of the plant.  That is where the new stems will come from in the spring.