How do you grow a rose?
Dig a large two foot square hole, fill it up with soil, compost or half a bag of steer manure plus a cup of bonemeal. Give it rose fertiliser as per instructions on the package and keep it well watered the first summer so the roots never dry out.

How do you grow roses from seed?
Cut the rose hips off when they are red and ripe but not wrinkled. Plant the hip in a pot that has damp peat moss in it (or seed growing soil). Place outside to allow to freeze. In around the beginning of May bring the pot inside and extract the seeds and place them in a dish of water. Seeds that float will not be fertile so choose only the ones that sink to the bottom. Start these seeds like any other seeds by planting them in a sterile seedling type mix. Keep damp but not wet. When the seeds have their second set of leaves then use a mild fertiliser at half strength weekly. Many will be wild type single pink roses but others may be very interesting and worth saving.

How do you plant a rose?
Roses are not fussy as to soil type but the roots cannot stand being waterlogged so reasonably free drainage is necessary. Soak the rose bush in a bucket of water. Dig the hole 2 feet wide and 2 feet deep. Replace half the soil with some sort of compost . Even a bag of steer manure and peat moss will do. Then add 2 cups of bonemeal, mix it up with the soil and fill the hole with water. When it has drained away then plant the grafted rose with the bud union at the surface. If you have very cold winters then 3 inches below the soil surface. Bare root roses can be planted with the 3 inches of canes below the surface in case of cold damage. Then hill up the soil around the base of the rose bush to prevent any drying out if the weather gets cold or very hot. This can be removed in a few weeks time as the roots will then be established. Keep well watered the first spring.

How much sun do roses need?
Most roses need at least six hours of full sun to produce the maximum of blooms.

What fertiliser is best for roses?
All roses are greedy feeders and like a lot of fertiliser. It should be given when the leaves start to break out and after the first flush of flowers is over. You can use boxed rose fertiliser and use according to package instructions. Roses also benefit from a monthly foliar feeding. Organic fertilisers can be applied in early spring and allowed to break down over the season. Those gardeners with sandy soil may have to apply fertilizer more often because of their fast draining soil. No nitrogen should be applied six weeks before the first frost as it encourages growth which will be killed. Apply a fertilizer high in phosphorus and potassium only to strengthen the plant for winter.

What roses can I grow in the shade?
Roses grown in shady conditions grow tall and lanky, tend to get disease and don't produce many blooms. But you can grow some Rugosas, Hybrid Musks and Albas in semi-shade with a minimum of four hours of sunshine.

Can I grow roses organically?
Growing roses without chemical sprays or inorganic fertilisers requires knowledge of the different rose varieties as some are more vigorous and disease resistant than others. To grow roses organically you must first concentrate on the root system. The goal is to produce a vigorous, healthy plant that will outgrow disease. A large hole filled with compost or aged manure (or a bag of steer manure) plus a cup of bone meal is a good start. A six inch mulch keeps the roots cool and damp. Research has shown that three teaspoons of baking soda per gallon of water is a good deterrent for mildew. To keep blackspot at bay the best method is to select roses that are disease resistant. Many of the old roses are suitable for organic growing.

When do I fertilize my rose bushes?
Roses put out mainly two flushes of bloom. Once in the early summer and then later on in the season. They need to be fertilized when they are starting growth in the spring and after the first flush of bloom is over.

How much water does a rose need?
Roses need five gallons of water per week during the summer months. That is the equivalent of a bucketful of water or one inch per week. Lack of water will make the rose roots go deeper looking for it and heavy watering promotes causes the roots to grow close to the surface which causes them to bake in the summer and freeze in the winter. Once a rose is mature (3 years old) it is very drought resistant.

How much space should I leave between roses?
Ramblers require about 10 feet between them, climbers 7 feet, large shrubs 5 feet, tree roses 4 feet, tall hybrid teas 3 feet, floribundas 2 feet and miniature roses 1 foot. As landscape or ground cover roses tend to grow wide sideways they can be spaced by personal preference.