By: Gerardas Norkus
The rose. It has been the subject of many a poem, prose and song. It has been one of the many symbols of beauty, love and female sexuality. It has warmed and won hearts all over.
But before a rose becomes a bloom that has the power over many, it has to begin somewhere as a plain and innocent bud, unnoticed and enjoying its life along with the other buds.
It is here in the rose garden where it all starts. Where the roses live until they are ready to be let go. Here is where the rose gardener toils and toils and toils until he is ready to let go. But for him it is not tiring work. The gardener enjoys both the trip and the destination.
Rose gardening is an activity that can serve lots of purposes. Some go into it mainly for profit, as there is always a demand for roses. Probably because roses are one of the most popular flowers there are, famed for their beauty and smell. Some find them therapeutic and relaxing; tending to something which grows into beauty gives some people the feeling of accomplishment and fulfillment. Others find rose gardening, or just plain gardening a delight within itself.
Whatever it is your purpose for doing rose gardening, if you’re still a beginner, you have to know a few things first. Rose gardening is not a simple task, you don’t happen to notice roses grow just about anywhere, don’t you? These are delicate flowers which require your attention and dedication.
First thing in rose gardening, you have to choose what variety of rose it is that you want to plant. But you can’t just pick any variety. You have to take into consideration factors like growing conditions, garden size etc.
After picking the rose variety that you want to plant, you have to prepare your spot. Rose gardening involves picking and preparing a good site and bed for plantation. A good site should ideally receive six hours of sun a day, or at least a good dose of sun in the morning and shade in the afternoon. Adequately drained soil is a must, poor drainage or “wet feet” will be death for your flowers. Although roses would do well in most soil types, having a high organic content will be better. Do check the pH levels of your soil, 6.0 – 7.0 would be good.
One of the highlight events in your rose gardening is planting. If you’re planning to use bare root roses in your rose gardening, try to purchase them as close as possible to your planting time. Soak these first in water for 8 to 12 hours to help rehydrate the plant. You must also “sweat” the canes after planting them into the soil to avoid drying the canes up. There are different methods of doing this, most growers just put a moist brown paper bag over the canes.
Potted roses are easier to plant and are ready for planting the whole season. You just take it out of the container and put it in a hole deep enough to accommodate the root ball. Same with box roses, although it generally recommended that you remove the cardboard box first (because the instructions might say otherwise).
After you have prepared and planted, your rose gardening activities will mainly consist of mulching, pruning, fertilizing and of course, watering. You just have to prepare a rose gardening plan for these things. It would be good to research on the needs of the variety of rose that you have chosen.
