If you are aiming for a good looking and healthy rose garden, preparation is as important as cultivating the roses into their full bloom potential.
Before you purchase any rose bushes, some vitally important decisions must be made about where they are going to be planted. The quality of site selection will save the gardener much stress and heartache later on.
The rose bush will come with recommendations of the type of environment in your garden where it will thrive. Rose bushes usually have two main requirements to get the best quality of blooms from your roses: drainage and sun.
Watch your garden as it rains, or as you water it, to get an idea of which section drains the best. If the rose bush is planted in a waterlogged or soggy part of the garden, you will most likely get poor results. The worst that can happen is that you will kill the bush. This is one of the best ways to achieve natural drainage.
If there isn't such a good spot available, the next best is an area which remains fairly dry. This spot can be tested by digging a hole, 18 inches deep, and filling it with water. If the hole drains after 6 - 8 hours, then the natural drainage is sufficient for the roses needs. If it doesn't drain properly, you will need to consider the installation of a drainage system that will dispel water away from the roots of the bush.
On the other hand, too much drainage could also be a problem. For instance, if you have sandy soil, the water will drain too quickly to allow the roots sufficient time to absorb enough for their needs.
You will need to prepare the soil if the water drains under six hours during your drainage test. The addition of organic material such as peat moss and compost manure will improve the drainage to retain some of the water.
When you water a rose bush, you actually water the base of the plant only as a way of reducing the chance for disease by getting the leaves wet. Adding organic material such as peat moss and compost manure will help hold some of that water in place.
If your site has a major problem with drainage, then raised beds can be built to grow roses. However, care must be taken in the construction of the raised bed as some timber products can be toxic to roses.
Potential areas for the planting of rose bushes need to be checked for the quality of light that is available in both the morning and afternoon. Several species of rose bushes will tolerate full exposure to the sun, but unfortunately, they may fail if there is too much shade.
Generally, rose bushes need to be exposed to full sun for a minimum of 6 - 8 hours per day. The more sun your rose bushes is exposed to the more blooms it will yield.
The light from the morning sun is preferred for rose bushes as its leaves are given a good opportunity to dry off the morning dew. This will help prevent the formation of mildew and other diseases on the leaves and petals.
Roses need to be planted in such a way as to provide a good air circulation around the bushes. This means that they are not to be planted close together or in the vicinity of other plants or buildings. If they are crowded, clear air movement is restricted which increases the probability of a disease infection.
It is of high importance that bushes should not be planted in areas where large trees and shrubs will compete for naturally available organic food. At the same time, make sure that new bushes are not planted near neighbour's plants as your expensive feed may be diverted to his plants that may have larger and deeper roots!
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