Rose Garden in better days

by Charlotte F

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It has rained a lot here in North Florida and they seem to be unhealthy with few blooms. No disease is noted and just leggy. Do I just need to fertilize?

9 answers

Catherine Smith on Sep 01, 2013
They look very healthy, I'd suggest you fertilize as normal. Dead head what needs it and do keep an eye out for possible fungal problems, because of all the rain. That looks lovely.

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Douglas Hunt on Sep 01, 2013
My "Old Blush" isn't blooming much right now but I think it's just because it's the height of the summer heat. I expect to get back to its old blooming self when the temperatures moderate a little.

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Charlotte F on Sep 01, 2013
This photo was when the bushes looked healthy, The bushes are leggy now as they have never been before. They rest and bloom usually in the heat of the summer, but I really think the water we have had has removed all the fertilizer, but I don't know for sure.

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- Douglas Hunt on Sep 01, 2013
  @Charlotte F What type of roses are they? I wouldn't worry to much about cutting them back. I'm going to take advantage of this lull in blooming to cut back mine because they've gotten to over 6 feet high.
  
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Catherine Smith on Sep 01, 2013
Please wait to do any drastic cut back right now. Even though you guys are in the "tropics", if you cut back now, you're going to encourage those rose bushes to put out new growth which is too tender to handle cold. Do some light shaping and pruning now, but do you're major cutting back in late winter or early spring.

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- Douglas Hunt on Sep 02, 2013
  @Catherine Smith Even with a minimum of three and a half months before even the possibility of a frost?
  
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- Catherine Smith on Sep 02, 2013
  @Douglas Hunt Yep. You can do regular deadheading and pruning, but don't get carried away. At 3 and half months the new growth would just be coming in good. Your roses will not be happy Wait till late winter, early spring and then give them a "hair cut". I normally do mine in February when we get a "warm" day here in VA. Then give them fertilizer and side dress with compost in April. I had tried several in containers this year and am not exactly thrilled with the results, so their going back in the ground. Another honey do, for my honey. But I've wanted to redesign a couple of my flower beds and this would be a good time to set up something more permanent for my roses. I'm also trying to propagate a couple of "wild" types I got from my son's older neighbor lady. They are deep, deep red and just gorgeous. I can tell their old roses, but have no idea on the variety, They are a multifloral type and bloom like crazy. Just my kinda deal. LOL
  
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- Douglas Hunt on Sep 02, 2013
  @Catherine Smith OK, I will prune gently. Perhaps the roses you are trying to propagate are Louis Philippe?
  
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Catherine Smith on Sep 02, 2013
Not sure about the variety as yet, Douglas. I want to get some pictures of the blooms and check out what's at Antique Rose Emporium and Palatines. Both are my go-to for good pictures of old varieties.

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Charlotte F on Sep 02, 2013
They are pink knock out roses.

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Charlotte F on Sep 02, 2013
knockout roses. They certainly are not as lush and full of blooms now.

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- Catherine Smith on Sep 02, 2013
  @Charlotte F That's ok, the growing season is winding down. Knockouts are tough, they'll be back better than ever next spring. But you can still enjoy what you have with them right now. I like mine, but they don't have much scent. My old roses, well you can tell their roses. The Sheer Bliss is finally doing better, not quite sure what was going on, but I repotted it into a larger container. It's gorgeous and smells like heaven, but it is a white tea rose and touchy as anything around. sigh
  
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Charlotte F on Sep 03, 2013
Thanks to everyone for your comments.

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Mary Laniewski on Sep 03, 2013
I live in Texas and when my roses get to leggy I give them a prunning. I put coffee grinds in the soil and ofcource epsom salt. The heat has my pouting too. But cooler wheather is coming soon (I hope) and that is when you can see more blooms. It hasn't hurt my roses to prune through out the summer. It encourges new grouth and more blooms. This summer has been a strange one here...

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- Catherine Smith on Sep 04, 2013
  @Mary Laniewski Judicious pruning and deadheading during the growing season is always a good thing for your rose bushes and those additives are things they love and I would certainly added banana peels to that list. But I was under the impression when I read both Charlotte and Douglas's comments they were thinking about giving their a major "haircut", not something you want to do right now for the reasons I explained above. Pruning and deadheading stimulate the rose to throw new growth and attempt to "set fruit" the flowers, but that all happens on the new growth. That's why you want to wait to do major pruning until late fall and early winter, so that surge of new growth happens in the spring so there's limited danger of frost damage. Now I know you guys are all in the warm zone, but you do get some heavy duty frosts that can seriously damage your plants.
  
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- Mary Laniewski on Sep 04, 2013
  @Catherine Smith Your right about if cold wheather is near not to prune. Here in Texas I have run the AC on Christmas day. Oh the joys of fickle Houston weather. We have been very lucky the past two years about a warm winter. Most winters here we don't get a hard frost until Jan. You never know when that can change though. I wait to do my heavy prunning in Feb. How's your summers there? Do ya'll have the horrible humidity as we do?
  
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- Catherine Smith on Sep 05, 2013
  @Mary Laniewski Oh yes, VA is humid, most of the time. That's probably why we seem to have a corner on Black Spot, LOL
  
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