Roses Are Easy!
"Roses are red, violets are blue." "My love's like a red, red rose." "Gather ye rosebuds while ye may." "A rose by any other name would smell as sweet." "A Rose Is A Rose Is A Rose Is A Rose." "Best Jewel that the earth doth wear." Gardeners and just about everyone else is crazy about roses. Some gardeners would prefer to love them from afar rather than grow them, because of the prickles or misinformation about their maintenance needs. But roses are really quite easy to keep healthy, and you don't need to deal with the prickles except when snipping blooms or pruning in winter. So, let's take a quick look at what they need, and how much you need to invest in their upkeep to reap their beauty. Purchase Proven Varieties AARS winning roses are a best bet, since they've been proved themselves to be great growers all over the United States. Some dependable winners include Dream Come True, Mardi Gras, Rainbow Knock Out, Julia Child, Fourth of July, Tahitian Sunset -- as well as the original Peace, Knock Out and Hot Cocoa.  continued
	Fragrant Roses As I prune my established roses and consider which new varieties to include, I always think first of fragrance. When I first planted my new rose garden at our home, I chose only by color. Then, when they came into bloom, I was disappointed -- they looked beautiful, but lacked the essential rose fragrance. That's when I determined to not even consider a beautiful bloom until I was assured that it would smell strongly as well. Then, I'd look at the rest of its qualities.
Exploring Scents The seven basic scents most often found in hybrid tea roses are apple, clover, lemon, nasturtium, orris, rose, and violet. Others are anise, bay, fern, geranium, honey, hyacinth, lily-of-the-valley, linseed oil, marigold, moss, orange, parsley, peppers, quince, raspberry, and wine. In general, the most highly scented roses are the ones that are darker in color, have more petals to the flower, or have thick, velvety petals. Reds and pinks tend to smell "like a rose;" whites and yellows smell like lemon, orris, nasturtium, and violet; oranges smell like clover, fruit, orris, nasturtium, and violet.  continued
Quick Tips Prune and Feed Lightly prune, feed, and water roses on a weekly or bi-weekly basis to encourage them to flower continuously into the late fall. But use only one-quarter the amount of fertilizer that you'd use if you fed them less frequently. The objective is to apply a minimal amount of fertilizer each time you water. Keep the Blossoms Coming Trim faded blooms down to the first five-part leaf throughout the season. New blooms will appear in about three weeks.  More Tips & Resources  back to Gardening with Roses