Regional Growing Guide: Upper South
Hot, hazy and humid describes much of the year in this region, where roses commence their first peak of bloom by Mother's Day, then continue budding out and blooming through December. While most of the rain comes during winter and early spring, fierce afternoon thunderstorms, nor-easters and even hurricanes may blow through during summer months. The soil may be acidic or sandy: amending with lime helps balance the pH, while compost provides nutrients and improves drainage. The best roses are heat tolerant and resist black spot: new roses often offer improved repeat blooming as well.
Select a season: Spring Early Summer Late Summer Fall Winter
Prune Roses
Major annual rose pruning is best done four to six weeks before the last frost, or when about half of the growth buds on the most vigorous canes are beginning to swell. Although each type of rose has specific pruning requirements, you'll always want to remove dead or diseased canes. The general goal is to encourage new, vigorous growth from the base, so no matter what type of rose you have, it's usually a good idea to remove one or two of the oldest canes from the base of established roses.
Move Roses
As soon as the soil is thawed and dry enough to safely work, move any roses that would look or grow better in another part of the garden. Dig up as much as the root system as possible. Try to keep an intact soil ball, but don't panic if it falls apart. Just replant the rose quickly. Grafted roses survive extreme cold better if the graft union is planted an inch or so below the soil level.
Test Soil and Feed Roses
Repeat-blooming roses, especially, need well-fertilized soil, so test your soil for fertility and pH every year. Roses grow best with a pH range of 6.0 to 6.5. A general recommendation is to add 1/2 cup of alfalfa pellets or meal and an ounce of Epsom salts around each rose bush after the spring pruning. Scratch these lightly into the soil. A week or so later, apply a balanced fertilizer according to the manufacturer's directions. Water well.
Apply Dormant Oil
Dormant horticultural oils destroy overwintering insects and their eggs. Apply in late winter or early spring, while plants are still leafless. Prepare the spray according to the manufacturer's directions, making sure the mixture is properly blended. Spray on a calm day when no rain is forecast for 24 hours and temperatures will remain above 40 degrees F.
Go Wild
Nothing risque, just consider adding some wild, or species, roses to your garden this year. If you have the space for an 8-foot tall shrub, try Rosa glauca. It only blooms once a year, with small pink-and-white flowers, but provides beautiful maroon-tinged foliage that is superb in bouquets all summer. Rosa rugosa var. alba is exquisite in its simplicity and fragrance. Or, try 'Nearly Wild', a short, bushy, disease-resistant variety with single, pink, fragrant flowers.