Regional Growing Guide: Pacific Northwest

Growing roses in the Pacific Northwest poses some challenges. The summers are short, cool, and often wet. Roses like lots of sun, warmish temperatures, and dry foliage. But there's just something special about roses, and many gardeners feel a garden is incomplete without at least one rose bush.

In this challenging climate, pre-planning is essential. Begin by paring your list of desired roses down to those with the most natural resistance to the most common diseases -- rust and black spot. (see the list of AARS past winners) Choose the planting site carefully. Planting correctly and providing early care offer the best chance for success, which makes the extra effort worthwhile.

Give them Air
Roses need plenty of space. Good air circulation reduces the risk of disease, and exposure to full sunshine increases bloom. Select the sunniest spot in a place with good air flow. For example, if you have a choice between a corner garden bounded by the house and garage or a garden in an open area in the yard, choose the open one. Plant shrub roses at least 4 feet apart and the same distance from walls, hedges, fences, or other shrubs.

Planting From Containers
Roses can be purchased bare root during the winter months, but some gardeners prefer to purchase established plants growing in containers. (where to buy) That way, they can inspect the plant for disease or insect problems, and see the size, color, and fragrance of the bloom.

Feed and Water Often
The first growing season is critical for new roses. Flower production requires a constant source of energy so it's essential to provide those nutrients. Choose a rose-specific fertilizer formula that is fortified with trace elements. Organic fertilizers tend to break down slowly over time, giving the plants a steady stream of nutrients. Most important is regular watering. Roses need about an inch of water per week. Building a basin beneath each rose bush and filling it once or twice at watering time will allow the moisture to trickle down slowly and wet the entire root mass.

Transplanting Roses

Do you need to move a rose bush, or transplate a rose from one spot to another for some other reason? Perhaps you are rescuing a rose that would be harmed by a building or landscaping project, for example. If so, here are some techniques. Note that the best time of year to transplant roses is late winter or early spring. Try to transplant before the leaf buds break, but after the harshest cold of winter has passed.

1. If possible, prepare the planting hole in advance.

2. Dig up the rose bush on a cloudy, cool day. Or, dig it in the early morning or evening when the weather is cool.

3. Dig up as large a rootball as you can manage, and place the plant in a container or wrap it in a tarp. It's important that the delicate feeder roots don't dry out. Trim foliage to make a compact plant.

4. Water the plant thoroughly. You want the rootball to be completely moist. If you won't be planting it right away, store it in a cool, shady spot.

5. Prepare the planting hole. Dig a hole two to three times as wide as the container, but only as deep. This will give the plant lots of easy-to-navigate space to extend its roots horizontally. However, digging a hole too deep can cause the plant to settle too much.

6. Fill hole half-full with water and let it soak in. You want to make sure the surrounding soil is moist, too.

7.  Trim any extra long roots.

8. Set the plant in the hole so it sits at the same height or just slightly higher than it was in its original location.

9. Refill the hole halfway, incorporating up to 25 percent compost into the backfill soil. Water thoroughly.

10. Fill in the rest of the hole with soil, then form a donut-shaped berm at the outer edges of the hole, to hold water.

11. Water to fill the berm two more times to thoroughly saturate the refilled soil.

12. If the weather is hot and dry, provide shade from noon until dusk for one week or until leaves stay perked up all day long.

13. Fill the berm with water each day over the next several days.

14. Water the plant weekly if nature doesn't provide, and observe the plant daily for signs of wilting or insect or disease problems.

15. Add an organic mulch, such as bark chips, to help hold in moisture, keeping the mulch a few inches from the rose canes.