ROSE ARTICLES

By Robert B. Martin Jr., ARS President January is the time to start bare root roses in the Southwest and information abounds on how to plant them in the ground. But there is a better way to start a bare root rose – in a container. Most people are not even aware this is an option but it is and it is the way I start all of my bare root roses. So let me explain why in case you’d like to do the same. Advantages The advantages to starting bare root roses in containers are many and

by Suzanne M. Horn, Master Rosarian, Pacific Rose Society This article was first published in the Pacific Rose and is a 2016 Award of merit winner. Our featured rose this month is a superb reblooming modern Moss Rose called ‘Treasure Trail’. It was bred in 2002 by a gifted hybridizer of Old Garden Roses, Paul Barden, who has introduced countless unique and charming roses to the market. Its registration name is Ardrum, and it is a cross of Condoleezza x Scarlet Moss ™ (miniatu

by Nanette Londeree, Master Rosarian, Marin Rose Society This is a 2006 Award of Merit article Samuel McGredy had risen to the highest level his working world had to offer; he was the head gardener. At the age of fifty, with a wife and two children, he packed up and left his safe job, got a lease on ten acres of ground with a small greenhouse, and opened the firm of Samuel McGredy & Son, Nurserymen, in Portadown, Northern Ireland in 1880. The nursery’s specialties were fruit

by Bob Martin, ARS President You are no longer new to roses. Or, maybe you still are. You have a small rose garden or maybe it’s getting bigger – a lot bigger. And if it’s a lot bigger, or maybe on its way, you need to up your game in taking care of your roses. So how do you do that? If you’re like me, you need TOOLS. Not just tools, not just run of the mill garden tools, but real tools, tools like those that are described in the catalogues as “professional” tools. But you ha

by Rita Perwich, Consulting Rosarian, San Diego Rose Society Problems in the rose garden can be disheartening: damaged rose blooms are disappointing but blooms are easily deadheaded and roses rebloom; leaf damage is troubling, but leaves can be cut and pulled off and the plant readily grows new leaves. Damaged canes pose a much more serious and critical issue. On every occasion the cane must be cut and sometimes it must be removed right down at the bud union. Like surgery, pr

by Gregory Constant, Master Rosarian, Baton Rouge Rose Society. Central Louisiana Rose Society thanks Gregory Constant, Baton Rouge Rose Society member, for taking the time to document his personal combat and victory in the battle that has confronted many Louisiana rosarians the past few years. ROSE CANKER With the heavy rains of 2016 plaguing the Gulf Coast with unprecedented moisture, it brought with it an outbreak of Rose Canker, also known as Coniothyrium, that has taken

by Jolene Adams, ARS past president, Master Rosarian, NCNH District THE FUNCTION OF STEMS Cells are the basic structural and physiological units of plants. Most of a plant’s reactions occur at the cellular level. Stems contain plant tissues (meristems, xylem, phloem, etc.) that are large, organized groups of similar cells that work together to perform a specific function – in this case the transport system. The vascular system inside the stem forms a continuous pathway from t

by Dorothy Wall, Consulting Rosarian, Mother Lode Rose Society This is a 2009 Award of Merit article. Clipping, shortening & shaping - that pretty well describes pruning! Maybe if we those terms instead of the word 'pruning', people would not become so intimidated by the prospect of this annual ritual. I happen to love pruning my roses! It's the one time I feel that I have a little control over them as the rest of the year they sometimes have a mind of their own and do strang

by Rich Baer, Master Rosarian, Portland Rose Society Thorns, prickles, spines what is the difference? They all hurt when you encounter them in the garden or elsewhere. They are different botanically because they all derive from different parts of the plant. Botanically roses do not have thorns, but are armed with what should be called prickles. However, calling rose prickles thorns goes back so far and is so familiar that there is not much likelihood that it will ever change

by Jolene Adams, ARS past president, Master Rosarian, NCNH District Roses knew about this fad long before we rose growers caught on ... every winter they would look forward to getting a good dousing of some ‘aromatic’ concoction to ward off the fungal evils of the season. We call them ‘dormant sprays.’ While dormant sprays are commonly used on fruit trees, they can also benefit roses and other ornamental shrubs that might develop insect or fungal disease problems as the coole