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Tips for summer rose care

Bushes need water and a little attention to look their best

Sacramento Digs Gardening
BY Debbie Arrington PUBLISHED JUL 29, 2020

About Face, a very tall grandiflora, was a 2005 All-America Rose Selection. (Photos: Debbie Arrington)

The Daybreaker rose, a floribunda, loves the heat. The foliage

is shiny and clean, too.

Summer is rose season in Sacramento. Public displays such as the state Capitol’s World Peace Rose Garden and McKinley Park’s Memorial Rose Garden overflow with colorful blooms.

How do they keep looking so good when temperatures are soaring? Water and TLC.

* Roses are naturally drought tolerant, but they need consistent moisture to look their best. When they’re struggling to survive, it’s hard to bloom, too.

Deep water bushes once a week. If using drip irrigation, make sure each mature full-size bush receives at least 5 gallons a week.

* To retain that moisture and keep roots cooler, mulch bushes with organic mulch such as wood chips or leaves – not rocks or stones. (Rocks retain heat and dramatically raise soil temperature; those conditions cook rose roots.) Also mulch cuts down on weeds, competition for water and nutrients.

Betty Boop, a floribunda, tends to get redder in the heat.

* Trim off spent blooms; do this regularly. This cues the bush to keep blooming. When “deadheading,” trim the stem back to at least the first five-leaf leaflets, cutting about ¼ inch above the node (where the leaf attaches to the stem).

* For bouquets (or just a single rose), cut roses in the early morning; they’ll last longer in the vase. Re-cut the end of the stem under water to get rid of any air bubbles. That helps the stem suck up moisture in the vase and also extends the bloom’s vitality.

* Want long straight stems for cut roses? Trim farther down the stem when deadheading. Roses tend to regrow to the same height. Instead of clipping 4 inches below the spent bloom, trim down 12 inches (or more) to another five-leaf leaflet, preferably pointing away from the bush’s center. That helps air circulation, which cuts down on fungal disease, and makes for a straighter stem.

* Time your summer pruning for the greatest impact. Roses tend to bloom six to eight weeks after pruning. Bushes pruned now will have full blooms in late September. If you want all your roses to be in bloom at once (such as for a special occasion), give every bush a trim.

Also a floribunda rose, Mardi Gras enjoys a summer shower.

* Feed roses with fertilizer designed for roses; do this once a month during summer. Always water deeply before applying fertilizer. Roses need more phosphorus (the second number listed on the fertilizer package) than nitrogen (the first number).

* Fungal disease tends to disappear with high heat. But pick up fallen petals and foliage from the ground around your roses. Those discards may harbor fungal disease such as powdery mildew or rust; those fungi will get active again when cooler temperatures arrive in fall and can infect the bush’s healthy foliage.

* Dusty and dry conditions invite trouble – especially spider mites. If you’ve noticed little webs all over a bush, spider mites have likely moved in. In the early morning, give your roses a bath. Spray their foliage and rinse off accumulated dust along with any spider mites.

* Showering your roses also can blast aphids off stems and buds. Besides looking good, clean leaves work better for the plant; they’re more efficient in photosynthesis. Clean foliage leads to a stronger, healthier bush.

* Be on the lookout for pests. Aphids in particular seem to come out of nowhere. Watch out for ants; they like to carry aphids onto juicy plants. Thrips – very tiny critters, smaller than a pinpoint – gravitate to light-colored roses and create brown tunnels on petals. By being observant, you can stop pest problems before they become serious.

And while you’re looking for bugs, remember to stop and enjoy your roses, too. That’s why you grow them.

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GENERAL GARDENING

An article about gardening.

Keywords:

drought-tolerant plants gardening Sacramento roses summer rose care garden pests deadheading irrigation aphids perennials flowers

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Flowers in My Back Yard Series

Aug. 4: Dianthus a deceptively hardy flower

July 28: Naked Ladies put on summer show

July 21: Thank Luther Burbank for these long-lasting beauties (Shasta daisies)

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July 7: Grow these bright cosmos for bees and butterflies

June 30: Agapanthus adds blue fireworks to the garden

June 23: Easy-care gazanias fill those hot corners

June 16: Daylilies are perfect for water-wise gardens (and a lot more)

June 9: Grow coneflowers for pollinators -- and yourself

June 2: Sunflowers capture Sacramento's summer attitude

May 29: Are your roses going 'blind'?

May 26: Zinnias are the summer flowers every garden needs

May 19: Plant dahlias now for late-summer flower power

May 12: Know your coreopsis from your bidens

May 5: Mums the word on Mother's Day weekend

April 28: Majestic Matilija poppy is worth a look

April 21: Celebrate roses, America's favorite flower

April 14: Small flowers with outsized impact

April 7: Calendulas do double duty

April 3: Make Easter lilies last for years to come

March 31: In praise of a pollinator magnet (small-leaf salvias)

March 24: Azaleas brighten shady spots

March 17: The perfect flower for beginners? Try zonal geraniums

March 10: Keep camellias happy for years to come

March 3: Fruit tree blossoms are a fleeting joy

Feb. 27: Are your roses looking rusty?

Feb. 24: Treasure spring daffodils now and for years to come

Feb. 17: How and why to grow wildflowers

Feb. 10: Let's talk Valentine's Day roses

Feb. 3: Why grow flowers?

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Garden checklist for week of Aug. 2

Get out early in the morning and monitor your garden’s moisture needs. Deep water and add temporary shade structures for plants that are feeling a little burned. In particular, protect developing peppers and eggplant.

* Put off fertilization until this heat passes; plants need to concentrate on hydration instead of growth.

* Harvest tomatoes, beans, squash, pepper and eggplants to prompt plants to keep producing. Give your plants a deep watering twice a week, more if planted in containers.

* Watch out for caterpillars and hornworms in the vegetable garden. They can strip a plant bare in one day. Pick them off plants by hand in early morning or late afternoon.

* Mulch can be your garden’s best friend – it conserves moisture while blocking out weeds. But don’t let mulch mound around stalks, stems or trunks. That can promote rot.

* Pinch off dead flowers from perennials and annuals to lengthen their summer bloom.

* Pick up after your fruit trees. Clean up debris and dropped fruit; this cuts down on insects and prevents the spread of brown rot.

* Prepare for a fall full of flowers by paying a little extra attention to your garden. Cut off spent blooms from roses, annuals and perennials. Roses will rebloom about six to eight weeks after deadheading.

* Indoors, start seedlings for fall vegetable planting, including bunching onion, cabbage, broccoli, cauliflower, kale, radicchio and lettuce.

* Sow seeds of perennials in pots for fall planting including yarrow, coneflower and salvia.

* In the garden, direct seed beets, carrots, leaf lettuce and turnips. Make sure to keep seeds and seedlings consistently moist.

* Plant potatoes.

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