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David E. Ross · 01-03-2009, 01:44 AM posted to rec.gardens

On 2/28/2009 2:15 PM, wrote:

I'm still a stubborn holdout for scent, though I agree it's hard to
find. Mr. Lincoln has a nice scent and a wonderful color, but the
blooms are very short-lived

While considered a modern rose, 'Mr. Lincoln' was introduced 25-30 (or
more) years ago, when growers still targeted their local regions. It
has a marvelous scent, and the blooms are not as short-lived as many
florabundas.

Sad but true. Not even the big peat-potted "bare-roots" are worth
buying, but sometimes that's the only thing on offer. Our nursery
used to bury the bare-roots in a huge bin of the wood shavings,
which made it easy to pull out the plant, but they no longer do that.

One major problem with roses from containers is that you can't examine
the roots. Early last year, I bought several roses from Armstrong
Nurseries (a chain in California and possibly elsewhere) that were
pre-planted in paper pots. The idea is to plant the rose with the pot.
Instead, I carefully peeled away the pot and shook loose the mix around
the roots. Sure enough, I had to cut away broken roots from every plant.

However. I have never had trouble transplanting, even if I had to
shake off most of the [whatever] that they put in the peat pot.
Main thing is to dig deep and wide enough, and to mound up he
soil in the middle of the hole. Around this little hill, you drape
the spread-out roots of the rose. Water amply but don't drown
the newcomer. And WAIT! Patience is the name of the game.

The whole idea of bare-root planting is that the plant will adapt better
to the native soil of your garden if its roots don't have to grow past
an interface between potting mix and soil. With Armstrong's method --
used by many other nurseries -- the roots must also penetrate the
decomposing paper pot. The result can be a root bound plant.

Lightly filter extreme blasting sunlight at first until plant is
established.

What about worm castings? I usually mix in some when transplanting.

I stir a generous amount of superphosphate into the bottom of the hole.
Phosphorus -- which promotes flowering and root growth -- does not
dissolve and leach through the soil, so it must be placed where roots
can find it. I then mix peat moss and a little compost into what I dug
out of the planting hole. The idea is to plant the rose where its roots
are above BUT NOT TOUCHING the superphosphate. (The compost contains a
variety of micro-organisms, some to promote healthy roots and some to
break down fertilizers into components that roots can absorb.)

Other than the superphosephate, I give NO nutrients to the rose during
its first year. The goal is to allow the roots to recover and spread
before encouraging foliage growth and flowering (both of which are
encouraged by fertilizer). That way, there is not enough foliage to
stress the plant when warm weather imposes a demand for moisture on the
roots. Roses prefer abundant nutrients, and I feed heavily and
frequently after the first year.

--
David E. Ross
Climate: California Mediterranean
Sunset Zone: 21 -- interior Santa Monica Mountains with some ocean
influence (USDA 10a, very close to Sunset Zone 19)
Gardening diary at http://www.rossde.com/garden/diary