As we head towards the summer this is a good time to check your roses and give them some TLC. Your roses should be starting to look fabulous at the moment, with perfumed flowers, lush new growth and a heady fragrance as you walk past them. This video gives you some tips on that and more summer care for your roses.
Roses need maintenance mid-summer to keep them flowering into autumn. Once this latest flush of flowers is over – it’s time to give your plants a summer prune.
- Don’t just deadhead your plants by snapping off spent flowers.
- Wear gloves, get out the secateurs and cut the stems back to an outward-facing bud near the base of each stem, aiming to remove 20 – 30cm of old growth.
Follow up care
- As a direct result of this pruning, roses put on lots of new growth. This draws on the plant’s energy reserves so it is important to provide extra food and water to fuel the new growth.
- If the soil is dry, water well, ensuring moisture seeps into the soil. Continue to apply deep soaks of water at least once a week while the roses are in growth and flower.
- After watering, spread a few handfuls of organic manure or rose food around each plant. Top this up with organic mulch, such as aged manure or compost.
Mulch is essential around roses. Not only does it nourish the soil and feed the plant, it also retains soil moisture, keeps soil cooler on hot days and smothers
weed growth.
Expect to see your plants back in flower in around six to eight weeks from pruning.