Plant of the week - Roses

Plant of the week - Roses

Most people agree that a garden wouldn’t be a garden without a rose or three!

And of course they don't have to be rose bushes - they can be climbers, ramblers, ground-hugging roses and miniatures that can stay in pots all year round.

Many of the traditional problems with roses have been addressed by rose breeders and experts in recent years, and there are many varieties now that have been bred specifically for resistance against some of the common pests and diseases. There are some excellent fertilisers that are formulated just for roses, and all you need to do is apply these three or four times a year.

We grow roses for their summer flowers, so the temptation now is to sit back and just enjoy them. But they will perform even better for you if you keep up a regime of summer maintenance - it's very easy;

• Make sure you use a rose feed at least 3 times a year - we can recommend the best ones for you,
• Dead head all blooms as they go over,
• Water - when established they look after themselves for much of the year, but in really hot spells, they value a good drink!
• Make sure you keep an eye on pests and diseases which they can sometime be prone to.

Come and see us for further advice on any aspect of growing beautiful roses!