We’re still seeing evidence of winter damage in our gardens and discovering that many of our roses did not survive that severe January cold spell.
It’s a shame to lose some of the old favourites we’ve enjoyed for years. It has been a harsh lesson, but hopefully we have learned that we need to protect our roses over winter, by simply mulching over the bud unions with about 30 cm of bark mulch or soil to prevent this loss in the future.
It might be wise to add this chore to our phones and calendars now for a Nov. 1 cover up. Tree roses must have the top graft protected and the easiest and fastest method is to wrap a four- to five-foot-high wire frame around the stems and fill this cylinder with mulch or leaves, making sure the top bud union is well protected.
We all need to be more aware of the damage caused by more severe weather and protect our plants accordingly.
This is especially true for any plants in containers which require far more winter protection and depending upon how the cold winter winds hit our gardens, we may even need to adjust our plantings and plants to tolerate cold weather in the future.
Shrub roses, for example, are far hardier than grafted varieties, not only because they are grown on their own roots, but also because they have been bred to tolerate colder climates, many down to Zone 4 and 5.
There are many varieties of shrub roses which are also very disease and insect resistant as well. The Easy Elegance, True Bloom and Knock Out series are exceptional for continuous colour and vitality.
As for our surviving roses, many are leafing out nicely, with some flower buds already showing. With our variable spring weather mildew and Black Spot are already problematic.
If you pick off all the infected foliage and alternate applications of garden sulphur with a baking soda solution (mixed at the rate of eight grams per litre of water), every seven to 10 days, you will have pretty good success keeping the foliage clean. There are also organic fungicides like Safer’s Defender, which are effective when applied every five to seven days.
Roses are heavy feeders, so work in some well-rotted manure or Sea Soil around your roses to build up the soil.
Make sure you use a low nitrogen, high phosphorous and high potash formula, with micronutrients, for best results. Feeding every eight to 10 weeks with a good rose food like Garden Pro Rose Food 8-14-12 will keep your roses in great shape.
Roses are still, by far, the most popular flowering shrub for sunny locations and they add so much beauty and perfume to our gardens.
This fall, let’s make sure we protect them from the winter cold.
