I asked this in the other thread, but as it was mixed in with so many other questions, it just got lost. So asking it again, to be sure I don't miss anything. There are all kinds of directions on the sides of the boxes the roses came in...various things about planting, pruning etc. This direction in particular left me with a bit of confusion.... ( photo / image / picture from Ronni's Garden ) Is this really important? Should I be buying some kind of insecticide or fungicide and spraying it on the one I just planted? If so, what am I looking for specifically....there are rows and rows of all manner of things in Home Depot to treat plants and such with...makes my head spin!
Hmm. Personally, Ive never sprayed my roses. I have used Bayer Advanced 2 In 1 Systemic Rose & Flower Care, but Im not consistent about it. It helps to know/find out which roses are prone to disease, etc and which are less prone.
I've never sprayed anything on roses, or any plants, that's not how I garden, and definitely not how I want to spend time or money. There are so many great roses that are just fine without all of that hullabaloo, chances are good that you got one! If I like it, I get it. Water when thirsty, trim the ugly parts and keep the shape nice. That seems to be enough to make roses happy and look great. I believe overall cultural conditions will lead to a healthy or not healthy plant. The correct exposure is the most important thing. Then most of my efforts are directed to adding organic matter to the soil. A plant given such healthy conditions that is still bothered by some disease is not welcome to stay in my garden. There is a financial motivation to convince you it's necessary to spray roses on a schedule. Roses have been cultivated for waaaaaaaaay longer than sprays (or even 'friendly' concoctions like fertilizer) have been sold.
I've only ever sprayed my roses with a soap solution to get rid of greenfly. Other than that I just leave them alone until it's time to deadhead them or to prune them back.
I used to spray my Roses with Funginex until the pesticide ban rolled through here a few years back. Now I am diligent in checking for bugs (with soap and water in a small bucket for handpicking) and picking off any yellowing or mouldy looking leaves. My Roses still bloom beautifully with the help of some banana peels and regular watering. It is very time consuming, but well worth the effort. Here is that (now organic!!) Rose garden last season
Thanks all for your advice and input. As usual, I find it invaluable! Netty, your roses are gorgeous! But now I have another question.....why banana peels?
Once upon a time someone told me that Roses love bananas ... something to do with the extra potassium I guess. I buried a banana peel at the base of each rose bush and they did GREAT that year. I've been doing it ever since!
Banana peels are like multi-vitamins for roses I should start doing this more, although my mom is really the only person in this house that eats them. I prefer banana chips haha
Yes, my gramma told me that too, and it's true! I won't pretend to know about the science, but bananas make roses bloom (during the time when they should naturally be blooming, but might not be, or not enough.) You can pureé the peels with water in blender and pour on, or just scrape back the surface near the base of the rose, lay peels, cover back up. Whatever you're in the mood for when you finish your banana. Leaving them just laying there doesn't seem to do as much for the rose, and fruit flies probably eat most of it. I've never encountered a plant that didn't seem to smile after a drink of 'banana water.' I try to do it on all potted plants (poor, trapped things!) at least a few times during summer, but laziness dictates most of them end up quickly buried under a rose bush.
