Growing Roses in Illinois
By
Connie Zink

Roses are one of the world’s most famous flowers.  Roses are not as difficult as the reputation that they have but, they are also not maintenance free. With some extra effort, you can grow beautiful roses.

Most roses require at least six hours of full sun daily to perform well.  They like well-drained soil.  They do not like wet feet.  But they do need at least an inch of water per week.  Overhead watering should be avoided, also try to water in the morning.

Try not to plant roses near trees where they will have to complete with the tree roots.  To plant a potted rose, prune back to 6” to 8” tall.  This will send more strength into the plant as it is establishing itself.  Dig a hole 12”-18” deep and 14” – 20” in diameter.  Add some peat moss and compost into the hole.  Also place a handful of super phosphate in the bottom of the hole and add some soil over the top.  Place the rose into the hole with the graft 2” to 4” below the soil surface.  This is the recommendation from the University of Iowa for this area.  This will give you much hardier tea roses here in the winter.  Do not use liquid fertilizer the first 2-3 weeks as this will burn the small feeder roots just getting established.

To plant a bare-root rose, dig your hole as described above.  You need to soak a bare root rose for at least two hours, up to overnight.  Place a mound of soil in the bottom of the hole to spread the rose’s roots over.  Prune off any broken roots.  Cut canes back to approximately 8” tall.  (Remember when planting grafted roses, place graft 2”-4” below final soil surface.)  Add compost and well-dried manure into the hole and fill with soil.  Mound dirt around the rose to keep the canes from drying out.  After 2-3 weeks when new growth starts to show, remove the extra mound of soil. 

In this area you may start fertilizing roses around April 15^th after you see new growth starting.  Some suggestions are a good rose granular fertilizer, alfalfa meal, fish emulsion, seaweed, Epsom salt, Mill’s Magic Mix, or a water-soluble fertilizer.  You may fertilize every two weeks through the growing season stopping after Aug. 15^th.  Do not fertilize when the soil is dry.  You will need to water first.  If applying liquid water-soluble fertilizer, also apply to underside of leaves.  Apply only in the early morning.  The leaves must have time to dry out during the day.  Also do not fertilize during the hottest part of the day as this may cause leaf burn.

Some roses are more disease prone than others.  Plant varieties that are the most disease resistant.  Remove the bottom six inches of leaves to help resist Black Spot.  Keep the center of plants open and try to give plenty of extra space around the rose bush.  Treat for insects or disease at the sign of a problem.  The best way to avoid problems is to keep a plant healthy.  Fertilize and water regularly.  A healthy rose is a lot less prone to insects and disease.

Hybrid tea roses will probably need to be on a spraying schedule.  Starting April 15^th spray with Funginex at ½ strength.  Spray every 7 to 10 days for Black Spot and Powdery Mildew.  Remove any infected leaves.  After May 1^st you will be using full strength as recommended by manufacturer.  Place 1 to 2 drops of Joy or Dawn dish soap per one gallon in your sprayer and this will help the solution stick to the leaves.

There are many disease resistant roses on the market today that do not need all of this spraying.  The best solution to Japanese beetles is hand picking and dropping in a bucket of soapy water.

Some roses will need winter protection.  I prefer mulching as opposed to rose cones.  Fluctuating temperatures inside a cone can do substantial damage.  I also do not trim my roses back much in the fall.  Most trimming is reserved for spring.  Just remove canes that are too long that will flop in the winter winds.  Mulching with a 2”-4” layer of oak leaves, shredded maple leaves, straw, or compost should be sufficient to keep your roses alive through the winter months.  If we have a dry fall you should water your roses every few weeks to make sure that they have sufficient moisture to last them until spring.  I lost more roses last year because of insufficient rainfall and snow cover.

There is nothing more beautiful than roses from your own garden and they are not as difficult as you may have thought.  Give some a try.  You might like it.

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