The Plant Lady: Now is the time to plant roses. Here are some tips to do it right

Planting bare-root roses is pretty straightforward, however there are a few key techniques that should be followed to ensure the best success. As a simple definition, bare root is exactly as it sounds — plants with their roots exposed (no soil). Bare-root season in USDA zone 9a/b is January through mid- March.

There are two major reasons to purchase and plant bare root. The first is sheer selection. Bare-root roses are much cheaper to ship than potted specimens, allowing nurseries to send and receive more volume. Second, planting bare root can give your rose a head start. Planting when dormant allows the rose to set out roots and start growing as soon as soil and air temperatures warm up. Also, rose roots do not like to be disturbed, so planting when dormant prevents this.

Bare-root roses come in three different type of packaging.

1. Large bins of sand or sawdust. This is ideal because you can inspect the roots before you purchase. This setup is usually found at many locally owned smaller nurseries.

2. Bagged roses. The roots are wrapped in sawdust or loose compost and then placed in a plastic bag. If you cannot plant right away, make sure you place the rose in an area where rain cannot collect in the bag and potentially rot out the roots.

3. Peat pot roses. These straddle the line between bare-root and potted roses. Once the bag is removed, score the peat pot along the sides and bottom and plant the entire pot. The advantage to this system is if the weather or time does not allow you to plant before March, the plant has a soil substrate to start growing in and root disturbance is negated. Many times, I remove the peat pot to inspect the roots and I plant as bare root. This way the plant will start in native soil right away.

When choosing your rose look for canes that are spaced evenly around that are firm and green in color. Look for buds along the cane that are firm and not brown or wilting.

When selecting a site for your roses, keep in mind that they need at least six hours of sun a day.

If you have poorly draining soil or heavy clay, then it is important to amend the soil to increase drainage. While roses can tolerate heavy soils, like most plants they prefer good drainage. In a few instances, I have had rotting of bare-root roses. Most likely what happened was that as tiny new roots emerged in spring, the wet soil conditions did not allow for aeration and drainage, resulting in the poor plants basically drowning. If amending is not possible and the soil is very heavy, then this is a scenario where I would recommend planting actively growing plants versus bare root.

If weather prevents working the soil, then cover that area with a piece of plywood or even plastic to help keep the soil dry. It is not ideal to work and plant in very wet soils as it can break down the soil structure.

When it is time to plant roses

▪ Soak the roots in a bucket of room temperature water overnight to rehydrate.

▪ Prune off any broken roots or canes.

▪ Dig a hole no deeper than the highest root. The hole should be twice the width of the roots. It is a good idea to use a digging fork to disturb the sides of the hole.

▪ Avoid disturbance of the bottom of the hole as much as possible, as this will prevent settling of the plant.

In the center of the hole form a mound of soil, and drape the roots over this mound. Doing this prevents settling of the plant and helps prevent voids when backfilling soil.

▪ I always like to add a few handfuls of compost mixed into the native soil. Backfill the hole.

▪ Almost all roses sold in nurseries are grafted, meaning the desired bloom (scion) is grafted onto a different rootstock. The graft line is where all the canes are originating from. It is important to make sure that the graft line is free of any soil and debris. In colder parts of the country it is advised to bury this sensitive growth as the cold is a bigger concern than the potential for fungal/bacterial diseases from the soil. If any growth occurs below the graft line during the year, it is important to remove this.

▪ Water in, adding soil if settling has occurred.

▪ Place about 2 or 3 inches of compost around the rose, avoiding contact with the base. This will help to insulate the roots during the heat of summer, add nutrients and suppress weeds.

▪ When the plant starts to leaf-out, you can then add a rose fertilizer if desired. Having added compost in the hole and above, I usually find that fertilizer is not necessary.

You can find a video of the process above on my YouTube channel at MarleneThePlantLady, under the video “Planting Bare-Root Roses.”