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From: whispering_butterfly

Posted: Fri May 05, 2006 9:59 am
Subject: roses. help pls?

hi I'm sorry I am new here and ive read many things you have posted and you seem to know quite a bit about roses so I was wondering if you could help me a moment. I have 10 rose bushes I have had them for a year, last summer they did wonderful grew large and had many flowers. this year I moved them from my front yard to the backyard and I have them spaced apart . my problem is that they started growing leaves very well and then within the last week or so much of the new growth has died. I have done the first round of fertilization and they are placed in a sunny area. could they be in shock from the move? what would you suggest I do to help them? any ideas would be so greatly appericated! thanx!

Hi Whispering_Butterfly! Welcome to the Forum!

Not knowing where you are from, I am not sure how far along in the season you are, and how developed your roses were when you transplanted them. Were they in leaf when you transplanted, or still dormant?
I suspect that they were no longer dormant. However, you could still move them.

When transplanting a rose it is the same as planting any rose.
Dig your hole larger than required for the plant.
Mix bone meal, compost, manure, leafmold, kelp, epsom salt, etc. into the soil.
I put plenty of water in the hole at this point to ensure that the rose has plenty of deep water where it needs it. It will create a kind of slurry, and helps prevent shocking the rose.
I am not sure what your winters are like, but if they are cold, and get alot of freeze and thaw, like mine, you need to place your rose with the bud union several inches (mine are at least 4, often 6) below ground level. (this does not hurt your rose, and gives it additional protection, in conjunction with mulches, etc. against winter freeze).
Sprinkle and fill in the hole around the root system with prepared soil. Pour more water in. Allow it to settle, bonding the roots with soil, and carefully press on the soil to eliminate air pockets. Don't stomp on it or you will crush the roots.
I also build a dish of soil around my rose to help hold some of the water in around the rose when it is watered.
You should not fertilize a rose with anything but bone meal right away. Wait until it is established and growing well before fertilizing.

Since you have already transplanted yours, if you haven't broken any of their roots, then they have probably gone into shock. Don't give them any more fertilizer now until later in the season when they are back to normal.

I would suggest that you put some bonemeal around the roses, and mix it in with the soil around the rose. You could also try watering them with some compost tea. You can find the recipe for this in the Organic Rose Care topic, in the Rose Care Forum, or in the Organic Forum. If you don't have compost, you could use manure tea, or make up a batch of "rose tea" - recipe also in the Organic Rose Care topic. This will give them a boost.

Make sure that your roses stay watered regularly. Don't let them dry out, but don't leave them soaking wet, or you may invite rot.

Then it's just sit and wait and watch. You should see more new leaves come soon.
Don't fret too much, roses are more resilient that they are given credit for!
Please come back and let me know how it's going, or if you have further questions or problems, I will be more than happy to help!!

Val

thanx so much I will try your suggestions and cross my fingers.

No problem at all! Be sure to let me know what happens - I'm sure they'll be fine, you just set them back a bit!

Val