when is the best time to move roses? is now ok, if i can keep them watered, or should i wait until fall? some are grafted & some are own root, if that matters. one is supposedly a climber although it's never gotten more than 3' tall in three years. (Fourth of July
Roses do not move well, but you can get better chances of success during dormancy and the move is to a sunnier spot.
Phisherman wrote in news: snipped-for-privacy@4ax.com:
ok, i'll try to wait until fall. it depends on if we start the pond construction this summer or not. they'll definately be getting more sun & a lot less competition from the damned artimesias (Limelight. non-aggressive my foot! it's
*everywhere* & choking out the regular supposedly agressive artimesias. killed my Southernwood). lee
Where are you? That is, what is your climate?
"David E. Ross" wrote in news:QMudnRYDW6yjp6nXnZ2dnUVZ snipped-for-privacy@posted.docknet:
southeast NH, zone 5b/6, it's been dry up until the past week, and it's starting the monsoon season i think (weather says 1-2" tonight, another 1-2" tomorrow). lee
I must tell that to all the roses I've moved. It seems that they don't know that aren't supposed to move well.
Try to move them when it's the recommended time for planting roses in your area. Mind you, I have moved things when I considered it 'must be done NOW' and without following my own advice for it being the 'right' time and not had any problems. I do think however that it is probably best to stick to planting times when they can do maximum root restablishment before they are expected to perform at their best.
In preparation, dig the new planting holes in the late summer. The holes should be about 3-1/2 ft across and equally deep. Refill the bottom 1/2 ft of each hole, stirring a double handful of bone meal or superphosphate into the soil. It's actually best to use soil from the surface to place at the bottom of the hole.
At the same time, dig down three arcs about 1-1/2 ft from the base of each rose. The arcs should each be about 1/6 of the way around the plant and about 2 ft deep. This will cut surface feeder roots, but new feeder roots will form inside the arcs. The gaps between the arcs will suffice to keep the plants growing.
Wait until the roses are just becoming dormant. The air should be cool or cold, but the soil should still be somewhat warm. Connect the arcs, digging down about another foot (total 3 ft deep). Then dig under each rose, cutting any remaining roots. You will definitely need help lifting 3x3ft root balls and moving them to the new planting holes.
Don't prune until you see new buds start to swell in the spring. One fourth of the roses (or more) might fail to survive.
All this is too much work and too risky. Unless a particular variety of rose is rare or no longer available commercially, I would instead just remove and trash the existing roses and plant new ones. For those that are rare or not available, I would take cuttings now and try to root them; for each plant I want to preserve, I would do at least four cuttings since some cuttings will fail. (I wish I had done this with my climbing 'Chrysler Imperial' before I had to have the slope in my back yard repaired. My rose bed was at the bottom of the slope and was totally destroyed during regrading. While 'Chrysler Imperial' is still available as a shrub, the climbing form is no longer grown commercially. I finally replaced it with climbing 'Dublin Bay'.)
As for 'Fourth of July', I have it. It's growing at the side of my house near the front. Finally, it has reached a wire rope that I strung between my house and my neighbor's house, about 7 ft high. From April until I prune it in December, it blooms repeatedly.
Regarding your search for perennials, I can't help you. Your climate is far too different from mine, so I don't really know what would do well in your garden.
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