How To Grow a Rose Bush

Some people are afraid to plant roses because they think they’re a high-maintenance plant. But the truth is, while some types of roses can be finicky, others are extremely easy to care for.

I have several rose bushes in my garden, and I don’t give them any special care. They’re as easy to grow as almost any other shrub! Why the carefree attitude? Because shrub roses aren’t as labor-intensive as older hybrid tea roses. The latter notoriously required pesticides and pampering to keep them disease and insect-free.

So if you have dreams of caring for a rose garden, try these bush varieties. With help from a few gardening experts, we’ll walk you through everything you need to know about how to grow a rose bush.

Types of Rose Bushes

Most rose bushes sold today have been selected for disease resistance, which makes them easier to care for. Some of the most common types include:

• Knock Out Roses: These popular bushes bloom almost continually all summer long without deadheading. You can find blooms in various colors — red, pink, white and even yellow. Depending on the variety, they’re generally hardy in United States Department of Agriculture Plant Hardiness Zones 5 through 11. Most will grow up to three feet tall and wide.
• David Austin Roses: The classic English variety, known for the size of their blooms and disease resistance. Many are hardy in Zones 5 through 11. They will grow to four feet tall and three feet wide.
• Oso Easy Roses: These are usually hardy in Zones 5 through 9. They’re also bred for disease resistance and low maintenance.

“When buying shrub roses, look for healthy plants with no spots on the leaves. Take a closer look at the stems to ensure that you can see some protruding buds, as this will produce flowering stems,” says gardening expert Annette Hird. “Avoid bushes that have a lot of dead twigs, as these haven’t been pruned correctly.”

How To Plant a Rose Bush

Rose bushes are as easy to plant as any other shrub, although you might want to wear thick leather gloves up to your elbows to avoid scratchy thorns.

According to Teresa Byington, co-host of the Rose Chat Podcast, “Roses, like most blooming shrubs, perform best in full sun [six to eight hours], well-drained soil, and about two inches of water per week, or about the equivalent of a five-gallon bucket. Once established, they can deal with less.”

Planting container-grown rose bushes

Most shrub roses are sold in containers. Plant your rose bush at the same level it grows in the container and apply two to three inches of mulch around the base. Backfill the hole with the same soil you dug out.

Planting dormant rose bushes

In early spring you may find rose bushes sold as dormant plants, with their roots wrapped in peat moss in a plastic bag. Before planting, remove from the bag, shake off the moss and soak the roots in a bucket of water for about 24 hours.

When planting, dig a hole deep enough to accommodate the roots and build up a mound in the center of the hole. Gently spread the roots apart and place them over the mound, then backfill with the same soil you dug out of the hole.

How To Care for a Rose Bush

Care for your rose bush like any other flowering shrub in your garden.

Watering

Keep your rose bush well-watered until it becomes established. As Byington notes, they need about two inches of water per week, but once established, they will grow with much less.

Fertilizing

If you’re unsure about of the fertility of your soil, apply a fertilizer labeled for use with roses or other flowers in the spring as they break dormancy.

Pruning

Gardeners frequently ask when and how to prune their rose bushes. Paul Zimmerman of Paul Zimmerman Roses says, “I like to prune in very early spring when the forsythias bloom. That’s nature’s way of telling me the roses are waking up.”

“You can tip the roses down by about one-third in fall to prevent winds from beating them up, but leave the heavy pruning until early spring.”

Overwintering

Most shrub roses require little care to overwinter successfully. Provide a good layer of mulch around the rose bushes and remove any leaves that might carry a disease such as black spot. Your roses should be fine when spring arrives.

Handling insect pests and diseases

Fortunately, most shrub roses are bred to resist common rose diseases. In fall, removing leaves that might harbor disease and ensuring your roses are growing well should prevent black spot and other maladies.

Another option, according to Hird, is to “try some companion planting with highly aromatic plants such as alliums.” Their strong, sulfur-like fragrance is a natural deterrent for garden pests, including Japanese beetles, which are known for eating shrub roses.

FAQ

What’s the best time to plant a rose bush?

If you live in a colder climate, make sure to plant any roses at least four to six weeks before your first frost date. This gives the roots time to become established before the roses go dormant. You can also plant them in early spring and summer. For milder climates, “Fall planting is a great thing to do. More roses and plants are becoming available in the fall and I find that is a great time to plant so they can get established over the winter and early spring,” says Zimmerman.

What type of soil do roses prefer?

Most roses need room to grow in well-drained soil, where they can get at least six or more hours of sunlight daily. Here’s the easiest way to see how well your soil is draining: Dig a 12- to 18-inch wide and equally deep hole. Fill the hole with water and let it drain. Once it’s completely drained, fill it again. Well-draining soil will drop about an inch per hour.

About the Experts

• Annette Hird is the owner and author of Easy Urban Gardens. Hird has an Associate Diploma in Horticulture and is an urban gardening expert. She has worked as a professional propagator and managed, maintained and improved many urban and rural gardens.
• Teresa Byington is the co-host of the Rose Chat Podcast—a podcast on growing, showing and just about anything else in the world of roses. She is an active member of the Indianapolis Rose Society currently serving as Website and Social Media Chair, and a member of the American Rose Society.
• Paul Zimmerman is a rose expert and owner of Paul Zimmerman Roses. Paul is one of the original founders of the Tinseltown Rose Society. He has written numerous award-winning articles for The Rose, the National Magazine and the Annual of the American Rose Society. Currently he hosts the blog “Roses Are Plants, Too” on the Fine Gardening Magazine website.