Roses are some of the most popular and beautiful flowering shrubs grown, but starting a rose garden may seem daunting to new gardeners.
For the most part, roses are pretty tough plants that will grow and bloom without demanding much attention from you.
However, to enjoy the biggest blooms and healthiest growth, roses need more feeding than most flowering shrubs.
Sharing what needs to be done with roses in March, gardening pros at Peter Beales Garden Centre claim roses need fertilising this month.
Fortunately, providing the nutrients they need is easy, and you can do that organically or with synthetic fertiliser products.
The key is to use the best rose fertiliser with the right balance of nutrients and to do so regularly.
The experts said: “As your established roses come out of their dormant state they will spring into life with beautiful blooms if you apply a good fertiliser like Fish, Blood and Bone, or Vitax Q4.
“This feed will give your roses an extra boost of essential trace elements and nutrients, which encourages top growth and beautiful blooms.”
To feed them, ensure you are wearing your gloves first and use a hand fork to remove weeds, old leaves and other debris from the base of your rose.
Next, sprinkle the correct amount of fertiliser, as instructed on the packaging, around the base of your rose.
Spread the food evenly around the base of the rose, to the width of the canopy.
Then, gently mix the rose food into the surrounding soil using your hand fork.
If the ground is dry, water your rose. It is important to follow the feeding of your rose with mulching.
Mulching is the addition of a protective layer around the base of your roses. This process “helps your roses to retain moisture, suppresses weeds and provides valuable nutrients for your roses as they grow”, according to the experts at David Austin.
