104 Eastern Avenue
Gloucester, MA 01930
978-281-4480 (p)
978-282-0619 (f)
60 Turnpike Road
Ipswich, MA 01938
356-6342 (p)
356-4476 (f)
www.wolfhillgardencenter.com
Rose Care
Roses are hardy plants and tolerant of a wide range of conditions, but they do have a few basic
requirements to consider before you plant.
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Sun – Roses need at least 4-6 hours of sun every day
Soil – Roses prefer rich, loamy soil
Drainage – Roses cannot stand in water, even during the winter when they are dormant.
Space – Roses need their own space, without competition from other plants.
Buildings – Do not plant roses where they will be prone to falling snow & ice during the winter.
Planting & Care: Dig a hole twice as wide as the pot but the same depth. With the backfill you have dug
out, mix in some fertilizer and/or peat moss. Place the rose in the hole and put the backfill back in. DO
NOT plant above the knob or graft of the rose bush. Install a small berm of soil circling the plant
creating a well or saucer to help retain water. Water your rose every third day and fill the saucer three
times with each watering. Good drainage is necessary. It is best not to get the foliage wet. Try to water
early in the day to avoid common rose diseases. Pruning promotes a healthy and vigorous plant. The
best time to prune roses is before new growth starts in the spring, sometime after the last hard frost.
Remove weak or diseases canes, winter damaged wood, any older branch crossing or rubbing another
and any sucker growth. Then prune using shears designed for roses. Make angle cuts ¼” above an
outside bud, slanting down at a 45 degree angle. Prune back by about 1/3, leaving 2/3 of the plant to
grow and furnish this year’s bloom.
Climbing Roses: These roses grow upright with long-lived canes that require structures onto which they
can be trained (such as arbors, trellises, and obelisks). Their destiny and heavy flowering demand air
circulation. Trimming spent blossoms encourages re-bloom. In late winter, prune old, non-productive
canes at the base, then work outward.
Cottage/Shrub Roses (‘Roga Rugosa’, ‘Knock Out’, and ‘Carefree’): These rose varieties are native to
beach dunes of the east. They tolerate heat, light drought conditions, diseases, deer, and salt. Minimal
pruning is recommended with no more than 1/3 being taken out per year. Light pruning can be done to
remove dead canes and control shape but they don’t need much pruning at all.
Classic Style Roses (Hybrid Teas, Grandiflora, and Floribunda): These roses bloom on new wood and
should be pruned in early spring after the threat of frost. Remove dead and weak wood. Create a semiopen ‘V’ shape with the remaining canes by partially removing stems from the center and any branches
crossing inwards. Then reduce the length of the remaining stems by and ½ or down to 18”-24”. You can
allow the older, stronger stems to be a bit longer than the new growth.
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