Balcony roses: my late summer review

“From the initial excitement of learning how to plant bare root roses in spring. . .

 

 

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“. . . and then the dreaded fungus afflictions Black Spot (left) and powdery mildew

(things that my Drift roses are supposed to be resistant to) . . .  😦

 

 

My balcony roses at sunrise

 

“. . . and then after about three thrilling weeks of bloom, a small second wave of new buds

 

“My observations as a novice rose grower so far:

• “Balcony roses need AIR FLOW around them. As landscaping expert David Beaulieu says: “Growing rose bushes in conditions where adequate spacing is not provided is an open invitation to powdery mildew. Let your roses ‘breathe’. Do not plant them too close together. Follow the spacing requirements indicated on the plant label.”   Not only did I plant my Drift roses close together, their square pots are touching – as you can see in the photo of my bare-root planting (above). As they grew, their branches actually intertwined; I could hardly tell where my Coral Drift rose ended and where my Apricot Drift rose began. No wonder I had problems with powdery mildew. . .   I should not have planted them so close together, or so close to other plants that crowd my balcony. Close plantings restrict air flow around plants – which encourages fungal growth. Even careful pruning in early spring helps to make sure there’s enough space between the rose canes for good air circulation so the rose doesn’t become too dense. I’ll need to address the important issue of air flow for next summer’s blooms – even if that means donating at least half of my roses to my favourite son Ben’s garden to create more open space between my remaining plants.

• “It turned out that I was unnecessarily concerned about PLANTING ROSES IN POTS rather than in deep earth in a conventional garden bed. I needn’t have worried. My son Ben (Daddy of Baby Zack) who ordered his bare root roses on the same day from the same nursery for our respective spring plantings) has three of his four new roses also planted in large ceramic pots in his own back garden – but – unlike mine! – his are flourishing!  Here’s a beautiful example: his Violet’s Pride (named after Downton Abbey’s Lady Violet Crawley) – a standard (tree) rose in spectacularly fragrant bloom in late August. It’s about three feet wide, grafted on a 3-4 foot trunk. (Note those beautiful fungus-free healthy leaves all summer long). I have a pretty good case of rose envy when I see Ben’s roses.
  

 

 

• “I learned a lot this past summer about the PREVENTION OF ROSE PROBLEMS – mostly because of what I did not do.  Once a fungal infection gets established in roses, for example, it’s extremely hard to overcome. That’s why prevention is so important. A fungus-free rose, for example, is a healthy rose to begin with. Whenever fungus is able to get a foothold, it’s a sign that something’s wrong with the general health of that rose garden. I just never seemed to get on top of those fungus infections.   For example, the spores of Black Spot or powdery mildew are already present and dormant. So we want to create a clean garden environment that’s hostile to the growth of any fungus. Removing all affected leaves that have fallen onto the soil surface will help. Mulching the surface soil will also help to prevent those evil spores from splashing up onto the lower leaves when watering (and lengthen the time between waterings).   If conditions around balcony roses are as uninviting as possible for disease,  it’s far easier to prevent the disease than it is to cure it once problems become obvious.

(This kind of awareness,  by the way, may seem familiar to heart patients, or to those at risk for heart disease. It’s far easier to prevent heart disease than it is to cure it once our problems become obvious!)

“Finally, choose roses that are marked “Disease-Resistant” , specifically bred to resist hideous rose diseases like Black Spot or powdery mildew. My Drift roses were clearly advertised as “disease-resistant” – yet the combination of unseasonably cool and damp weather, poor air control around my over-crowded plants, and lack of simple preventive measures I neglected to take (like mulching) meant that those little roses were in trouble before we even got started.

“What comes next?

“Frankly, I’ll need to carefully consider if I’ll give these balcony roses another summer next year to settle in – or if I’ll replace these generally labour-intensive yet disappointing newcomers with more “well-behaved” summer blooms – like the workhorse (and truly carefree) red geraniums they replaced this year.

“Meanwhile, I’ve taken “Stop and smell the roses” to a whole new level this summer. . .