Wherever you live, roses will give you garden pleasure. In the South, you’ll find roses enjoying the long growing season, the abundant rainfall, and the mild winters.
Hybrid teas, floribundas, and climbers flourish, but few varieties, like those bred for winter hardiness in the North, do not do well in southern gardens.
They cannot take the long, hot summers and need winter chill to set flower buds. So when you choose varieties, ask the advice of Nurserymen and rose enthusiasts, and take note of the All-America Rose Selections listed in catalogs.
Choosing the Right Rose Varieties
January and February are the best months to plant roses in the South, and in some sections, you will get good results if you delay planting until March or early April.
A few gardeners favor late fall or early winter planting, but there is a risk involved: new growth may appear on the newly set plants if the weather warms and this may be killed by a cold spell later.
Planting Time
Hybrid teas and floribundas are usually spaced 2′ to 3′ feet apart, although some strong-growing varieties and shrub roses require 4- to 6-foot spacing. Allow 6′ to 10′ feet or more between climbers.
In the South, it is best to plant roses where they will get a few hours of shade in the afternoon. Improve heavy clay or sandy soils before planting by working in organic matter or peat moss.
Pruning
Prune a few weeks before the final frost date. In the Upper South, this is about April 5; in the Midsouth, March 20; and in the Lower South, February 15.
Summer pruning, rather than spring pruning, is best in hot areas along the Gulf Coast and Southern Florida, where roses are never dormant.
In these areas, summer pruning helps induce a rest period, which is essential if plants live more than a few years.
Mulching
Most rose growers use summer mulch to conserve moisture and to keep down weeds.
Among the suitable mulching materials are peat moss, pine needles, rotted sawdust, grass clippings, bagasse, pecan shells, ground corn cobs, and oak leaves.
Many gardeners maintain a mulch over winter, but it is rare, even in the low-temperature areas of the Upper South, to find a gardener who mounds the soil around the base of his roses.
Fertilizing and Disease Control
Rose growers disagree on fertilizers and methods of fertilizing. The most popular practice in the South is to apply 2” to 3” inches of well-rotted manure around each bush in the spring and to water in a light application of a complete fertilizer every month or two for the remainder of the growing season.
Blackspot is the most prevalent disease in the South, but mildew, which often plagues northern gardeners, is seldom found.
Thrips, aphids, and red spider mites are the most common insects, but they are easily controlled with all-purpose rose sprays and are hardly a serious menace.
Rose slugs (borers), leafhoppers, midge, mealy bugs, scale, and nematodes may visit your southern garden, so be on the alert.
Watering
Annual rainfall over most of the South is adequate for plant growth, but there are times when the weather is dry during the growing season.
During these periods, your roses will appreciate thorough watering to ensure continuous growth.
Enjoying Your Roses
Roses bloom longer with less work, trouble, and expense than most other flowers. So follow a few simple rules of rose culture— wherever you live—to enjoy them to the fullest.
44659 by A. Ray Tillman