If you’re about to move to a new home, you can take your rose bushes with you.
If you consider their simple cultural requirements, they’ll quickly adapt to a new location, especially if the change occurs between October and December.
Moving Rose Bushes
That is the perfect season to move them because their sap flows toward warmth. In fall and early winter, the ground remains warmer than the air, having stored heat all summer. So, the sap descends into the roots causing the leaves and tiny fibrous roots to die.
But the plant remains active and soon prepares for the next season by growing new fibrous roots to expand the feeding system.
To prepare for the move, collect as many bushel fruit baskets as you have roses, and line them with newspaper. Next, cut your rose plants back about 18″ inches; cut tree roses back to within 8″ inches of the crown (top of trunk).
Choose a windless, cloudy day to dig up the roses. Use a regular spade, and remember to keep a healthy distance from the main cane above ground to prevent root damage. Then fill a quarter of every basket with peat moss, gently place a plant in each, and cover with a thick, closely packed blanket of peat.
It is impossible to completely cover tree roses, but straw stuffed between the branches and a topping of burlap will provide them with an excellent traveling suit.
Planting Roses
Plant the roses immediately if you reach your destination before the end of December.
Cut off any broken or bruised roots and shorten any too long to spread out naturally. Make a fresh cut at the end of each root to promote fibroid growth. This will cause a callus to form at each cut, from which a network of new feeding roots will grow.
Dig the planting hole large enough to accommodate the roots without twisting or cramping. Form a cone of topsoil at the bottom of the hole and spread the roots down and over the cone in their natural growing position.
Never plant your roses too deep—set them just a little deeper than they stood previously.
Work the soil around each root to prevent air pockets, then gradually firm it down until the hole is half full.
Tamp the soil with your feet to firm it, and fill the depression with water. Let the water settle the soil for several hours, then fill again to within 6″ inches of the top.
Water again after a day or two when the soil has settled, and if it’s cold and likely to freeze, provide a light mulch to prevent heaving.
Pruning and Digging Roses
If moving day takes place from January to March, the frozen ground may be a problem. But moving may be accomplished by pruning and digging your roses in late December, as previously mentioned, being especially gentle with those tiny white rootlets.
Wash the canes and roots clean with a fine spray. Then fill a large pail full of 80° water and pour in a pound of melted paraffin wax. Dip the entire rose in and remove it slowly so the floating wax coats it thoroughly.
After the wax hardens, pack the roses in peat moss and set them in a cool area where the temperature is about 35° degrees Fahrenheit. Remember, they must be warm enough not to freeze yet cool enough not to shrivel and dry.
Let them lay dormant until the end of March, then plant and treat them exactly like roses received from the nursery.
From April to June, you must be careful to guard against excess drying from the sun and wind. Do your digging and planting on calm, cloudy days, and leave some soil on the roots.
Do Not Prune In Spring
Do not prune spring-planted roses in spring. The pruning they receive before digging is sufficient until they thoroughly adapt to new surroundings.
Plant roots “inhale” moisture from the soil and “exhale” it through their leaves. In spring, the ground is slow to absorb heat, and warm air draws the sap upward, causing natural foliage growth.
Since pruning stimulates this growth, the sap is drawn up faster than the roots can supply it, and the plant succumbs from sheer exhaustion.
Watering
When watering, make a moat around each newly planted bush. Every evening, after the sun goes down, fill the moat with water until your roses are completely adapted to their new home.
From July to September, I always try to place roses moved in summer in a spot with only morning sun.
In late fall, I move them to their permanent place in the garden. Again, do not prune except to remove any blooms or leaves which die en route or after the bush has been planted.
44659 by Doris W. Weinsheimer