There's something exciting about opening a box of roses. You're holding something alive, something that has been carefully tended, packaged, and sent on a journey to reach your garden. After a few days in transit (or sometimes longer), your roses are ready for a new beginning. With a few simple steps, you can give them the best start possible.
Studies have shown that roses with higher moisture content, that weren't allowed to dry out after harvest, perform better in the garden, rewarding you with stronger growth and more flowers.
Here are some steps you can take to keep them hydrated and encourage the right kind of growth for the long term. Let's get them off to a wonderful start together!
Trim off new shoots. You’ll likely notice white shoots that have sprouted on the canes in the dark box during shipping. Having been deprived of sunlight for photosynthesis, they will not have developed any green colouring. Take your clean pruners and snip them all off leaving ¼” (6mm). Don’t worry. Each shoot has two more growing points beside it so you are sure to get good new growth from your rose as the season progresses.
Prune the canes down to 6” to 8” (15-20cm). It’s important to take this step as it encourages the rose to put its energy where it matters most right now - establishing a strong, healthy root system to support all the beautiful growth to come.
Hydrate. If your roots look dry, let the plant soak in a bucket of water for 2 hours, but for no more than 24 hours.
Get them into the ground. Plant the roses at the appropriate depth for your growing zone. They are ready to settle into their new home.
Hill them up. We recommend taking the step of hilling them up with soil and mulch so that only the points of the canes can be seen. This small additional step offers excellent protection against evaporation and dehydration by wind, sun, or heat. As even frost can dehydrate roses, it's worth considering this step if you still expect frost after planting. Once your rose begins pushing new growth at the tips of the rose canes (generally after a couple of weeks), carefully pull the hill of soil and mulch away and watch your roses flourish!
If you haven’t read through Lakeview Roses Planting Instructions yet, we’ve got a great resource here with more details on planting.
We want you to feel confident in handling your roses, excited and prepared with the information needed to help your roses thrive this season and for many beautiful years to come!
