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Master Gardener Volunteer Series: The Rose Bush That Refused to Die

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The tale of “Don Juan,” becoming “Sleeping Beauty”

By Carol Sitarski, Master Gardener Volunteer Cornell Cooperative Extension Allegany County

Have you ever had a rose that you thought was dead for several years and then magically came back to life? About ten years ago I purchased a climbing rose called “Don Juan” which has a beautiful red flower. It was planted near my front porch and as brand new to growing roses, of course I did everything wrong, but I didn’t know that.

The first year the plant did ok but not too much growth, so naturally I added too much of everything such as several fertilizers, peat moss, manure… and more natural products to “try to help”. Why? I don’t know, maybe desperation. Probably it sounds familiar to you when you buy or get a beautiful plant and then it starts dying and you don’t know how to keep it alive and healthy.

After adding all these products nothing happened except growing spindly stems but no flowers. I gave up and eventually the bush appeared to die. Time went by and I decided to try morning glory flowers in that spot to grow the trellis I bought for the roses (Ha! Ha! Ha!). Well, I had beautiful, lush vines but not one single flower again. My brain finally kicked in, remembered the gardening classes, and said: “Check your soil”, so I did it!

After the soil testing, I found out the nitrogen was too high. So, how to fix that problem? Well, there are a few things such as leaching out the nitrogen by over watering but that only sends the nitrogen further down into the soil and does not remove it. There also are chemicals for this but this may offset the native microorganisms in the soil. Another way is using plants that love nitrogen such as squash, corn, cabbage, broccoli, they will absorb the nitrogen but don’t count on using them for food because the excess of nitrogen will prevent them from producing fruit/vegetables and they will produce more leaves instead, but it works as a sponge to absorb the nitrogen.

Another alternative is adding brown organic matter such as shredded leaves to the soil. As the leaves decay the microorganisms eat up the nitrogen. The use of wood mulch or sawdust is an excellent way as it absorbs nitrogen as it decays. Use cheap dyed mulch made from scrapes or fresh shredded tree mulch. I decided to add the leaves to my soil along with fresh tree mulch in the fall.

This Spring I noticed rose stems coming out of the ground, it was a Hallelujah moment! The rose is now about four feet tall and covered with roses, I call it my “Sleeping Beauty”.

This goes to show you how important it is to check your soil pH and nutrients every few years through your local Cornell Co-operative Extension Office for a small fee or sometimes for free at the Master Gardener Volunteer soil pH clinics during the Fall. Also remember to check the N-P-K (Nitrogen-Phosphorus-Potassium) amounts on fertilizers before using to be sure the elements are not too high.

For growing roses in upstate New York, a balanced fertilizer with a ratio of NPK (Nitrogen, Phosphorus, Potassium) around 10-10-10 or 12-12-12 is generally recommended. However, if you’re looking to enhance specific aspects of your roses, such as bloom production, you might consider a fertilizer with a higher phosphorus content, like 5-10-5 or 10-20-10.

If you have any questions about your roses, or any other gardening question, remember that your local Extension Office and the group of Master Gardener Volunteers are always there to help you. Good luck with your roses this year and happy gardening season!

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