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Rose lovers know firsthand about the capriciousness of these royal flowers. The biggest difficulty in growing roses in the middle lane is that they are very afraid of frost. This encourages gardeners to wrap up their rose gardens as warmly as possible at the first cold weather. Unfortunately, such actions do not always lead to a positive result: some bushes still freeze slightly, some roses vomit, and several bushes may even die. The thing is, when buying a seedling, you need to find out whether it is necessary to cover this particular rose, what temperatures it can withstand without shelter, and also what and how to cover the bush.
From this article you can find out how to properly cover roses for the winter, whether it is possible to cover a specific variety and what material is better to use for this. And video and photo instructions with advice from experienced gardeners will help to assimilate the information well.
Is it possible to cover roses of various varieties
Different varieties of roses need certain wintering conditions, so the first thing a gardener should do is examine his rose garden and remember which variety each bush belongs to. And after that, already decide on how to cover the roses for the winter.
The attitude to low temperatures differs in different varieties of roses:
- frosts are most terrible for hybrid tea varieties and some varieties of climbing roses - these flowers need to be covered especially carefully;
- dwarf varieties and varieties of floribunda are distinguished by increased resistance to frost - when covering such bushes, the main thing is not to overdo it so that the whips do not come out;
- park varieties are considered the most frost-resistant; in the central and southern regions of the country, such roses can not be covered at all or you can use a lightweight version of a winter shelter.
When to shelter roses for the winter
In most regions of Russia, roses take refuge in late October or early November. However, the exact date depends on the climate in the region, the location of the flower bed, soil moisture and the variety of roses.
It is recommended to permanently cover the rose gardens when the air temperature stabilizes at -5 degrees or below. This means that it is necessary to wait - 7-10 days in the region there should be a subzero temperature (from -2 degrees). Only with the onset of stable frosts can the rose gardens be covered, otherwise the bushes will take heat for the onset of spring and wake up ahead of time. Such roses with awakened buds will definitely freeze out, even in light frosts.
It is equally important to remove the shelter in time, because during the spring warming, moisture will begin to accumulate under the covering material. Condensation is dangerous for plants, as infections and fungi quickly develop in a humid environment, and also, the rose can simply vanish.
They remove the shelter gradually so that the flowers can acclimatize in the environment. First, the edges of the film are raised or dry materials (spruce branches, straw, fallen leaves, etc.) are selected from the shelter. It is necessary to completely remove the shelter from roses in cloudy weather or in the evening so that young shoots do not burn out in the sun.
How best to prepare roses for winter
You cannot immediately take and cover the rose bush, you also need to prepare the plant for wintering.
The preparation of the rose garden begins in the summer and consists of several stages:
- End of dressing. At the end of August, the flowers are no longer fed with nitrogen fertilizers, starting from this period, only potash and phosphorus mineral complexes can be applied. Such fertilizers stimulate the lignification of the trunk and prepare the rose for wintering.
- Loosening stops with the onset of September. Especially when September is dry and warm, the soil around the bushes cannot be loosened, because the rose perceives such actions as a signal to wake up. If you dig up the ground around the rose, young shoots will begin to grow from the roots, the buds in the soil will wake up - this will lead to the freezing of the bush.
- Pruning is needed for all varieties of roses, only its degree differs. For example, climbing and park roses are pruned quite a bit, and young shoots and all foliage are also removed - only lignified stems covered with bark should remain. The rest of the varieties need to be cut more carefully - the stems are shortened to the height of the future shelter so that the entire bush is hidden from frost.
- Cleaning and processing of rose bushes. From under the bush, you need to select all the leaves, grass and other debris, because infections, insects and rodents like to hibernate there. To strengthen the immunity of flowers and prepare them for high humidity, it is recommended to treat roses with a solution of copper sulfate or use Bordeaux liquid for this purpose.
- Hilling rose bushes is also an important step in preparing for shelter. This is done immediately after disinfecting treatment. You cannot take land for hilling from the same flower bed, because this can strip the roots of neighboring plants and the roses themselves. It is necessary to fill mounds with a height of about 20 cm, which will protect the roots of flowers from freezing. Loose soil contains a lot of air, which will warm the root system. For many varieties, simple hilling is enough; they do not need another shelter.
If this is done too early, the buds below the cut will wake up and sprout young shoots. Such twigs will certainly freeze out, even under cover.
How to cover roses for the winter
Many inexperienced gardeners do not know other hiding places besides spruce branches. Actually, there are a lot of materials and ways in which you can cover rose gardens for the winter:
- straw;
- oak leaves that do not develop fungal infections;
- sawdust;
- sand;
- peat;
- polycarbonate or wood;
- lutrasil or other non-woven material;
- plastic wrap.
Different types of shelter are shown in the photo in the article.
Regardless of what material was chosen to protect the rose garden from frost, an important rule must be observed: there must be an air gap between the shelter and the lashes or shoots of roses. If this is not the case, the plant will not have enough oxygen and it will "suffocate".
How to cover roses for the winter
As mentioned above, some varieties of thorny flowers tolerate frosts better, while others, on the contrary, need very careful protection for the winter.
In accordance with this and choose hiding options for the rose garden:
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For hybrid teas and floribundas you can choose a shelter, inside of which a constant temperature is kept at the level of -3 degrees. In addition, such a winter road is well ventilated, which has a beneficial effect on the condition of the shoots and roots of roses. To make such a shelter, it is necessary to build a frame in the form of a mesh cone from a thick wire. The height of the product should be approximately 60-70 cm (depending on the size of the bush). A rose bush is surrounded by this cone, then insulation (lutrasil, cardboard, film, etc.) is attached on top of the wire, which is fixed with a rope. Over the insulation, you need to stretch polyethylene, which should protect the bush from precipitation and wind.The ends of the plastic wrap are fixed with earth so that they do not bulge and expose the roots.
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For climbing varieties it is more convenient to use a frame-shield shelter. Before starting work, you need to remove all remaining foliage from the climbing rose, cutting it along with the petioles (foliage does not fall off on its own from such varieties). The scourges are tied together and tilted in the direction where they lean during flowering. Spruce branches need to be laid out on the soil, which will protect the rose from rodents and frozen ground. Now the knitted lashes are laid on the ground and fixed with metal, wood or plastic hairpins (as in the photo). In advance, you need to prepare shields made of wood or polycarbonate, their length is equal to the height of the bush, and the width is about 80 cm. A house over a rose is made of such shields, the "walls" of the shelter are supported with metal rods. From above, the shelter must be covered with plastic wrap. If the soil in the flowerbed is already frozen, press the film tightly and sprinkle it with earth. When severe frosts have not yet begun, the ends of the shelter are left ajar so that the roses do not come out.
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If the climbing variety does not grow in rows, but is located in the center of the flower bedfor example, using shields as cover would be inconvenient. In this case, the vertical type of winter protection is used. Scourges of roses are tied and fixed to a vertical strong support. A frame in the form of a cone is weaved from a wire and a rose with a support is placed inside it. From above, the frame is wrapped with several layers of spunbond, fiberglass or thick polyethylene, everything is tied with twine. Be sure to leave ventilation holes that can be opened in early spring. Shown in detail in the video:
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Standard varieties it is customary to grow in tubs and large boxes. Such roses can be easily transferred to the basement for the winter, thereby protecting them from frost and death. But the standard variety can be planted directly into the ground, in which case it is imperative to cover the plant with the arrival of cold weather. An ordinary jute bag will help in this, from which it is necessary to cut off the bottom. Such a bag is put on the crown of the rose so as to cover the upper part of the bush, starting from the point of growth. Then the shelter is tightly stuffed with straw, small spruce branches or dry leaves. The upper part of the jute bag is tied with twine, and the stem of the rose is wrapped with cut burlap.
First, they open the ventilation holes, when the ground completely thaws and the temperature is stable above zero, you can open the bush completely.
In more detail about how to shelter roses from frost, the video will tell:
If you follow all the recommendations and cover the roses correctly, you can keep even the most capricious exotic varieties of these luxurious flowers in your garden.
