Content
The fact that the rose is the queen of flowers has been known since time immemorial. No wonder the Egyptian queens took baths with rose petals, and oils based on them were so expensive that their price was worth its weight in gold. Therefore, they grew exclusively at the royal court. Nowadays roses grow in almost every garden. And each housewife can grow them both for beauty and for other purposes. For whatever purpose the flowers are grown, it is important to know what kind of care for roses in the fall is necessary so that in the summer they bloom magnificently and delight the eye.
What activities are needed for roses in the autumn
Despite the fact that with the onset of autumn roses still bloom profusely, it is too early to rest. Don't forget about your favorite colors. During this period, it is important to provide the plants with proper care. After all, high-quality autumn work in the garden is a guarantee of beautifully blooming rose bushes. Considering that a rose is a very delicate and fastidious flower, it is important to help them properly prepare for the coming cold weather. For experienced flower growers, preparing roses for winter is not such a difficult process, but beginners need to figure out how, when and what to do in order to preserve and increase the extraordinary beauty of flower beds.
All work on caring for roses in the fall is carried out in several stages:
- Autumn flower feeding;
- Watering the rose garden as needed;
- Timely pruning;
- Hilling, mulching rose bushes;
- Shelter bushes for the winter.
Roses are very critical to the slightest deviations and immediately react to poorly done or not done work on time. And this affects not only the flowering of rose bushes. They become more susceptible to diseases, slowly grow green mass in spring and quickly lose varietal characteristics.
Features of the growing season of roses
The fact that the rose is the closest relative of the rose hips does not give a reason to forget about them until spring. Even frost-resistant plant varieties need timely care due to some features of vegetative processes. Moreover, taking care of roses with the onset of autumn is not at all difficult. It is important to adhere to the deadlines and recommendations of experienced gardeners.
Thanks to the difficult work of breeders, we have the opportunity to enjoy bright colors and delicate aromas every year. But this work also has a downside: most varietal flowers are completely incapable of hibernation with the onset of frost. When the ambient temperature drops below 0˚С, sap flow in the stems stops. But as soon as the temperature column rises above this mark, the roses wake up immediately. Sap flow is restored. With a sharp drop in temperature, the juice freezes almost instantly. As you know from the course of physics, when it freezes, the liquid increases in volume. The same thing happens in the stems and roots of rose bushes. The frozen juice, turning into ice with a sharp drop in temperature, breaks the stem from the inside. Pathogens easily penetrate into the formed microcracks, which are most often the main cause of disease and rotting of rose bushes.
When to start your autumn rose care work
You need to start preparatory work for caring for roses in the second half of August - early September.
In the Northern regions and in the Siberian region, they begin to prepare rose bushes for winter in the second or third decade of August. In the central regions, the favorable period for caring for roses begins in September, in the second decade. But in the south of Russia they begin to prepare them for winter not earlier than the second half of September.
In addition to regional affiliation, it is important to pay attention to the surrounding nature. After all, it is she who will tell you the optimal time when you need to provide the roses with proper care. As soon as the trees are covered with gold and crimson, it's time to get to work. It is during this period that active sap flow stops in most shrubs and trees. Roses also need to be prepared for winter at this moment.
Termination of the growing season of roses in the fall
An important thing in preparing roses for winter is to slow down the vegetative processes occurring in the stems and leaves. To do this, experienced gardeners advise not to loosen the soil under the bushes and monitor the moisture of the earth, preventing the growth of new shoots and the formation of buds. At the same time, the cut of flowers with long stems for bouquets is stopped.
A large number of buds on the bushes significantly weakens the roots and does not allow them to fully accumulate useful substances before the onset of cold weather. In order to help plants fully prepare for winter, experienced gardeners are advised to bend the stem at the base of the bud. An unblown flower stops its development and does not "draw out" excess nutrients.
Do not cut off the buds, as in this case you will provoke active formation and growth of lateral shoots from the buds.
Top dressing of roses in autumn
Another way to slow down vegetative processes in autumn is to stop feeding rose bushes with nitrogen fertilizers in mid-August. After all, they stimulate the active growth of the aboveground part of plants. And during this period, the bushes need fertilizing, nourishing and strengthening the root system.
In the third decade of August, it is worth making a primary top dressing based on superphosphate and potassium. To do this, prepare a solution as follows:
- 2.5 g of boric acid;
- 25 grams of superphosphate;
- 10 grams of potassium sulfate.
Stir the fertilizer well in 10 liters of water at room temperature. The resulting solution should be enough to feed a rosary with an area of 4-5 m².
Secondary dressing should be applied no earlier than 2-3 weeks after the first. It is also designed to nourish and strengthen the roots. In this case, gardeners recommend the following composition:
- 16 g of potassium monophosphate;
- 15 grams of superphosphate.
dilute in 10 liters of water.
It is important to remember that both primary and secondary feeding should be done in the absence of precipitation. The ground under the rose bushes must be dry. Then the roots will absorb the maximum amount of nutrients.
In case of heavy rainfall, it is best to use a granular top dressing based on superphosphates and potassium. In this case, a handful of fertilizer is scattered around the bush at a distance of 15-20 cm from the base and gently loosen the soil so that the granules are evenly mixed with the ground. With the dry method of feeding, the roots will receive all the necessary substances evenly and dosed.
How, when and how to feed roses in the fall, an experienced rose expert will tell you in the following video:
Watering roses in autumn
With the onset of the first autumn month, it is important to pay attention to the condition of the soil under the rose bushes. It is important not to allow waterlogging during this period. Excessive watering of roses will cause active growth of new shoots, which will not have time to woody in such a short period and will inevitably die during the first frost.
Moreover, with excessive soil moisture, the surface roots of the rose bushes begin to actively develop. They are too close to the surface of the earth.And in severe frosts, unfortunately, they suffer the most.
To prevent this from happening, watch out for precipitation and soil moisture. If autumn is full of rains and there is a problem of oversaturation of rose bushes with moisture, flower beds should be protected. Metal arcs, on which a plastic transparent film is stretched, will help you with this.
In case of insufficient precipitation, the rose garden should be watered 1-2 times a week.
Hilling rose bushes
It is necessary to spud roses at the base of the bushes when the thermometer drops below -3˚С at night. Lower temperatures are detrimental to flowers.
- Before proceeding with this stage of caring for roses, you need to cut off the leaves at the base of the bushes. So, you will prevent their podoprevanie and rotting.
- Protect your flowers from possible infection and microorganisms. To do this, the stems of roses must be painted with special garden paint. The height of the dyeing should be equal to the height of the subsequent hilling of the rose bushes. In the absence of a garden solution for coloring, it can be replaced with a water emulsion with the addition of copper oxychloride. She also perfectly protects roses from diseases.
- You need to sprinkle roses in dry, sunny weather. It is desirable that the soil under the bushes is also dry or slightly damp. For the bases of low-growing varieties of roses, it is enough to create a low protection, no more than 10-15 cm in height. But tall rose bushes need higher protection. The embankment should be at least 35-40 cm in height.
Why such difference? In undersized varieties of roses, the stems are thicker and lignified. But in tall varieties, on the contrary, they are more flexible and thin.
Pruning stems and shoots
The next step in the systematic care of roses in the fall is their timely pruning. The bushes are pruned every fall. It doesn't matter how old your flowers are. Pruning is a must for both perennials and young, newly planted seedlings.
- First of all, it is necessary to cut off all leaves and unripe, weak and diseased shoots from the stems. They will inevitably freeze when the frost sets in. Also, buds, flowers and seed pods are subject to pruning.
- Next, you should properly cut off the excess stems. After carefully examining the bush, choose from 4 to 6 of the strongest and most powerful shoots. They should be left behind. But the rest need to be cut. The stems should be cut off at a height of 5-6 cm from the ground. Do not spare unnecessary trunks. In the spring they will only interfere with each other.
- The remaining stems of roses also need to be pruned. At this stage, it is important to pay attention to which part of the stem the largest number of buds is concentrated. If they are more located in the upper part of the stems, then a long pruning of roses is appropriate here. In this case, the shoots are almost not cut off, only the upper part is removed. Provided that the buds are evenly distributed over the entire surface of the shoots, either short or medium pruning is used, which depends on the variety and type of roses.
All trimmed leaves, branches and stems must be removed from the flower garden immediately. It is better to burn them to prevent the spread of fungal and putrefactive diseases of healthy rose bushes.
You will learn the basic rules for pruning roses in autumn from the video:
Shelter for the winter rose bushes
From mid-October, the most crucial stage begins - the shelter. The complexity and method of shelter very much depends on the variety of flowers, as well as the region of growth.
For example, for park varieties with excellent frost resistance in the Siberian regions, hilling with soil with further mulching is enough.
For delicate and finicky varieties, protection should be more significant. Before sheltering, the bushes are pre-mulched.A layer of spruce branches is laid on top of the mulching layer, which will protect roses not only from cold weather, but also from the destructive invasion of hungry rodents. It is imperative to lay on the spruce branches any material that has water-repellent or waterproof properties: lutrasil, roofing material, film. During autumn rains and spring thaws, it will protect the rose bushes from moisture.
Recently, another method for covering roses in autumn has become widespread - wrapping the bushes with a net, followed by filling the inner space with mulching material. A cover made of dense material is put on top of the resulting cylinder: burlap, film or lutrasil.
All of the above work on caring for roses in the fall should be carried out exclusively on a warm, sunny day. The bushes should be dry and the soil below them slightly damp. Therefore, watch the weather conditions and as soon as favorable days come out - do not delay, urgently take care of your favorite flowers.
The author of the video plot will tell you how to cover roses for the winter:
Wine is infused on them, and rose petal jam has an excellent taste and delicate aroma.
Conclusion
The procedure for caring for roses in the autumn period resembles a special mysterious ceremony. Therefore, flower growers who have been breeding roses for a long time take their time and carry out all the work with special care. But when the first buds with a heady aroma begin to bloom on the bushes, even the smallest flower garden turns into a piece of paradise where you can relax, enjoy the beauty of bright flowers and have a lot of pleasure.
