Roses are one of the most rewarding plants to grow in your garden and are often deemed rather low-maintenance. One part of their care that is often forgotten, though, is just how hungry they get during the summer.
Whether or not you know how to grow roses, it's often easy to forget to feed the plants, especially during summer when we see the plants thriving in the warmer weather. But the truth is, that these beloved florals are incredibly hungry for nutrients and need to be given these via their roots.
Luckily, gardening icon and expert Alan Titchmarsh has shared his fool-proof guidance for ensuring your roses have all the food they need and provide you with an impressive set of blooms all summer long.
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Whilst knowing how to prune roses can help maximise their blooms, nothing quite helps them thrive more than ensuring they're fed properly.
"The thing you must always remember about roses is that they are greedy plants. They're going to produce flowers for you, probably right the way through the summer. They need energy, they need umph. And that means they need plenty of moisture and plenty of food at the roots," explains Alan Titchmarsh.
"What do you use to give your soil that umph? Lashings of garden compost, if you have it, the stuff you've rotted down on your heap, anything organic to hold on to moisture and food," he adds.
"You can get special compost, rose, tree and shrub compost. Work in as much of that as you can to make sure that what you're feeling is almost like fruitcake, really rich, really beneficial. It's money in the bank when it comes to flowering!" Alan says.
If you're planting roses in the ground, you'll need to know your soil type, as this can have a huge impact on the plant's ability to grow and retain moisture.
"Heavy clay soil has always been traditionally good for roses; it's the moisture content that they love. On light sandy soils, they can be very poor and easily get black spot and mildew. So be generous with the soil improver when you add it to beds and borders," Alan continues
"They will repay your care and attention by flowering profusely, with that constant supply of moisture. What's special about that sort of mix is that it's been formulated to suit the purpose; there'll be food in there as well as organic enrichment, which holds onto the moisture and gives you feel," he finishes.
So, whether you're adding roses to a pot or planting them out into your garden, don't make a common summer garden mistake and forget to feed them.
Want even more roses in your garden? Learn how to take cuttings from the bush and grow new plants for free; it's a great benefit to your garden's ecosystem, too.
