Rosa "Red Carpet"
By Glenp
France
My 5 year old roses, planted in very alkaline soil in a narrow bed directly under the house eaves have few leaves or flowers, despite being watered and fed regularly. Any advice would be welcome.
- 2 Oct, 2009
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Answers
I have roses growing under a two ft overhanging roof and they are just fine but they do face west, Do you use spray regularly?
Also can you remember if there were roses there before you planted them?
2 Oct, 2009
Thanks for your answers. I don't spray with anything but water.
There wasn't a bed there before, but there was a rose growing up against the wall about 3m away.
2 Oct, 2009
It will be quite dry up against this wall. You need to mulch them every year and feed and water them well. Nice coloured flowers though, worth treating them nicely. Also how about some company for them? Plant a hardy geranium or something with silver foliage (Santolina?) in front of them to make the border look more sumptuous.
2 Oct, 2009
Thanks for that - what do I use to mulch them? I watered them well till my neighbour said they didn't like/need too much water - didn't make any difference!
2 Oct, 2009
I'm at a loss to figure out what's wrong. Could it be that your soil is not very deep and beneath there's solid clay. Roses do need plenty of water but if the roots can't penetrate deep enough (because of the clay) it will soon dry out in summer.
2 Oct, 2009
France? Hmmn, hot then . . . an dry!!!!
Spray wate rno good - never get down - need 1/2mtr tube insoil nextro rose, and por water init evry day. Soak bed too.
To much water?
No - yorwall get hotfrom sun and dry out bedevry day.
If very alkaline, rathertha njust alkaline, ad a handful of sulphur acros bed to drop ph.
Dig in plentyof horse manure, and nextspring feed wekly with Tomorite tomato fetilse.
I expetthe soilis depleetof good and to dry.
2 Oct, 2009
Yes, bed dries out very quickly and never seems to hold it. I'll try the manure though.
Thanks everyone for the advice. I'll do all you've all suggested.
2 Oct, 2009
Rose like clay soil and sun (is it shady) but not too much water when flowering. If it were me I would make the bed bigger add compost blood and bone meal to the new area then wait till the roses are dormant (in about a month) and move them forward at least one yard with plenty of compost and blood and bone meal.Mulch well and then prune heavily in the spring.
2 Oct, 2009
maybe because they are so close to the house is a problem, am sure they have to be a certain distance from buildings and fences
x x x
2 Oct, 2009