NOTES ON ROSE PLANTING

Sun (Auckland), Volume III, Issue 726, 27 July 1929, Page 32

NOTES ON ROSE PLANTING

It is all important that roses should be planted carefully and properly. Plants cannot be expected to thrive well and grow into large, strong bushes if they are put in without proper preparation of the soil. There are very few soils that will not grow good roses, except those of an extremely sandy nature, such as obtains at the seaside; but even there, if some clayey soil and cow manure are used, they can be grown fairly successfully. The soil that suits them best of all is a strong loam with a clay subsoil, and fortunately a large part of this country has this, and the result is that roses give good results. Roses dislike a sour soil, and it is always advisable to dig the beds and to prepare the holes some time before the planting is carried out. Where a whole bed is to be planted with roses, it should be deeply dug all over. The soil should first of all be thrown up in a very rough state, and be allowed to stand for a week or two. Plenty of cow or stable manure and some bonedust should then be scattered over the surface, and then turned well in with the second digging. The roses like plenty of manure, as they are gross feeders, and large, strong plants can only be secured by giving them plenty of manure and lots of water. Where separate holes are to be taken out they should be dug two feet wide and fully 18in deep. The holes should have the first foot of soil taken out, and the bottom soil should be broken up a full-spade deep. Some well-rotted manure should be well-dug in and thoroughly mixed with the bottom soil.