Trouble Avoidance Strategy 1: Location, location, location
Healthy, unstressed plants will best resist diseasecausing organisms and pests. Key to happy plants is location, encompassing light and heat levels, airflow, and moisture.
Light: Roses are“ full sun” plants meaning that they need a minimum of 6-8 hr of direct sunlight daily. Some varieties have a bit more shade tolerance than others, but even those will still likely need at least 4-5 hr of high intensity sunlight. No rose will bloom in deep shade and the more shaded the plant, the greater likelihood of leggy, thin stems and pests( aphids and mites). Eastern( morning) sun is extremely valuable for roses because it helps them to dry the morning dew off their foliage. When planning a garden bed, think about mature plant height and light exposure during the day to help shield / expose plants to light as needed.
Heat: Roses want to be warm( 80-90F) during the day and cool at night for maximum blooms and fragrance.
Airflow: This is both straightforward and critical: when air can circulate between leaves, incidental moisture dries quickly and doesn’ t have a chance to incubate disease-causing microbes. To maximize your space, you can put low-growing plants at the base of taller roses to allow for more airflow while still getting a lush-looking garden bed.
Moisture: Roses want deep watering, which means more water fewer times a week to encourage the roots to grow deep into the cooler subsoil. For established roses, aim for 2-3 gallons of water applied to the base of the plants twice a week( don’ t apply water to the leaves and flowers! Doing so encourages the growth of disease-causing organisms). If you are manually watering your roses, take a 5 gallon bucket and time how long it takes to fill with your hose. Divide that time by two and that is the amount of time you should linger at each mature rose bush to give it sufficient water. During heatwaves( 90-95F +), water every other day, aiming for 3-4 gallons per watering. It is always better to water in the morning so that any moisture on the foliage can evaporate as soon as possible and to make sure the plant is hydrated before the peak heat of the day. Add several inches of mulch at the base of the plant to help retain moisture and encourage healthy soil microbes.
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