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Rose blooms
CHRISTINE BROWN3
Posts: 2
Our new David Austin Wedgewood Climbing Rose has begun to bloom with tennis ball sized pink roses but as soon as the roses have begun to open they have all drooped sadly downwards. The edges of the petals are becoming tinged with a brown colour. The rose bush has grown around 18 inches in this growing season and looks very healthy. It is planted in a substantial container against a wall and trained on to a trellis. Appreciate any answers or advice. Thank you.
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It may well be dry Christine. there are usually 2 causes of what you describe and both at opposite ends of the scale, either too wet or too dry. It's a difficult balance, especially when growing roses in containers. A drench once a week is usually sufficient for roses in containers and a feed every 4-6 weeks.
Thanks you very much Dave. You may be right, l think I might have over watered. Fairly new to gardening so I think I will invest in a gadget to tell me how damp the soil is in my containers. Will take on board your watering advice. Thanks again!
If you keep to drenching the pot once a week Christine ie filling it to the top and letting it drain through, then that's the only guide you need.
Christine,
Just to give you an alternative opinion here... Firstly it would be next to impossible to over water a rose in a pot at this time of year.
The droopy tendency you see at the moment is typical of many Austin roses, in that the large flower is simply too heavy for the stem that's holding it, so they bend downwards under the weight. The rose you have is a very vigorous one - Austin's describe it as 'rampant', so it will grow very big and tall, then you will see the rose to advantage as the flowers will look down at you or be at nose height. The floppy stems will also get sturdier as the rose ages...To be honest it would be better off in the ground eventually.
At the moment you say it's only 18 inches, so you must be patient.
The browning on the outside is another common theme with some of these roses - they fry in the heat and discolour quickly, and it's been very hot... some buds are liable to go brown and crisp on the outside... nothing to worry about, most of them look better in cooler conditions..
The best tool is your finger. If you poke it in and the soil feels cool and bits of soil stick to it, no water needed. If it feels warm and dry, water it
Dave Morgan: Hi. Read your comment about feeding every 4-6 weeks. I have roses in containers for the first time. Planted a month ago at which time I gave each a handful of rose feed. The instructions I had were not to feed them again until Spring. But every website I look at, most people seem to regularly feed them through the summer. Can you advise me what you feed them with every 4-6 weeks and if you think feeding on top of the advised handful of rose feed when put in the container needs topped up by another feed (i.e. whatever you use) or whether I should feed them with another sprinkling of the granular rose feed?
Many thanks.
Yarrow, I use generic rose feed from Wilko. A generous handful in spring tickled into the soil and watered in, then a small handful after the first flush of flowers, leave it for 4 -- 6 weeks then another small handful. It's all I use in my, and in clients gardens. Container grown roses get the same treatment. A balanced rose fertilizer is all that's needed. If you feed too much you get lots of green growth and fewer flowers, so it's steady feeding really. In late winter a good mulch of FYM is beneficial as well.
Thanks so much Dave. Sorry took so long to get back to you - I keep losing my posts but today discovered I just needed to view them all in 'my posts'!