🌹 Quick Tips for Growing Roses in Pots

Long-blooming, easy-care roses! [View web version]( [FOCUS]( [Img-Flower-Carpet-Logo]( Quick Tips for Growing Roses in Pots Containers filled with luscious roses and other plants are useful in a variety of settings, and can be great problem solvers! [Flower Carpet Roses]( [Flower Carpet pink] How to Use Container Roses Potted plants can be used to mark transitions in deck levels, stairs, or even walkways; to take attention away from an unattractive wall or bare spot around a deck or porch; hide your wellhead; and, of course, used to fill dull or colorless spots in the garden. They can be used on their own, or grouped with several other containers to add even more impact. Easy-Care Container Roses If you’re looking for a low maintenance container plant—one that provides loads of color but doesn’t take loads of work, [Flower Carpet® roses]( are a great solution. Most varieties of Flower Carpet ground roses can do extremely well in containers, providing the pot is large enough and they get adequate water. [Flower Carpet® Rose] Even better, Flower Carpet roses —the original “eco roses”—don’t require chemicals or sprays to keep them blooming and healthy all summer. This is perfect for pots that may be located near your patio or doorway. [Flower Carpet Roses with Parsley] You may even combine these roses with edibles (such as parsley) for a simple patio pot that’s pretty yet functional. Or, mix roses with annuals or other perennials for an even more impactful display. Adding “fillers” and “spillers” like bacopa, calibrachoa, creeping jenny, nasturtiums, or sweet potato vine can soften the edges and create a more finished look to your rose-filled container. Just ensure any companion plant to roses also requires 4 to 5 hours of sun. [Flower Carpet Roses with filler softens the edges] Essential Tips for Success - Choose the right pot: The container should be at least 20-24 in / 50-60 cm in diameter and equally deep. Make certain the pot has good drainage, with at least one hole at the bottom so that the roots don’t get waterlogged. Unglazed terra cotta pots are porous and tend to dry out very quickly, so unless you live in an extremely wet area, pass on them and use glazed ceramic pots or lighterweight fiberglass, resin or sturdy plastic pots. If you’re going to move your pots into a protected area for the winter, lighterweight pots may be your best bet. [Use a container about 20" wide] - Buy the best soil: It’s important to use a good quality container soil mix, not topsoil or garden soil. NOTE: If you’re creating a mixed container and are going to add edibles, use an organic soil, or one without extra water retainers or chemicals added as fertilizer. - Planting: Before transplanting your Flower Carpet from its retail pot, water thoroughly, allowing the water to run through the pot several times. This will help in the transition to a larger pot. If the plant is rootbound (roots all tangled up together), gently “tease” them apart before trans­planting into their larger home. Plant your rose so that the top of the soil is at the same height as it was in the retail container. Sprinkle a small amount of fertilizer over the top and work it into the soil a bit. You can add a bit of mulch on top to keep your soil moist if you’re containers are in a hot, sunny area. - Water regularly: Because roots don’t grow as deeply in containers as they do naturally in the ground, the key is to make certain the containers aren’t allowed to completely dry out. If in doubt, stick your finger down a bit into the soil and if the soil feels dry, water it. Roses will perform best if given 1 gallon of water a day in hottest temps and 1 gallon every other day in more moderate climates. [Amber Carpet Roses in a pot] - Fertilizing: For maximum blooms, in addition to feeding your Flower Carpet when you’re repotting it into your container, you can also feed it a few times over the summer with a rose or flowering plant fertilizer or early and midsummer with an extended-release fertilizer like Osmocote, following the instructions. If it’s a rainy summer, you may need to fertilize more often, as excess rain can leach the fertilizer out of the pots. - Winter care: In colder climates, to protect your Flower Carpet containers over the winter, move them into a garage or sheltered place if available. If not, you can either wrap the pots in bubble wrap or place in some hay, with more hay on top. In both cases, keeping the containers up against a wall will help to protect them from winds and freezing cold. [Roses in a pot] - Spring Pruning and Care: Flower Carpet groundcover roses are extremely easy-care and require no fussy pruning. A [once-a-year pruning]( is optional and unlike most roses, you don’t have to worry about where you’re cutting along the stem or about pruning them any particular way. Simply use pruners or even electric hedge clippers—whichever is easier for you. Just cut your Flower Carpet roses back to about 1/3 of their size. Cutting them back will ensure a fuller and denser growth for the upcoming season, as well as loads of blooms. The optimal time to prune is midwinter to early spring. If you live in a warmer climate, you’ll probably be dealing with plants that are still green and possibly even still in bloom. Don’t worry though . . . pruning them will stimulate growth and generate more blooms. If you can easily identify any dead stems, cut those right back to the bottom of the plant. During the growing season, if you wish, branches with faded blooms can be cut back to tidy up a bit. - Repotting: After a year or so, depending on both the pot size and which variety/color of Flower Carpet you’ve planted, your rose may become root bound, basically outgrowing its pot. To check on this, each spring try to gently lift the rose out of the pot from the crown to determine if the roots are curling around the root ball, taking up the entire bottom of the pot. When that happens the plant struggles to absorb nutrients and has no room for further growth. If that’s the case, carefully loosen the roots and transplant your rose into a larger pot or into the garden. [Beautiful Flower Carpet Roses] Regardless of how you use your containers filled with easy-care Flower Carpet roses, you’ll enjoy months of color with very little work. For more tips on planting Flower Carpet roses in containers, check out this helpful [how-to video]( from Dave Epstein’s Growing Wisdom series. Are you on social? Enjoy more Almanac wit & wisdom! [Facebook]( [Instagram]( [YouTube]( [Pinterest]( [Visit Almanac.com]( [Shop Our Store]( You received this email because you signed for updates from The Old Farmer's Almanac. If you do not wish to receive our regular e-mail newsletter in the future, please [click here to manage preferences](. *Please do not reply to this e-mail* © 2024 Yankee Publishing Inc. An Employee-Owned Company [1121 Main Street | P.O. Box 520 | Dublin, NH 03444]( [Contact Us]( [View web version](