Planting Knockout Roses -The Basics and the specifics
Planting Knockout Roses are a little bit different than most other varieties of roses. So there are some basic tips and tricks to planting knockout roses to insure they survive. Knockout Roses are probably the best known rose today, and if you ask about a good rose to grow at the nursery, you’ll probably hear about the knockout rose.
Why is this variety so well known? These roses are resistant to many diseases unlike any other rose varieties. These incredibly resilient roses were developed in 1988 by a man named William Radler. It took Radler many years of testing, developing and perfecting this plant before he came up with this variety of rose.
Planting knockout roses and caring for them is fairly easy and has become a popular rose with novice growers. Because they are so easily grown, knockout roses have become a big seller with the different stages of growers from novice to expert.
There are only seven varieties of knockout roses to choose from. The original Knockout Rose is called “The Knockout Rose” and the other six are called “The Pink”, “The Rainbow”, “The Double Pink”, “The Sunny”, “The Double” and “The Blushing Knockout”.
After getting a knockout rose from the nursery and if you live in the north, you should plant the bush at least 2” deeper than normal. The reason the soil needs to be set higher around the cane is so that the bush is protected during winter. If you live in the colder northern regions, make sure that you follow this rule of depth.
At the end of winter, you should see new canes emerging from the soil. To ensure that your roses bloom for the rest of the season, you should cut off the hips before the seeds start to grow and mature. By doing this, the roses will bloom for about three weeks followed by a rest period of three weeks and then bloom again. This cycle will then repeat itself all throughout the rest of the growing season.
When growing season is about to end do not prune your knockout roses, because you may not know how far the plant is into the start of its dormancy. Pruning back the foliage at the end of the season won’t let the rose to properly go into a dormant state. The rose needs its leaves to enter into a full state of dormancy for the winter; this is why we don’t prune.
Prune the roses at the very beginning of the growing season to encourage new growth and foliage. When pruning always use sharp sheers or any sharp blade for that matter and make your cut at a 45 degree angle. Also try to leave a bud that faces out from the center, at the top of the cane so the new foliage grows outward.
You can plant knockout roses in many places in your yard and it will go well with just about any style of landscaping. Once you’ve grown one knockout rose, you’ll probably find yourself wanting to grow other varieties. If you always keep in mind the deeper planting rule and basic care techniques when planting knockout roses, you should have no problems with this variety of rose.