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Roses provide beauty and fragrance throughout the spring and summer months. However, if you live in a climate where the winter months are chilly, your roses will require a bit of winter maintenance to ensure they’ll return the following spring.
It’s true that many rose species will continue to bloom through the months of October or later, but it’s vital to begin the process of winterizing during the fall. This way, your roses will have time to harden off, providing some of the protection they require to survive the cold winter temperatures.
September is a good time to begin the winterizing process in most areas. Some areas of the country may need to begin earlier if temperatures tend to drop drastically and quickly.
For those of you relatively new to rose gardening, “hardening off” a rose plant means that you’ll provide ample food and water to fortify their roots and then prepare them for winter. Essentially, it’s akin to a hibernation state for roses. If roses aren’t properly prepared in the fall, the root system is likely to break, therefore effectively killing the rose plant. Continue reading Winterizing Roses