How to feed Burgundy Ice Roses

Question

I planted my burgundy rose about two months ago, here in Arizona. I dug a hole 1 ft deep by 12′ in diameter. I then filled the hole with water, adding some vitamin “B” shock along with rose food and covered it with a rose soil dirt mix. At first it tried to produce two small blooms. But now the blooming has ceased and all I have is a mid-size stem with very little if any leaf growth. So I tried digging around the root and sprinkling some bone meal in with the covering and building a sort of dam around it to hold in the water, which I do in the morning and again at sunset. Still this has produced no productive leaves or blooms. So what am I doing or did wrong?

Answer 1

First and most important, sit down and take some deep breaths, there are times when we truly can kill something with kindness so to speak. When we get new bare root rosebushes in the mail, the first thing that needs to be done is to soak the rose in a bucket of water for 24 hours. This allows the root system to soak up some much needed moisture and allows it to get settled down after the shipment stress. If the rosebush was potted when you got it, the same still applies in that you need to water the rosebush well and let it sit for a few days to get settled in and to recover from the shipping stress. Transplanting a rosebush also causes what is called Transplant shock. Giving the rosebush too much fertilizer, while it is still trying to get adjusted or settled in can be harmful. So I would not give the rosebush any more feedings until after it has put on foliage and bloomed once. I would recommend mixing up some root stimulator and a product called Super Thrive in a watering can. Water the rosebush with this mix the next four or five times it needs watering. Keep an eye on things and use the mix I suggested and see how things go. The rosebush should start getting with the program. Keep in mind too that until we have consistent temps at night that stay in the 50's, growth will be slow to sometimes non-existent.

Here are some links to some articles for you to check out too:

https://www.gardeningknowhow.com/ornamental/flowers/roses/planting-rose-bushes.htm

https://www.gardeningknowhow.com/ornamental/flowers/roses/bare-root-roses.htm