Getting Roses To Flower

[MelaniesLaugh]

I’d say I’m a pretty knowledgable gardener, but I’m very new to roses. I planted one last year - Aphrodite - and then a David Austin Grace this year

Last year Aphrodite had two flowers when I got her and then flowered no more. I assumed it was because she was new. Then this year there were two buds. One disappeared, I still haven’t figured that one out, so I had one flower. I dead headed it expecting more flowers to come but nothing.

Grace was a bit tatty when I got her so I trimmed off the damaged leaves and pruned her a bit. I’ve deadheaded her as the flowers ended but again no sign of any new buds. This one is showing some signs of growth though.

I’m at a loss. I know the Grace is relatively new so is still settling in but Aphrodite is so frustrating. It has loads of greenery and looks so healthy. I feed it in the spring but wondering if I need to feed it again. I haven’t pruned this one at all, should I prune it to encourage new growth?

I’m on the verge of giving up with roses!

Following with interest as similar problem here, no flowering at all from yellow rose this year.

I'm not a rose expert either, but I got three bare roots from David Austin this year that have grown and flowered remarkably well. I've done no pruning or feeding, I've literally plonked them in the ground and kept them well watered.

Have you potted yours, or are they in the ground? My garden is mostly clay, some areas that are slightly more sandy. Two are on a west border, one is on a south.

There are some other roses in my garden that pre-date me (I only moved in in winter). Two bedraggled specimens are struggling to flower despite feeding/pruning, and I am thinking of digging them out and replacing with more DA roses, while another that pre-dates me is going berserk. Masses of neon pink blooms.

I did notice aphids were a huge problem on the older roses this year and I did my best to keep on top of manual removal but it was very hard. They were everywhere.

Are you feeding with a high potassium feed such as tomato feed or you could try Uncle Tom’s rose tonic. It will take several weeks for them to form new buds. Aphrodite is a hybrid tea which produce fewer but larger flowers.

Just remembered, with the bare roots, I added mycorrhizal fungi to the planting hole. Did you do that? If they've not been in long it might be worth lifting and adding.

My DA rambler flowered but not as much as last year. It's 3. I dead headed but have only one bud coming for the 2nd flush 😳

Maybe not a good year for roses? I'm v new to them.

You need a high potash feed. You can use tomato feed if you have any of that.

Roses generally take a break after their first flowering and then have what is referred to as a second flush later in the Summer. Feed your roses as suggested by a previous poster ( plenty of rose feeds available from the garden centre and any of them will do the job). Make sure you cut off the dead flowers just above a leaf. The roses have flowered very early this year so I’m not sure when the second flush will be early too.

Have a look at thegardenerben on Instagram, he's a rose expert, he'll be able to help.

They are in the ground, both in full sun. Admittedly the soil is clay, but I added Miracle Grow rose and shrub slow release feed when I planted them and then Aphrodite had another one in the Spring.

They get watered daily, like a PP I did have some aphids earlier in the year on a Blue Moon rose but I’ve actually disposed of that. I bought it as a potted rose last year but it was actually no better than a bare root. I planted it and it didn’t grow at all. I had one measley flower last year and then a bud which didn’t open this year. I moved it, which was how I knew the roots hadn’t grown at all, and it was even more miserable there. So I put it out of its misery and added it to the green waste bin!

Everything has been sprayed with Rose Clear 3 in 1 after that. I’m not one of these people who can have black fly and green fly on things. It makes me go itchy.

I don’t know whether I should be pruning Aphrodite or not. I’ve deadheaded it but it’s not encouraged growth at all. At least with Grace I can see it sprouting new shoots where I trimmed it.

I’m desperate to have them to work, I love a scented garden. I’ve got a gorgeous honeysuckle in full flower by the front door which is heaven. Then I’ve also got a Jasmin Clotted Cream by the front fence which you can smell from the road. But these damn roses have stumped me

Try watering less often to encourage root formation. Once every 2 days if it's very dry and liquid fertiliser as it works faster.

They love clay and sun so neither of those should be an issue. They do like a good feed though. I try to feed mine really we at least twice a year but they would probably like more. I use granule rose feed but I should probably water some in too.

I prune and feed my roses late winter, then feed again July/August, and that's it (apart from deadheading). They have all done absolutely brilliantly this year, even the one I planted last autumn and the only watering they have had is when it's rained - my soil is silty and is very water retentive even when it's dried rock hard on the surface.

Perhaps less is more?

Today they’ve had a good feed with tomato food, and also I found some rose feed pellets which contain horse manure. I figured that seeing as the soil is so poor it wouldn’t do it any harm.

Grace is definitely sprouting some new growth but Aphrodite looks exactly the same as when I planted it last year.

Lets see what happens.

I just thought I’d update this.

I’ve since become addicted to buying roses and now have six. All have had the rose pellets manure and also the tomato feed once a week.

Grace is now in a full second flush of flowering and looks gorgeous.

I suddenly had a brain wave that I hadn’t trimmed Aphrodite like I had Grace, so I did and now she is growing new buds. I’m thrilled.

Rose number 3 is currently brewing her third set of buds.

My first Rambling Rose has shot right up already and is covered in buds. That’s only been there a few weeks.

Rose number 5 is a bit of a disappointment but I’ve since found out that it’s one of the more difficult David Austin roses - Summer Song. I only planted it last week but the others all had new growth very quickly and this one hasn’t.

Then rose number 6 was planted at the weekend, my first climbing rose. It may well be my last for a bit too because DH now knows what my David Austin obsession has cost me as he was in the garden centre with me!!!

Thank you all for the encouragement and tips, the roses, other than Summer Song, are thriving

Thanks for the update - from a fellow rose addict