Plant a Queen Elizabeth Climbing Rose
Queen Elizabeth roses are a lovely, delicately-coloring flowers and are a graceful addition to any yard or garden. The climbing version of the Queen Elizabeth rose calls to mind cottage gardens and bloom-covered lattice archways. It's no harder to plant climbing roses than any other kind, but you must make certain that the structure they are to climb is sturdy, and well-treated to prevent wood-rot and hungry bugs. Queen Elizabeth climbing roses can grow eight to 10 feet tall, so make sure your arbor, arch or trellis is strong and well-anchored. Does this Spark an idea?
Instructions
1. Place your support structure where your Queen Elizabeth climbing roses will get at least six hours of sunlight every day, and where its leaves can dry thoroughly after a heavy rain.
2. Measure the root ball of your Queen Elizabeth climbing rose plant. One of the secrets to successful rose gardening is making sure that the original hole is large enough for the roots to spread out.
3. Find the graft union on your rose plant. This is where the rootstock and the flowering canes meet. If you live in a climate that gets colder than -10 degrees Fahrenheit, you need to plant the graft union 4 to 6 inches beneath the soil. In warmer climates, you can set the graft union right at ground level, or just a little below.
4. Spread a tarp on the ground right next to your planting site.
5. Dig a hole that is deep enough to place the graft union where it needs to be, and as wide as the longest roots stretch out from the plant. Place all of the backfill onto the tarp.
6. Mix the backfill with compost, composted bark and composted manure. Aim for a proportion of 50 percent backfill, 25 percent compost and 25 percent bark, with just a few handfuls of manure. Don't worry about measuring, the proportions don't have to be exact.
7. Place a few shovelfuls of the backfill mixture into the bottom of your hole, forming a gentle cone shape.
8. Put the Queen Elizabeth climbing rose plant in the hole, draping the roots over the cone shape. This will help to support the plant as is grows. Spread the roots out, so they are not crowded or bent.
9. Fill the hole with your backfill mixture, tamping it down very lightly. Water the soil thoroughly to help settle out any air pockets when the hole is nearly full.
10. Finish filling the hole and lightly tamp down the soil mixture. Create a low ring of soil around the edge of the hole, to help retain water, and then water the plant again.
11. Spread a 2 to 3 inch layer of organic mulch inside the ring of raised soil, making sure to keep the mulch 3 to 4 inches away from the flowering canes.
12. Water your climbing rose well as it settles into its new home, making sure to keep the soil moist, but not soaked.
Tags: Queen Elizabeth, Elizabeth climbing, graft union, climbing roses, making sure, rose plant