Question
Hi Donna

I am a new 'expert' on this site but i do not know much about roses.

I have a miniature Rose that has little red flowers and it is about 2ft tall and looking very sad.  It is about 15 years old and it is established in the border. I know this is the best time to move Roses, but I do not know how to dig it up. I want to plant it into a container and prune it. I have know idea what to do. Hopefully you can help. I also know they have long root systems too. Am i making a wrong decision?

Please help me.


Bye for now.

Jonathan

Answer
Greetings Jonathan,

It is amazing that you asked this question, because two years ago on October 24 I moved a Morden Blush that had been at its then location for six years. I was not sure that it would survive the move, but it was becoming completely overwhelmed by a miscanthus sinensis Strictus. It was a matter of moving it in October, or in spring. I ripped it rather ruthlessly out of the ground and replanted it in another location. It had been in for so many years that I could not get all of the roots, but it survived and bloomed beautifully the next year (2010). This year it truly flourished. It was out of the shade and in fresh soil.

And two weeks ago I pulled two Marie Pavies (a lovely little polyantha rose) and put them in a container. That move was also successful.

So I must say, you asked the perfect person, although your rose is much older than either of mine!

You can really move a rose at any time if you do it properly.  The most important step for you is to make sure that your 搈ini?spends as little time out of the ground as possible. So prepare the soil in your container before you start to dig.

Start by cutting back to the rose to a manageable length in order for you to be able to handle it. When transplanting a rose you need to cut it back anyway, since it will have fewer roots to support the top growth. Remove as much soil as you can around the edges of the rose before you do anything else, so that you can have some idea of how deep the roots are.  This will enable you to get as many roots as possible.  When you have done this to the greatest extent you can, try to get a large garden fork as far down as you can and start lifting. It is better to use a fork than a shovel because the shovel will simply cut through the roots, and you want to take as many roots as you can. After you lift it, move it immediately to your container. If you have some well aged compost, add that. Do not under any circumstances add fertilizer, but give it plenty of water.  If you have lost a lot of roots you can perform additional pruning to ease the strain.  Indeed, if you can normally prune in your climate at this time of year I would suggest that you prune it back pretty severely.

Top off with compost and, if you normally do so, mulch. Fertilize it at the beginning of your growing season with your other plants.

Is this clear? Does it make sense? Please feel free to ask any additional questions.  

Best wishes,

Donna