Question
Thanks for offering your help. I just put in my first 9 own root roses, first year plants I got through mail order. They are very healthy looking and have been in the ground since 4/18 of this year.  I am wondering whether I should let them bloom with first blooms or pinch them off to allow better plant development.  I am using fish emulsion liquid fertilizer every 2 weeks as the grower recommended. Just wondered if I should forgo the first blooms in favor of plant strength. Thanks for any help you can shed.

Answer
Roses are programmed to grow a certain way. Some make tall, thin bushes, others make short fat bushes. It has been proven that taking off the flowers really doesn't make the rose grow better. Growth also depends on the weather, if you get a very hot summer that will slow their growth down. If the weather stays normal, then they will grow faster. Roses only have problems growing when they go under stress.
Fish fertilizer every two weeks encourages excessive growth for a new rose as it is a lot of food. I think you will find that once a month is better because you want a slow growing sturdy bush. It is only the chemical companies that advise you to feed a lot of food to a rose but this makes lots of softer type growth which insects are attracted to. Your roses will do well on slow and steady type of food. A mulch of any kind you can get in your area, is a wisdom because roses love cool, damp roots and the mulch protects them from any hot weather which will put new roses under stress. It also saves on constant watering. The new thinking nowadays id to let your roses grow for a couple of years before cutting them back by about a third. If your winter is very cold, then let them grow and get strong for three years before cutting back.