Question
QUESTION: Dear Lynnette,

I bought two rose bushes about a month ago and transplanted them from their original wrappings. One bush is doing great but the other is fastly drying up. The good one is now producing clear green leafs that are propagating rapidly. I water them both regularly. The other one has turned brown and even though I have cut the dried out part off, I see that it has dried and turned brown all the way through. I did not buy it that way. I live in the Central Time Zone. What do you feel might be happening here? Thank you so much for your time and response.

ANSWER: I'm afraid that you did buy a rose that was either dead or dying.  Plus it isn't anything you have done to make it die. Roses can have canes that look nice and green but they are dead inside because when a rose gets snapped by cold, the canes can stay green on the outside. Then you plant it in your garden and the inside finally comes to the outside and the canes show brown and dry up. If you can, take the rose back to where you bought it and get a replacement as it was definitely dead when you bought it.

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QUESTION: Lynnette, I wanted to also ask about the good rose bush that is growing now. Should it be fertilized or given rose food and if so, how often? Also, how frequently should the new rose bush be watered? Thanks again in advance for your answer.

Answer
Most roses need nutrients every month until the end of July when they need time to have a rest or get ready to go through a cold winter. So giving them a sprinkle of any rose fertilizer all around the base each month will make them healthy and grow well plus produce flowers for you. because this rose has been taken out of the garden center and planted into a different area, I would make sure it gets watered well every three days. Then you can soak it well every 5 days unless you get a hot spell in the summer and you will be back to the two day schedule. All you are doing is just making sure the soil is damp but not soaking. Using a mulch spread all around the base is a good idea because it gives the rose what it really likes and that is cool, damp roots. Also saves you some effort as the rose will say damp much longer and so not need as much watering.