Moosrose ∗ The 10 best planting and care tips

Characteristics

• Scientific Name: Rosa centifolia 'Muscosa'
• Synonym: Moss rose, Provence rose
• Rose Group: Centifolia (Rosa x centifolia)
• Family: Rose family (Rosaceae)
• Growth type: deciduous shrub
• Growth form: overhanging, sprawling
• Growth height: 100 cm to 150 cm
• leaf: pinnate, serrate
• Flower: semi-double
• Fruit: rosehip
• Hardiness: hardy
• Use: natural gardens, cottage gardens

growth

the moss rose is an unusual variant of the Centifolia Rosa x centifolia, also known as the Provence rose. Centifolia are one of the historical rose varieties that inspire with lavishly filled flowers. Rosa centifolia muscosa surpasses other centifolia with one detail worth seeing. Buds, flower stalks and sepals are covered with ruffled leafy outgrowths and green oil glands. This makes these parts of the plant look like moss, which is what the name moss rose refers to. in the 18th and 19 For centuries, moss roses were an integral part of traditional cottage gardens. Today, the wildly romantic beauties are experiencing a revival thanks to these growth characteristics:

• growth type: large rose bush with once blooming, semi-double pink flowers, moss-covered buds, sepals and stems.
• growth habit: upright, bushy-expansive, overhanging.
• growth height: 100 cm to 150 cm, rarely up to 200 cm.
• growth width: 70 cm to 120 cm, rarely up to 150 cm.
• root: deep rooter
• Horticulturally interesting properties: hardy, easy to care for, healthy leaves, bee-friendly, ecologically valuable, heavily prickly, non-toxic, intensely fragrant, long flowering period, pruning not obligatory.

blossom

Rosa muscosa combines its majestic growth habit with these flower characteristics:

• flower shape: semi-double, hemispherical, mossy calyx.
• flower arrangement: in clusters.
• flower size: 4 cm to 10 cm in diameter.
• flower color: pink
• special feature: exudes a spicy scent.
• heyday: once blooming from June to July, Moss Rose varieties bloom from June to September.

Thanks to the semi-double flowers, wild bees, beetles and other pollen-gathering insects won't go away empty-handed when they visit a Provence rose. Pollinated, hermaphrodite moss rose flowers turn into red rose hips with numerous seeds, which hungry birds greatly appreciate as a winter food source.

Sheet

Decorative moss rose leaves with these characteristic features serve as a green canvas for the pompous blossom festival:

• leaf shape: stalked, imparipinnate.
• leaflets: elliptic to ovate with serrated leaf margin.
• leaf color: green, slightly glossy.
• sheet arrangement: opposite

use

Since the World Rose Convention inducted the Moss Rose into its Hall of Fame of Top 10 Rose Varieties, its use in home gardens has picked up speed again. The following table of ideas would like to inspire you where and how you can impressively stage the fairy-tale splendor of flowers:

plant moss rose

In tree nurseries and garden centers you can buy bare-root or potted moss roses from around 12 euros. Rosa muscosa planting is cheaper after propagation by cuttings. Best planting time is in autumn. Where and how to plant a moss rose correctly, read these tried and tested tips:

propagation

June and July is the best time for rose propagation cuttings. Overwintering under glass promotes growth and flowering. How to do it right:

1. Cut off an annual or this year's branch with no buds.
2. As a cutting, cut out a 15-20 cm long center piece (intersection just below or just above a leaf).
3. Defoliate the lower half of the moss rose cuttings and place them in pasture water for 48 hours.
4. Two-thirds of each offshoot in loose, well-drained potting soil plug and pour.
5. Keep slightly moist in a bright, warm spot, none rose fertilizer administer.
6. Moss rose cuttings bright and frost-free from November to March hibernate.

Location

These are the ideal conditions for a moss rose:

• In a sunny to partially shaded location.
• Airy, rain-protected location for best leaf health.
• normal garden floor with a pH value of 6.5, preferably humic, loosely permeable and freshly moist.

Extra tip: When choosing a location, act according to the rule of thumb: "Moss rose is never planted after Moss rose or other roses". Due to soil fatigue, there is one for all varieties of roses crop rotation Highly recommended for ages 5 to 7.

planting

The correct planting technique depends on whether the moss rose is bare-rooted or potted. The following planting tips explain what really matters:

• preparation: bare-rooted moss rose for 24-48 hours, place potted goods in water for 5 minutes, loosen the soil deeply.
• Plant cut root material: shorten all shoots by 10-15 cm, cut back roots by 1-2 cm.
• Plant cutting container rose: not mandatory.
• planting depth: Plant the grafting site 5 cm deep in the ground, plant ungrafted moss roses as deep as before in the seedbed or pot (observe the soil mark on the shoots).
• planting distance: solitary 1.20-2.00 m, hedge 80-100 cm.
• pile up: After planting, bare-rooted roses should be piled up to two thirds of the growth height compost soil.
• In the pot: Moss rose in 40 cm high tub in rose soil plant out over a drainage expanded clay.(€19.00 at Amazon*)

Please do not put rose fertilizer or compost in the planting hole. The fact that you excavation enrich with a handful horn shavings(€9.00 at Amazon*) for an extra portion of nutrients.

digression

Rosenthal Sanssouci – homage to the moss rose

Maintain moss rose

The moss rose is easy to care for. Water and nutrient supply as well as pruning care and overwintering are at a beginner-friendly level. The best care tips for Rosa centifolia muscosa to read:

Pour

• Water moss rose as needed when the soil is noticeably dry (finger test 1-2 cm deep).
• Ideally, water less frequently and thoroughly (30 l/m²) instead of small amounts every day.
• Important: Always pour irrigation water directly onto the root disc (leaf moisture attracts pathogens).

Fertilize

A planted moss rose fertilize you in two stages. That is how it goes:

• At the end of March and the end of June, administer a special rose fertilizer according to the manufacturer's instructions.
• Natural gardeners fertilize with compost, horse manure, bark humus or horn shavings.
• Regularly mulch with nettle leaves, straw, lawn clippings or compost.
• Douche the root disk with potassium-rich comfrey manure increases winter hardiness.
• Do not fertilize a moss rose from August so that the rose branches mature.

Organic rose fertilizer provides moss roses with the right nutrient combination of nitrogen, potassium and phosphorus in harmony with nature.

To cut

Moss roses bloom on perennial wood. A pruning is therefore not obligatory. It is best to cut moss roses like shrub roses that once bloomed. A detailed cutting tutorial you can here read. Speed ​​readers will learn all the important aspects in these tips:

• Thin out the moss rose bush at the end of February, remove withered flowers and rosehip mummies.
• After the flowering period, cut back all long shoots that protrude from the moss rose.
• Rose Scissors just above one Eye start, ideally as derivative cut.

How easy it is to cut a moss rose, see the following video:

James the Gardener explains how to cut roses once they have bloomed

hibernate

All moss rose varieties are grateful for this light winter protection:

• In November, pile up the flower stalks to a height of 20 cm.
• Stick needles into the ground around the moss rose bush.
• Place potted roses on wood, mulch with straw, cover the container with fleece or jute.

diseases and pests

Fungal diseases and pests have a hard time on a robust moss rose. If the historical beauty of the rose is granted a location that is protected from the rain and bathed in air, you will be over mildew, blackspot or aphids rarely have to complain. For this reason, moss roses should never be watered from above with the watering can spray attachment.

Popular Varieties

These magnificent rose varieties have emerged from the historic moss rose (Rosa centifolia muscosa):

• Rosa centifolia muscosa 'Rubra': historic moss rose variety with violet-red to crimson, lavishly double flowers and a particularly long flowering period from June to September.
• Mme de la Roche Lambert: rare, rich pink moss rose, flowers multiple times from June to September, height of growth 100-150 cm.
• Nuits de Young: darkest moss rose born in 1845, flowers from June to July with black-red, bulging flowers, height of growth 100-150 cm.
• Mousseux Ancien: legendary moss rose vintage 1825, flowers once with lilac-pink, densely moss-covered calyxes, height of growth 100-120 cm.

FAQ

Are moss roses suitable as cut flowers?

Moss roses make excellent cut flowers. For a long shelf life as a lush, romantic bouquet, cut flower stalks with closed and half-open buds. Before placing in the vase, cut each stem diagonally with a sharp knife. This complementary cut ensures optimal water absorption. If you change the flower water every two to three days, you can keep the nostalgic blooms for weeks in a bright location that is not too warm.

Is the moss rose multi-flowering?

Most moss roses bloom once, like all old rose varieties. The flowering period usually extends from June to July or August. A few moss rose varieties are multi-flowering. This includes, for example, the historic variety 'Mme de la Roche Lambert', which diligently replants with pink flowers from June to September.

My moss rose is not blooming. What to do?

As a rule, two reasons are responsible for the failure of a moss rose flower. Pruning back in spring will remove most of the buds that have formed on perennial wood. For the once-blooming rose, the time window for pruning does not open until August, when all the flowers have withered. The second cause is an incorrect supply of nutrients. Commercially available fertilizers contain too high a nitrogen concentration and too little phosphorus. Phosphorus is the most important nutrient for lush flowering. In the future, fertilize with a special rose fertilizer.

Should you cut off wilted blossoms from a moss rose?

For aesthetic reasons, you can clean out wilted moss rose blossoms. Since this is a rose variety that blooms once, pruning does not encourage reblooming. Furthermore, in the fall you will look in vain for the bright red rose hips that make up all rose varieties with single or semi-double flowers.