Strictly speaking, they are small shrub roses. They stay low and creep out. Their dense branching can suppress weeds, secure slopes and transform entire areas into colorful carpets of flowers.
Characteristics
- Plant family: Rosaceae
- Habit: prostrate, broad, upright, bushy, with overhanging shoots
- Heights of growth: 25-100 cm
- Foliage: dense, shedding leaves
- Flowers: in clusters, different colors, mostly double, light fragrance
- Flowering period: from late spring to frost
- Main flowering time: June
Site conditions
Roses are true sun worshipers and should therefore be as sunny as possible. As long as there is enough light, they are content with a place in partial shade. They love open areas, the air should be able to circulate well at all times, so that the leaves can dry off quickly after a rain shower. She particularly dislikes hot places, and neither does she like drafts.
Soil claims
Regardless of the variety, the ground cover rose needs a well-drained, deep, medium-heavy, loamy to clayey, humus and nutrient-rich soil. A pH value between 5.5 and 6.5 is ideal. If necessary, the soil must be prepared accordingly. It should be loosened up well without bringing up the bottom layer of soil. A heavily compacted soil must be loosened more deeply, otherwise there is a risk of waterlogging. Green manuring can also be useful. What you should try to avoid is to plant roses where there were already roses.
Note soil fatigue
Soil fatigue occurs especially in rose plants when the same species are planted one after the other in the same location. The direct vicinity to some types of vegetables or fruit trees can also be problematic. The new roses grow poorly, only sprout weakly and the formation of flowers is also significantly restricted. It is all the more important to go to the right location when planting
respect, think highly of. Otherwise, only a very generous exchange of the floor will help. Even after more than ten years, roses do not grow well on rose-tired soil.Tip: Mixing larger amounts of the rose-tired soil with healthy soil is not enough. On the other hand, a green manure u. a. be with marigolds and yellow mustard.
Planting instructions
When it comes to planting, a distinction is made between different root qualities. This refers to bare-root goods as well as container or potted goods. While container roses have grown in pots, bare-root roses do not have a ball of soil.
time
Ground cover roses are best planted in autumn until the onset of frost. So they can take root well until the next season. If the soil is frost-free, planting is still possible between December and February. Some hobby gardeners prefer spring, i.e. mid-March to May. In general, bare-root roses should be planted immediately after purchase. Short-term interim storage should not exceed 3-4 days. Container goods can be planted almost all year round, as long as the soil is frost-free. Cuttings are an exception, they are usually planted in summer.
Planting in the bed
- Water the root ball independently before planting
- Shorten bare-root plants above the grafting point
- when planted in autumn approx. 35 cm
- in spring about 20 cm
- also shorten the roots a little
- No shortening necessary for container plants
- Dig a planting pit at least 40 cm deep and wide
- If necessary, mix the excavated earth with a little rose earth
- no compost or other fertilizer for planting
- Loosen the soil well in the planting hole
- Insert the ground cover rose in the middle
- Fill up with excavated earth, press the earth down
- The finishing agency must be approx. 5 cm covered with earth
- Water regularly after planting and for weeks afterwards
After the rose has been watered, it is advisable to pile it high enough with soil that about a hand's breadth is still visible. The pile should protect them from sun, wind and frost in the beginning. Man
only remove it when the rose has sprouted another ten centimeters.
In the planter
- Bucket should be at least 40 cm deep and wide
- Drain holes in the bottom of the pot for good water drainage
- First equip the pot with drainage
- made of potsherds, gravel or expanded clay
- Plant pruning as when planting beds
- Fill the bucket with a part of rose earth
- Insert the rose and fill in with soil
- Planting depth corresponds to that in the bed
- Open the pot carefully several times while filling it
- to fill up possible cavities in the root area
- Then water the ground cover rose
- replace the earth after about three to four years
Plant spacing
The planting spacing for ground-covering roses varies depending on the variety. Basically 40-80 cm resp. two to five plants per square meter or two specimens per linear meter are recommended. Flat-lying and bushy growing varieties should be at least 40 cm apart. Those with arching overhanging side shoots should be based on the respective height of growth. For an extensive ground cover, three to five plants are recommended for small-stature varieties and two to three plants for rather vigorous-growing ones.
Tip: When it comes to planting spacing, care also plays a role, because the larger they are, the more weeds can develop. If the plants are too dense, it will be difficult to care for them, for example when loosening the soil.
to water
Immediately after planting, watering is carried out thoroughly and then in the following weeks or months. regularly in the first year. Later, you only have to water when it is hot and dry in summer, ideally with water that is low in lime. Care should be taken to pour only on the root area and not over the leaves. With a layer of mulch on the root area, the moisture can be kept in the soil longer. However, you should only mulch in summer from the second year onwards.
Fertilize
The first time you fertilize when the ground cover rose has grown and the fresh shoots are about 10-20 cm long. You distribute 80-100 g rose fertilizer per square meter and rake it in. Existing roses are supplied with fertilizer in the same way in early spring. Between May and the end of June, an additional dose of 40-60 g per square meter may be useful. Long-term fertilizers should only be given in spring. Delayed administration in July can lead to frost damage over the winter.
Tip: An undersupply of nutrients should be avoided because it can encourage infestation with lice, fungi and other plant diseases.
Cut
The ideal time to cut is in spring. Persistent frosts are then usually no longer an issue and the roses begin to sprout. In particularly mild locations, blending can also be carried out in autumn.
- Generally every three to four years
- remove frozen, sick, dead and wild shoots in spring
- shorten all others by about two thirds
- Cut about five millimeters above an outer bud
- Cut off one or two old main shoots to encourage new growth
- more radical cut every four to five years
- Cut back up to 15 cm
- Regularly remove dead flowers
Overwinter
Ground cover roses are hardy, but should still be protected from the cold and frost, especially in the first winter. To do this, they are piled up about 20 cm high with soil, compost or bark mulch before the first frost. Alternatively, you can cover them with fir branches. The winter protection should be removed from around the middle / end of March. If you leave it on the plant for too long, it can rot.
Multiply
Cuttings
- best time during the growing season
- between June and early August
- cut from this year's fresh shoots
- at least one flower at the end of the shoot should be open
- Medium range cuttings are best suited
- each cutting should have 2-3 eyes
- Cut off the shoot tips including flowers and buds
- Remove all leaves except for the top one
- finished cuttings about the length of a pencil
- Put one at a time in pots with potting soil
- only one eye and the top sheet should still look out
- Press the substrate lightly and pour on
After watering, the pots and the cuttings are covered with a plastic cover and placed in a shady place. The cover should be removed every one or two days, the whole thing ventilated and, if necessary, refilled. If a new shoot appears, the rooting was successful and the cutting can be transplanted into the garden a few weeks later.
Cuttings
- Lumber propagation during the dormancy period
- Cut cuttings between October and November
- use only mature wood
- Divide the woody shoot into 17-20 cm long cuttings
- then defoliate completely
- stick directly into the ground at its final location
- If necessary, lean soil with sand before sticking
- uppermost eye should look out of the earth
- Keep the soil moist from now on
- Fleece cover protects against frost
Fungal diseases
If the roses are too dense, too wet or if the air cannot circulate properly, fungal infections can occur. This can be rose rust, star soot, powdery mildew or bark stain disease. As a rule, infected parts are cut off into the healthy wood and the plants are treated with an appropriate fungicide.
Aphids, rose wasp, rose wasp
Damage from the most common pests can be seen primarily on the leaves and buds. Here, too, it is advisable to cut off infected parts of the plant and dispose of them. Sprayings with preparations containing neem oil help against aphids. Otherwise, approved pesticides against sucking insects can be used for combating.
