Rose Gardening Community

I recently dug up 5 rose bushes from my parents yard before the house was sold and I want to transplant them into my own garden. They are currently in pots. Some have new greenery on them - but two look completely bare and 'dead'. What is the best way to give them all a chance to reestablish in our garden. We live in Abbotsford, (outside of Vancouver, BC Canada) Thanks.

Prepare the soil with topsoil, compost, well aged manure and a handful of bonemeal. Plant and keep well watered until the bush has established itself. don't worry about the dead looking roses, they may be alive. Treat them the same and you may see some growth either this year or next spring. Don't fertilize this year other than liquid fish fertilizer.

Thank you. I have already seen new growth and the roses are still in pots - one has even flowered! I'm delighted. Another question. I took one of the roses, a climbing rose, to our cabin at the Lake. The Zone is 3 and it too has started to show signs of life. Anything special I should do to prepare it for a hard winter. Do I need to cover it? It is in the ground with lots of mulch but in an open exposed area. Weather at the moment is very dry, hot and cooler nights. Winter could find it under 3-4 feet of snow. Frost could hit as early as September.....

Hi Carole,
I am also getting ready to move my parents rose bushes to my sisters garden. Should we prune the bushes before we dig them up? These are old bushes and the roots I suspect are very deep. What happens if we can't get them all?

hello carole
Yes, I would mulch it very well, up to 1.5 feet around the rose stem itself. You could bend the canes down to the ground and then cover with cloth.