Fertilizing roses. Give them enough to eat!

Successful flowering of roses includes a solid fertilization schedule. After all, you expect a lot of roses, so give them enough to eat. Although I have heavy clay in my garden, I still fertilize my roses three times a year.

There is much debate going on about fertilizing roses, typically should it be organic or not.  I do a little of both.

This is how I did it this year . In spring (March) I gave the roses artificial manure (12-10-18) This is the fertilizer that farmers use. In Holland it is for sale everywhere.

After the first flowering, usually late June, they get organic rose fertilizer. This year I read in the book "Met groene vingers en zwarte handen”(With green fingers and black hands) of Ineke Greve that she gave patent kali ( Patentkali ) to her roses after the first flowering. I had this fertilizer in storage. By way of experiment, I gave them patentkali last week. (The first bloom is just ended because of the cold spring).

In the autumn (September) I would like to give the roses well rotted manure. Because this is very hard to come by these days I give them Culterra. (www.culterra.nl) An organic fertilizer. In autumn preferably the roses should not grow so fast, because rapid growth is disadvantageous. The roses should be hardend off for winter.

Fertilize always before it starts to rain, otherwise you have to water them with the garden hose! And who likes that?

And then the question, how much should I give them? My father taught me: a hand by each plant!

                                      romantischerozentuin.nl

Rose 'The Pilgrim'

Yellow roses in my garden.

Handful of Patentkali.

Handful Culterra.