Preparing the roses for the winter is also part of the winter preparations in the garden. There is a lot of uncertainty: should you cut the roses again? Does fertilizer harm in autumn? And how do you pile up a plant? Our guide shows you how to care for roses in winter.
Roses are very susceptible to fungi, bacteria or diseases. In addition to protection against frost, the focus is also on ensuring that the rose survives the winter without diseases. When cutting and fertilizing, keep in mind the principle: less is more. The best time to winterize roses is at the earliest in late October, better in November.
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Care for roses in winter
- Do not fertilize : Roses do not need a winter supply of fertilizer, on the contrary: if the plants are fertilized too late in the year, the roses will sprout and bloom again, but the shoots are not winter-proof and thus represent a weak point for the rose. You should at the latest in July fertilize the last time. Tip: Some rose lovers swear by patent potash, which is supposed to strengthen the plant fibers and make them more resistant to care for roses in winter.
- Cut sparingly : The rose pruning in autumn should be done after the last bloom and never shortly before the first frost nights. Only cut roses sparingly in autumn, as freshly cut roses are more sensitive to frost and more easily damaged. In the fall, only damaged shoots are removed so that diseases, fungi and bacteria do not become a breeding ground.
This is how autumn pruning works with roses:
- If two shoots are touching, remove one – otherwise the drive can be damaged by friction, pathogens can penetrate.
- Cut all shoots to about a height. Lower cut shoots act like a leak, through which the rose bleeds and can lose as much plant sap.
- Remove all dead wood and the remaining leaves on the shrub. Also collect the leaves that have already fallen to the ground. This prevents the spread of diseases .
Important : Do not cut back roses too much in autumn and leave at least 2/3 of the shoots. The best time for a topiary is in spring. You can use the forsythia as a guide: As soon as it blooms, you can start with the rose cut. Read here what you need to consider when pruning roses.
- Piling up the trunk: Pile up the trunk or shrub about 10 to 20 centimeters high with a mixture of topsoil and leaf compost. Avoid peat or bark mulch. Then cover the mixture with leaves, straw, moss or brushwood.
- When piled up, the rhizome and especially the grafting point are protected from frost . However, this is much higher for standard roses and is located at the transition from the stem to the crown. Wrap the finishing point for stem roses well with breathable material. The area should be protected, but not moldy.
- Frost protection for roses : The combination of winter sun during the day and frost at night is particularly dangerous for roses in winter . Therefore, the crowns of the roses must also be protected, otherwise the shoots will be damaged by dry winds and cold temperatures . Simply wrap wide jute sheets around the entire plant or put a jute sack over the crown. Specialist protective covers for roses are offered in specialist shops .
- Alternatively, you can wrap or stick dense branches of conifers around the shrub so that the plant is protected. You can also put small twigs in the crown, especially with ordinary roses.
Winter rose tubs
Roses in flower pots need special care . Since there is no soil surrounding the rhizome here, these roses must be specially prepared for winter.
How to winterize tub roses :
- When buying, make sure that the flowerpot is made of frost-proof material .
- Place the flower pot on a thick wooden board or piece of styrofoam . This insulation prevents the root ball from freezing from below.
- Wrap the flower pot thickly with jute cloth. This is how you create additional frost protection for the root ball .
- Pile up the stem and protect the finishing area with a jute ribbon for stem roses.
- Protect the crown with brushwood, jute cloth or a burlap sack.
Protected in this way, your roses are well prepared for winter.
