Tips to properly water rose bushes

Rose bushes want a lot of water

Rose bushes are one of the easiest ornamental plants in the world to care for: they live in a wide variety of climates, they do not usually have major pests or diseases, and the most interesting of all is that they produce beautiful flowers every year.

However, irrigation is a task that can be difficult to master, since the frequency of irrigation will be determined by some factors such as the weather, the soil, the type of rose bush, the wind and the temperature in the area where let us cultivate them. That is why we are going to offer you some tips for watering correctly your roses.

When and how should rose bushes be watered?

View of the rosebush

Rose bushes are shrubs, some climbers, that live wonderfully in temperate climates, where summers are mild or on the contrary warm, and winters with weak or moderate frosts. They are plants that have been used for a long time in the decoration of gardens and terraces, since the flowers they produce have an unparalleled beauty.

To be really well, you don’t need much: just sun, some small pruning and more or less frequent watering. Focusing on the latter, I am not going to fool you: it is not too easy to know when to water them and when not, but it is not complicated either .

For now, you have to know that one of the most common mistakes in growing roses is to think that they want a lot, a lot of water, which does not have to be entirely true, as it will depend especially on the weather. For example, if the summer is very hot and it hardly rains, it will be necessary to water it often since the soil or substrate will dry out quickly; but if, on the contrary, it rains frequently, then the waterings will be more widely spaced.

In addition, excess watering causes damage to the roots, and consequently also to the rest of the plant. Leaves that turn yellow and end up falling quickly, flowers that do not finish opening, or even the appearance of insects that cause pests are some of the most common symptoms that they have when they are watering too much. What to do to avoid it?

Here are a few tips that will help you:

  • It is important that during the first year of planting the rosebush, let’s not neglect wateringsince the roots are not very deep and if they do not have the necessary amount of water, the plant could die or not get to develop and flower properly.
  • During the winter time, when it has no leaves, it will not need us to water itas long as it is planted and it rains regularly. If, on the other hand, we have the rose bush in a pot, we must water it a little from time to time so that the roots do not dry out.
  • It is important that let’s avoid waterloggingthat is, water our rose bushes to the point where the water runs out and a puddle forms. The excess of water instead of helping our plant to grow and flourish, will rot the roots to the point of killing the plant. Watering the rose bushes a lot is a common problem so we should try to water little and feel the soil to know how wet it is.
  • We must make sure to water our rose bush early in the morning, or at sunset in the afternoon. Irrigation should not be done during the middle of the day or during the hours when the sun falls strongly as it could cause injury to our plant.
  • When watering, we should only water the soilNo water should fall on the flower or the leaves, as this would favor the appearance of fungi and diseases. You can apply irrigation at the foot of the plant, with a watering can or drip irrigation. The use of a hose is not advisable, unless you put a specific hose gun on it, with which you can regulate the water output.

What are the symptoms of excess or lack of watering of the rose bushes?

The rose is a flower that wants a lot of water

Irrigation is essential to take care of the rose bushes, but if it is done badly, that is, whether it is overwatered or if, on the contrary, we let the soil remain dry for a long time, it will have problems. So let’s see what are the symptoms of excess and also those of lack of watering and what to do to solve it:

Excess irrigation

The most common symptoms are:

  • The lower leaves turn yellow and fall off.
  • Young leaves turn brown.
  • The plant looks ‘sad’, wilted.
  • The roots can rot, so growth is slowed or suspended.
  • The stems may begin to blacken.

To do? In this case, you have to prune the parts that look bad, treat with fungicide to prevent the appearance of fungi, and suspend watering until the earth dries up.

If we have it in a pot, apart from doing what we have just explained, we must remove the plant from it and wrap the root ball or soil bread with absorbent paper and leave it like that overnight. Then, it will be planted in a new pot -with holes- and new substrate.

Lack of irrigation of the rose bush

The most common symptoms of lack of water are:

  • The leaves lose color and shine, turning yellowish first and then brown starting at the edges.
  • The flowers abort.
  • The land will be dry. If we have it in a pot, the substrate may have dried so much that it has become unable to absorb water.

What to do? The fastest way to correct the problem is by giving it a good watering, but before that you have to aerate the soil a bit. With the help of a hand hoe, or with a fork if we have it in a container.

If your rose bush is in a pot and has suffered from a lack of watering, put it in a basin of water for half an hour to rehydrate it.

The rose bushes last all year

We hope that these tips to properly water your rose bushes will help you .

Tips to properly water rose bushes

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