Getting Started With Planting Roses on Your Balcony

Getting Started With Planting Roses on Your Balcony

Part 2

What a beauty of healthy rose flowers on a balcony. Photo Courtesy of Tips Make

In this week’s article, we pick it up from where we left it last week. I hope that you have done all the preliminary preparation and reading about planting roses on your balcony and you are ready to get started with implementing what you have read about already. So, how do you get started?

Now, suppose you have gotten a good container with the right soil mix and chosen the right roses; the next thing is to actually procure the roses. Sometimes they are sold in container seedling pots or as shrubs without the pot and with roots only. In the case of the later, it is advisable that you submerge the root system in water before they can be transplanted. As for the former, loosen them up by pouring in a little water and then plant them just as deep as they were in the former pot with the whole soil mound around its roots.

At this point, keep them for a while under a shade. Ensure that they are watered regularly and sufficiently. After a few days, the roses can start to be introduced briefly to the sun and then returned to the shade until they are healthy and have adapted to the new environment. Then they can be placed in the sun since roses cannot flourish under shades. Ensure the roses get about seven hours of undisturbed sunlight and depending on where you put them, it may be necessary to move them in relation to the position of the sun. Also ensure that they are well spaced if you decide to plant a cluster of roses in pots. 

Watering the roses frequently but with moderation is a must thing to do for them. Care should be taken to ensure that the water doesn’t wet the leaves as that may mean promoting powdery mildew on the plant. Drip irrigation can best help in the plant avoiding wetness of leaves which promotes fungal diseases. After about three weeks after transplanting, the stems are ready to be fertilized. One thing to understand is that roses feed heavily and as such should be continually fertilized for more bloom. The fertilizer to be used should be liquid mix which can be procured from local sellers. Solid fertilizers should be avoided since they can burn the root system especially if used in the first year.

Other things to do to ensure the roses are fine include regular pruning to dead head. This is important because it shapes the plant and regulates insects which bring disease. Root pruning is needed to keep the plant small. After many years and should any noticeable decline in regards to blooming be observed, it is high time to transfer the plant to a larger pot. Otherwise the soil in the pot needs to be changed after about 2 to 3 years on regular basis.

The advantages of growing roses on the balcony include the easy maintenance now that the bushes are small, additionally they add aesthetics to the house especially when they have flowered. The sweet-smelling aroma from the flowers ensures the environment in and around the house is good.

In case one notices that the roses have started withering, it means that the roses have been attacked by insects. The most common ones are aphids which suck juice from the plant leaving them to die off. By the aphids attacking the plants, they make them susceptible to attack by fungal diseases which can be fatal. Once you notice these small insects, one should spray them off and fungicides may be employed although it is best to avoid them if possible.

Roses love a warm environment. For the places that are in the winter, once the cold season knocks in, a few measures can be taken to ensure survival of the plants. One of them is the use of mulching which is placed on the pot to insulate the plant against heat loss. When this approach is used, caution should be taken to ensure the mulch is not wet and does not touch the plant.

Another option is burying the plant in such a way that a wire mesh is raised around the plant before straw and leaves are used to cover it but also in such a way that the plant is protected from not getting affected at the crown area. It is not the best of methods but it can often help. Yet still other people prefer to put their plants inside their houses which is a very good choice.

For the summer, the roses must be cared and watched closely so that they don’t get scotched under the hot rays of the sun. This simply means that the type of roses one chooses to plant must best be adaptable to the seasons of the year around that area if the maximum value can be harnessed from these potted plants.

The best feeling lies in coming from work or a tiring day of business to a richly welcoming balcony full of sweet-smelling aroma of rose flowers and a wonderful sight to behold. All in all, roses will remain roses, they will find place in our family tables and will take a large part of our hearts.

Now you are ready to plant roses on your balcony or backyard by extension and you will have found a new purpose to keep you going.

End.

Copyright@2021

Geoffrey Ndege

Geoffrey Ndege

Geoffrey Ndege is the Editor and topical contributor for the Daily Focus. He writes in the areas of Science, Manufacturing, Technology, Innovation, Governance, Management and International Emerging Issues. For featuring, promotions or support, reach out to us at info@dailyfocus.co.ke
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