What types of roses ....?

13 years ago

I live in the eastern panhandle of WV. It's a new home, and I'm new to this area. I have prepared a bed for planting roses in the spring 2011 [allowing it to ripen over the winter]. The soil is very heavy in clay, and the bed I've prepared is on west southwest side of my house. I added some manure, and my husband tilled and loosened the soil a lot. What else should I do?

What types of roses will grow best in the bed I've described above? I need something deer-resistant, as I live in the Blue Ridge Mountains, and deer walk thru my yard daily. I want lovely roses that I can cut and make bouquets in my home, so I'm not crazy about tiny tea roses, parade roses, etc. Also, not too fond of the knockout roses, that have only one layer of petals ... they do not look like real roses to me, the kind I grew up with in NY state, full, fragrant and generous blooms.

Any help or suggestions on this?

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Comments (6)

roseseek
13 years ago
First and foremost, roses are NOT deer resistant. Period. Unless you can barricade them from gaining entry, you'll never have any flowers. When I worked at the beach here in Los Angeles, all of my clients were removing their roses in favor of Iceberg. Not because it resisted deer, but because the average HT required months to recover from the munchies and re bloom. Iceberg could do it in about six weeks there.

Repellants work...IF you use enough of them and do it religiously, but they STINK and are expensive. Even if you have to make the place look like Stalag 17, do yourself a favor, invest in a TALL, sturdy fence and leave the deer to forage everyone else's gardens. Otherwise, take a look at junipers. They are resistant.
User
Original Author
13 years ago
Thank you for giving me that information. I did plant some junipers, in a different garden bed, and they seem sturdy and look nice.
I frequently browse on the site, Bluestone Perennials (http://www.bluestoneperennials.com/b/bp/index.html?id=ptRKVqiX), and they are very good about telling which plants are and are not deer-resistant. I haven't actually ever ordered anything from them, but I do learn a lot on their site about soils, pests, etc.
Thanks for your response. I'll re-think my roses. So far, I've had terrific luck w/ my hydrangeas; we'll know more in the spring. The deer seem to have ignored them, so far.
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roseseek
13 years ago
You're welcome! If you like them, they are zone appropriate and you have the correct conditions for them, you'll find deer avoid azaleas, too. It sounds as if you have a perfect opportunity to create gorgeous gardens using these and never have to worry about the deer. I am in SoCal, have no deer and would LOVE alpines, various colored and textured conifers, azaleas, hydrangeas, Japanese Maples...we always want what we can't have! LOL! Good luck!
User
Original Author
13 years ago
I used to live in so. CA, i 29 Palms.... had the most gorgeous roses I've ever had! They were planted on the south side of my house, and they loved all that sun!
I do love azaleas, so that's a good suggestion. I truly, truly love lilacs, too, so I'll check on those, to see if the deer like them. They'd be beautiful in the spot I had prepared for the roses. However, they take a little longer to get big enough to produce lovely flowers, I think.
User
13 years ago
ha, not that much longer.
Xtal in Central TX, zone 8b
13 years ago
Well, I was blown away to walk out one morning to see a deer inside the fence. I just sat there quietly so as to see if jump the fence. It didn't even take step before it jumped over it. Wow. But, imagine my disappointment to see that it had chewed off the rose bush WITH ALL THE THORNS! It sure left me dumbfounded.

I hear that you stand a better chance if you make a planting around them with definite plants that deer do not like, such as rosemary. Any stinky/fragrant leaf is avoided. But, it takes so danged long for rosemary to grow up around them.

Good luck.
Xtal