Rose beginner: what fertilizers do you use and which months?

6 years ago

Hi all!

I have a garden for the first time and am planning to grow roses. I'm trying to figure out which fertilizers to use and when. So far, I've learned that I should use a high nitrogen fertilizer in march and no nitrogen fertilizer in october. I should also alternate between chemical and organic fertilizer. I should also use alfalfa.

So I came up with the follow fertilizer regime:

February: Compost as mulch

March: High nitrogen fertilizer: alfalfa

April: Maxsea bloom: 3-20-20

May: Maxsea all purpose: 16-16-16, Compost as mulch

June: Maxsea bloom: 3-20-20

July: Maxsea all purpose: 16-16-16

August: Maxsea bloom: 3-20-20, Compost as mulch

September: Maxsea all purpose: 16-16-16

October: No nitrogen fertilizer: bone meal

November: Compost as mulch

whew that's a handful. Rosarians, I'd love to hear your fertilizing experience and any advice on this setup (my area is temperate and we are not planning to spray)

Featured Answer

oldrosarian

6 years ago

I always use fish fertilizer for my spring food for the roses. Commercial fertilizer usually contains too much nitrogen for a rose.Then I go to anything organic. If you have nice rich soil, (I wish) then you could get away with very little fertilizer. But unless you garden in heaven, no such luck. Fertilizing depends where you garden. Warm climates don't need as much nitrogen because their climate helps to activate growth. If you have a cold winter ( covered in snow) then you can use more nitrogen to help the rose start growth. You don't need a fertilizer specified for roses. You will pay extra for it. Any fertilizer that has the three numbers low first and the last higher than both, it is fine for roses. and of course any organic type fertilizer is good, but usually expensive.

Too much nitrogen on a rose bush will make the rose throw up new canes which pleases a gardener. It also pleases fungal diseases and insects. When a fungal spore lands on a nice soft new canes, it grows well. Insects love nice, new soft growth. Probably because they don't use dentists.

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Comments (11)

DVS inFL (Zone 9a)
6 years ago
Depends on how I feel. Fish fertilizer, granular fertilizer (slow release), Epsom salts (ya, I know It's voodoo at best), alfalfa and cottonseed mix, all covered up with earthworm castings.
DVS inFL (Zone 9a)
6 years ago
oh...lime too, on occasion.
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Most organic fertilizers are much lower in all three constituents than their nonorganic counterparts. They still tend to provide enough nutrients that it counteracts the lower percentages. The article that BorS provided a link to addresses this issue. The last paragraph sums it up best when it says: "Compared to synthetic fertilizer formulations,organic fertilizers contain relatively low concentrations of actual nutrients, but they perform important functions which the synthetic formulations do not. They increase the organic content and consequently the water-holding capacity of the soil. They improve the physical structure of the soil which allows more air to get to plant roots. Where organic sources are used for fertilizer, bacterial and fungal activity increases in the soil. Mycorrhizal fungi which make other nutrients more available to plants thrive in soil where the organic matter content is high. Organically derived plant nutrients are slow to leach from the soil making them less likely to contribute to water pollution than synthetic fertilizers." Don't be concerned with duplicating the exact NPK numbers in your organic fertilizer with those that are synthetic.
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tiffystation
Original Author
6 years ago
Thank you for sharing your experience. I joined a rose society and was able to find more information. This site really helps for anyone else that wants to know: https://scvrs.homestead.com/RoseCareInfo.html
Jim F (Zone8/PNW)
6 years ago
Hi tiffystation,

Honestly, that looks like too much fertilizer to me. Unless the maxsea product (I'm not familiar with it) is a liquid, in which case you may be okay. In Washington the rose society recommends a feeding of balanced granular fertilizer in April (we prune around March 1), another in June and one in August. You can supplement with rotted manure or compost any time and a feeding of alfalfa between April and June. That seems to be more than plenty.

I think some people over-fertize. When I go to the rose shows I often see roses on the benches that remind me of the grossly over-developed men you might see at a Mr. Universe contest. There is such a thing as foliage and stems that are too large and losing their proportion and gracefulness.
tiffystation
Original Author
6 years ago
Thanks for your input Jim! I read some pages recommend 4-6 weeks so I could lean closer to the longer end. Maybe my rose society recommends monthly since we love in a foggy, low sunlight city?
Jim F (Zone8/PNW)
6 years ago
If your rose society recommends it then it's probably not far off the mark. If it seems a bit overwhelming at any point I think it's always okay to simplify things. Sticking with a balanced fertilizer (nothing wrong with 5/10/10 or 20/20/20) applied with some regularity is going to produce good results.
littlesmokie
6 years ago
I agree that seems like a lot of fertilizer (and work for you!)

I embrace “feed the soil” vs worrying about precise NPK numbers. I’ll throw around a couple cups of whatever organic granulated fertilizer around each mature rose— aiming more for the drip line, not right against the base— then top dress with compost. I alternate brands/formulas because I feel the variety of ingredients is beneficial (offers varying amounts of bone meal/feather meal/bat guano etc) I add a handful of alfalfa, substitute mushroom compost for regular compost, or add worm castings.

I’m also in PNW & my routine is similar to JimF above...prune (as early as) presidents day, first fertilizer tax day (April 15) & fertilize again after main first flush. Some years I mange to get a last fertilizer end July/early August.

For quite a few years I used to sprinkle timed release osmocote fertilizer around roses with first feed. I feel like I have less midge damage without it. (As oldrosarian mentioned above I think that higher nitrogen fertilizer pushed out quick soft tender growth because that’s always where I’d first see aphids & midge.)

I know you’re asking about fertilizing but honestly over the last 20(?) years obsessed with roses I believe breaking up clay/building soil with compost and finally adding drip irrigation to make sure my roses were well watered during our dry summers has achieved more than any special fertilizer ingredient/formula/regimen.
Al Mitchell zone 5b (ameri2nal)
6 years ago
High Nitrogen is no good. Home depot sells bags of 10-10-10 for cheap. One handful per plant 2x per year is all mine get in addition to the wood chips that are slowly decomposing as mulch on top. Consistant water is at least as important as feeding.
tiffystation
Original Author
6 years ago
Thank you all for your replies. I really appreciate it! This really helps.

I've decided on mulching with compost 4x a year and fertilize 3x a year. This seems more balanced.
Heather Bender
6 years ago
I have done every cottonseed/alfalfa/bat guano/compost/potash/organic & otherwise regimen imaginable over the past 25 year her in OC CA. I get great results with decomposed cow manure and Epsom salts applied 2x a year and a product called Rose Magnum. Can be used as a foliar spray as well as root zone drench. New growth over night (for me this is true). No chemicals in my yard for over 20 years and I still get some rust & back spot but that is usually plant specific, and I don’t focus on it much anymore. Overall healthy plants are much more important. I currently have 26 bushes.

Rose beginner: what fertilizers do you use and which months?

oldrosarian

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DVS inFL (Zone 9a)

DVS inFL (Zone 9a)

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Rose beginner: what fertilizers do you use and which months?

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