My answer to the title question is thick (2"-3") organic mulch over compost, and if I'm mixing in fertilizers or other amendments, I only mix the top inch or so. I like hay mulch for my veggies and shredded yard waste or city mulch for ornamentals. As the mulch deteriorates, it helps build up the soil. It does break down rapidly here - usually only lasts a season before needing to be replenished. Pine bark mulch lasts the longest, IMPE.

When setting out fruits & veggies, I dig a hole that's a bit wider and deeper than the root ball and add fertilizer and compost to the bottom of the hole. For all transplants, I soak the root ball and fill the planting hole with compost tea or Maxicrop seaweed extract, mixed according to directions.

Do you have any leaves? If not, get the best composted manure you can afford. For roses, I like Black Kow, but any good, composted manure will do. It has to be composted or it will burn the roots! That's why I only buy the bagged compost. We used to use organic peat, but it's not sold anymore.

Dig the hole twice the size and 3 inches deeper than the root ball. If it's bare root, that's another story. I'll put that into a separate post. Put enough manure into the bottom of the hole to lift the root ball up to about an inch above the top of the hole. Fill the hole with water TWICE and let it soak in.

Add back about 1 inch of the soil you dug out, then 1 inch of manure, repeat until the hole is half full, then fill the hole with water and let it soak in. Layer like this until you are about one inch from the top of the hole, then fill with water twice and let it soak in. Fill the last inch with manure.

Take the handle of your shovel or a stick and poke it into the soil all the way around the plant many times to make sure there are no air pockets. Add native soil to the top and tamp down well with your foot. Add mulch but DO NOT LET IT COVER THE GRAFT. If you do, the top will die.

After it's mulched, water the mulch well so it doesn't suck up moisture from the soil

The manure will feed the plant until it's established, so don't fertilize for at least 8 weeks. Water every other day for two weeks, three times a week for two weeks, two times a week for two weeks, then once a week every week you don't get one inch of rain. You can fertilize after eight weeks.

Every year, remove the mulch and add 3 inches of compost (can be homemade) or manure around from the dripline to within one inch of the trunk. Replace the mulch and water well. This will replace the organic matter that disintegrates in the soil.

I get horse manure twice a year. I also had leaves from a banyan and sausage tree.... as well as the flowers that drop from the sausage tree..... The earthworms love the flowers....

At one time I read to put down cardboard to keep grass out.... that DOES NOT work here in Florida. We have grass that grows from rhizomes that just come up through the cardboard..... but I do find if I put down cardboard in spring and then put the leaves over it the leaves will not only stay in place better, but the ground will stay moister and does not turn hydrophobic as much.... I also have a problem of hydrophobic soil if I don't water often.

I admire anyone who can grow roses down here. That is my favorite from childhood in NY.

One more thing. In your zone, roses are terribly hard to grow. I tried growing them in 10a, and it was just too much work. Also, what kind of "own root" roses are you planting? There are only certain varieties of roses that will grown on their own roots, and those are all heirloom roses, also called old garden roses. I'm not sure they will grow at all in your zone. Where did you get these roses? If you brought them from up north, just save yourself some money and toss them in the dumpster now. I saw a man once haul a whole uhaul full of roses down here from Ohio, and nothing we could do would convince him they would not grow. Six months later, they were all dead from the heat, humidity and nematodes.

I don't necessary think roses are hard to grow here as long as we get the right roses.... yes we have different challenges.... but for example we don't have to worry about winter kill and spring dieback.... and I have seen people who have lots of work to prepare their roses for the winter.... some cover them, some put up little fences to prepare them.... and others have drag pots into garages so they don't freeze.... I haven't really lost any roses from humidity or heat.... I have not lost any roses to nematodes since I learned NOT to use roses that are grafted on Dr. Huey... I admit that those roses should be considered annuals ... or at least they were in my yard, though I do know others here in Florida who have bought them and have had them for several years.... they still live in South Florida but were able to treat their ground for nematodes before planting

@dirtygardener, I am getting own root, David Austin English shrub and climber roses. All of which are vetted by David Austin for Zone 10b, shade, heat and humidity. All of which have a least some resistance to Black Spot if not better. Some also have resistance to powdery mildew as well. When you buy from DA direct, there's a great warrantee so long as you pick the right varieties, and follow their planting instructions or better. I'll be documenting with pictures as I go - cause it's fun to do so, and so that if the roses do not succeed - I can either get a different or replacement. It's really hard to get DAs on Fortuniana root stock these days, now that DA has set up it's own distro here in the states (Cool Roses used to distro for DA here in Florida - grafted onto Fortuniana). Now unfortunately, that is no longer an option.

Yes OGR or OGR heritage for sure. The best rose I ever had was Prosperity, a white, hybrid musk bred around 1919. Unfortunately, we had back to back hurricanes hit us within 2 weeks. Took out trees and the arbor, smashing the 20' climber to the ground. In my ignorance at the time... I shoveled the remains thinking it was surely dead. It likely wasn't. I could have hard pruned the splintered canes back to 3 foot or so, and installed a new arbor. Ah well... I learned. Miss that rose.

I'll be planting them north-east facing, for the drying breezes and morning sun. Many will be protected at least somewhat from the afternoon scorching sun. All spots will get at least 5 if not 6, hours of sun (varies between winter/summer of course). All except the big climbers, will go in giant pots I'm making. They are 55 gallon, food grade, plastic drums which I have cut in half, then painted a light brown/terracotta color. There's about 4" of styro chunks at the bottom of each container (drainage), a layer of kraft paper then potting soils-etc. The insides are lined with small cell bubble wrap so no roots will touch the potentially hot sides of the container. Grin. Pots will be sitting on top of Concrete blocks that are partially sunk in the ground, drain holes drilled on lower sides - not on the bottom. Pots will not be touching soil, but set above with airflow underneath for more cooling.

I'm putting an extra foot between roses, accounting for mature width +1'. I'm not 'stacking' roses with one behind another one either - each section of bed is only about 4 to 6' deep so I can get to all sides for pruning, and so those breezes and morning sun can dry off the leaves ASAP. Taller perennials will be planted around, in ground, to mound, create borders, backdrops and 'hide' the little bit of concrete that is above ground. Early am, hand water, roots only... until I am done 'adjusting' any spacing/pots. Then the drip irrigation will go in. It's a huge task... but since I've had to clear down to bare ground - why not? There will not be a better time to do something creative and fun.

I have outdoor light poles and outdoor string, greenhouse sized, LED GROW lights to use in any section of bed where roses might need a little extra boost during winter. (I sound like I grow pot or something, but I don't... lol). The electric is already in ground.

@sharon2079, Nematodes are a battle for sure. My back patio veg garden (not only raised bed... but raised up on TABLES so there's NO chance of fabric grow pots touching the ground... and I still got Root gall nematodes (obviously from a plant I brought home instead of growing from seed...). After trashing all those plants to the far back woods... I then baked all that soil, in my oven at 325 degrees for 2 hours. The fabric grow bags got tossed. I've now used Monterey Nematode control on the veg garden beds and on the back yard and side yards where we have the most grubs, moles. The front yard where the rose garden is getting installed isn't that bad - yet last week I put down 3 different kinds of live beneficial nematodes to go eat any grubs, bad nematodes, fly larvae, etc. I'll treat again in the fall after the roses are established.

Hopefully, I've more than covered any questions. At least so far. There's a lot I am still thinking about, asking questions, reading the forums here. I'm super thankful to the many great gardeners and rosarians who are graciously advising on what's worked for them, what's not... etc.

Kimberley, growing them in pots is going to stave off the nematodes for awhile at least. Too bad you can't get them on fortuniana, but if they're OGRs, they should at least have some resistance to nematodes. Nematodes will come right up through the holes in the bottom of your pots, but having the styrofoam in the bottom should help deter them, because like all nematodes, once they are out of the moist soil, they die rather quickly.

Please let us know how it goes. If you follow my instructions for planting the ones in the ground, that should be enough organic matter to keep the nematodes somewhat at bay. I gave up on roses, because they are so labor intensive. I did grow miniatures in pots for awhile, but they don't ever last for me. I'm just not a rose person. My only rose is a Louis Phillippe, because they're so easy.

Kimberly Wendt (Florida Z. 10b)Original Where did you purchase the good nematodes. I have been looking on line and was actually planning on getting some. I think there is a product that has 3 in one.... it is has various strains of good bacteria, good fungi, and good nematodes.

Do you think that when you did this last year it helped alot? I had some flooding from the Intracostal (brackish saltwater) and I think it killed my soil in one of my rose beds. I have been adding leaves and mulch, but thought if I added this then it would build back soil faster.

@sharon2079: Sharon, Interesting questions and dilemma. I got the nematodes from Arbico Organics (www.arbico-organics.com) on the advice of Pam at Angel Gardens (Own Root OGR, DA rose nursery near Gainesville, FL). Pam has been super helpful to me. Nice lady, who didn't mind talking to someone she didn't know, and who asked her a TON of questions. lol.

I used their 'triple threat' product... the smallest size they have covers about 40'x 40' roughly. Went and bought a 1 gallon, battery-op. sprayer from Harbor Freight. SUPER. Read the instructions and reviews and they will tell you a lot. take the filter screen OFF the sprayer, use non chlorinated water, water the ground FIRST, then spray, then water again (all non chlorinated). Keep the ground fairly moist for a few days. With the one gallon, hand held, I did three sprays for each of the 3 nematode powders included in the triple threat. Easy to do, takes a bit of time. I liked being able to walk around the existing trees (the ones we didn't dig out) and the few remaining bushes, over and around the torn up ground, grass, etc. Depending on when the Austins actually arrive and how long it takes me to get them in the ground. If I have enough time before high summer begins, I'll actually do another beneficial spray 4-6 weeks out from now. We will see. That will really really help. Do not use Monterey's Nematode control at the same time.

I'm using the Control on the South and West of the house, where I can now see/understand WHY there are so many dang white and grey/brown curled segmented grubs. AND moles who are literally digging through the whole back area so that the entire area is tunneled. There's a big infestation there. Didn't really 'understand' that until now. YES it is helping - visible difference on the grubs. Against against the bad nematodes, the measure will be how well things grow in the next ohhhh 6 to 7 months? Comparing say, my yard to neighbors and the like. I liked the Arbico product, keeps in the fridge for about 2 weeks after it arrives. And you do have to use it after you open it, when mixed with water - you have to use within 2 hours. My St. Augustine in the torn up and trampled grass area has re established and started reclaiming ground... within DAYS after I applied the 'wee little buggies'.

I'm no expert by any means - but I'd test that 'dead' soil for salinity levels - and pull those roses out and into fresh pots with fresh compost/soil if possible. Other perennials too. I'd also see if there's a way to prevent that soak up from happening again. I don't know what to do with salt contaminated soils - maybe use them elsewhere, re compost them, or something. If you're on Florida Sand... you might be able to water drench the salt so that it flows out/down thru the sand again. But that leaves you with the same problem for later, doesn't really fix anything. Sea levels are rising, there are homes in Ft. Lauderdale and whole trailer parks, communities that are having salt water soaking up into yards, streets, leaving standing brackish water. It will get worse I think.

I'm on the Earman river and we have a 9' to 12' high river bank. Been here 20+ years. In all the hurricanes, we've never been flooded or had storm surge rise over the top of the bank. And yet... the high water mark is indeed rising - we can see the change year to year. For the last oh... 10 years or so, we've been actively layering grass clippings, leaves...down on the bank, building the bank even higher a few cm's a year. The neighborhood here is all quietly doing the same thing.

I would be really interested in what you end up trying, how it works, and what the final fix is... feel free to message me direct if you wish. (Same goes for anyone... ). Blessings!

@dirtygardener, Yes I'm told nematodes will come up through the holes in the pots. That is why I have the holes drilled on the SIDES, about 2" up from bottom. AND also have the pots themselves, up on concrete cinder blocks - another 3 or inches off the ground. Yes, it will look kind of...'industrial' until the perennials fill in... but well.... a girl's gotta do, what a girl's gotta do I suppose! lol. Yeah, roses are a lot of work. No argument there. But then so are my dang tomatoes! But I'm like Popeye... I loves me spinach (and lettuce and tomatoes)! Grin.

Kimberly Wendt (Florida Z. 10b Thanks for the information. That is the same place I was planning on making my purchase.... but now I am wondering how well it work for because the only water I can water with is chlorinated. I had always wondered if my chlorinated water kills the good "stuff" in the water....

@sharon2079 - You will be fine, with a bit of planning. Figure out how many gallons you'll need to actually spray the 'todes. Fill up enough 5 gallon buckets, pails, etc... with your regular chlorinated water...enough SO THAT you have enough water to spray all the todes, but ALSO enough saved water to water in the 'todes (afterward) using YOUR SPRAYER. For extra good measure, also fill your sprayer tank. Leave all this saved up water uncapped for 24 hours and open to the air. Most of the chlorine will evap/off gass out. (and we are talking miniscule amounts actually, afterall...we are drinking it ourselves). Don't use pool water.

Next day: water your ground like normal (chlorinated regular water) say late at night. Next morning (hopefully still damp?) mix you up some 'todes with the saved/off gassed water. Spray. Mix and spray them all. When done spraying all the todes, then fill up your sprayer with the rest of the saved water and spray the yard to wet in the 'todes. Cleans your sprayer, waters in the nematodes.... easy peasy.

At least that's what I did.... grin.

Um... also spraying nematodes: not a foliar spray... you want to get them onto/into the ground. Spray around the trees, bushes, etc. but not on the trunks... on the ground. The part where we 'water them in' afterward.. is (to my mind) washing the wee little buggies off the blades of grass and such and down onto the actual dirt dirt... so they can wiggle their way into the dirt to do their job. lol. It's not hard at all. For the record: I wore long yoga pants, a T shirt, sneakers, gloves and a basic mask - not hazmat gear.

Um... for the record... I also picked up a Harbor Freight Battery Operated Electric 4 gallon backpack sprayer. A couple gardeners recommended an electric sprayer on here, so I went for one I could afford. This one has a nice sturdy frame, so I can set it in my wheeled garden cart and pull it around. The electric sprayers are heaven. And for those of us working with wrist ligament tissue damage - they are life savers.

Hey FWIW, I have what I think is a Louis Phillipe FL cracker rose that seems to thrive on neglect. It's disease free and seems impervious to RK nematodes. Have you looked into any of those yet?

I got mine years ago at a local garden club sale, unlabelled.

good one. Yes, I know about LP. It's just too crimson for my current hoped for plan. However, it is on the list of possibles. Yours in a beauty for sure. I like it.