Roses Before the Freeze

It's like this every year - in the last weeks before the deep freeze season begins in earnest, the roses give one last show and in some cases, they produce the most beautiful blooms of the year at this time. For all that's said about how fussy roses are, I don't find them to be that way and even if I did, their gorgeous blooms would make them worth it to me.

Orange mini, with Mum 'Rhumba' in the background

An unknown mini

Red unknown mini

'Lavaglut'

'Lavaglut'

'Lavaglut'

'Cinco de Mayo'

'About Face'

'Ebb Tide'


'Disneyland'

'Disneyland'

These photos were taken within the last month or so, with the exception of 'Disneyland', which was taken at the end of September. I included it just because it's so pretty. :-)

To assure that these return next year, I make sure they've gotten a good watering, then I pile the mulch up around the base to a depth of 4-6 inches. When it starts to warm in the spring, I pull the mulch away. I never prune them any shorter than 18 inches, if possible, since there's always the possibility of that much die-back over the winter. I wouldn't prune them at all, except I want to guard against the wind whipping the canes around.