How to get hundreds of rose plants for minimal cost? (flowers, landscape)
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I have a somewhat large area that is currently growing all kinds of weed plus poison oak. I have been planning to turn the place over and make a rose garden. The intended plant area is about 5000 sqft. I think I can use many hundreds of rose plants. With this volume, obviously buying from Home Depot is not economical.
So I have been propagating my own rose plants with cuttings, and having some success. Some of my cuttings have bloomed nicely in just 3 months! I think I can create a few hundred plants this way in one or two seasons.
But I have another problem. I currently only have about 6-7 rose varieties in my garden. If I propagate entirely from these plants, seems it maybe a bit too boring, even though I can fill up the place with colors. I would like to get as many varieties in the mix as possible.
So my questions are this:
--How can I get some quality rose cutting for minimal cost or even free?
--Is there any exchange operation out there?
--Or do people just give it away?
--Or do people mind others taking some cuttings at pruning time?
Landora - pretty rose!
See where the city gets their flowers for public areas. Befriend a nursery. Join garden club. Propagate...
Hundreds of roses won't be cheap. What about other ornamentals?
Sea of roses might look boring too. Make it more interesting...
Some gravel/step stones, nice pergola with sitting area, plants of different heights and colors...
I love the yellows.
Beautiful plant there. I would think joining a garden enthusiast club in your local area would be the first step if you aren't already part of one. You might have more luck for an exchange of cuttings.
There are so many varieties of roses. Wishing you lots of luck!
I have a somewhat large area that is currently growing all kinds of weed plus poison oak. I have been planning to turn the place over and make a rose garden. The intended plant area is about 5000 sqft. I think I can use many hundreds of rose plants. With this volume, obviously buying from Home Depot is not economical.
So I have been propagating my own rose plants with cuttings, and having some success. Some of my cuttings have bloomed nicely in just 3 months! I think I can create a few hundred plants this way in one or two seasons.
But I have another problem. I currently only have about 6-7 rose varieties in my garden. If I propagate entirely from these plants, seems it maybe a bit too boring, even though I can fill up the place with colors. I would like to get as many varieties in the mix as possible.
So my questions are this:
--How can I get some quality rose cutting for minimal cost or even free?
--Is there any exchange operation out there?
--Or do people just give it away?
--Or do people mind others taking some cuttings at pruning time?
Do you have a local social media account like Facebook or Nextdoor? There is usually a garden club around or even just a seed/plant swap subgroup. If not, you can usually start one. Just post that you are interested in getting/trading plants or cuttings with someone.
Maybe walk around your neighborhood, and if you see a rose bush that you like, ask the homeowner if you could take a cutting or two. (Personally, if someone approached me about my rose bush, I wouldn't mind them taking a cutting or two. But I would supervise.)
Maybe BUY one or two rose bushes that you like, and take cuttings from the new rose bushes?
Or maybe even this...
Go to your local florist, and buy single roses that you like. Put the stem of the rose in a potato. When you see new growth on the stem, plant the stem in the dirt, potato and all. (I've never actually done this, but I read about it.)
Check out this video. Now that I have successfully propagated a few individually, I think I can do 100-200 in one batch, and get my number in one to two seasons. I just need varieties.
Yes I will buy a few new roses, and it will be nice to add other plants; but mainly I need to do a lot of propagating to control cost, and roses are what I have now.
I'm a rose enthusiast and former president of a rose society. I even won some trophies at shows. Based on that experience, I'll offer a few things to think about.
As mentioned, acquiring some 500 plants in a variety of cultivars is going to be challenging.
The 5,000 sf plot will have to be cleared of vegetation. Mowing or trimming around 500 plants isn't practical.
Roses need a large hole to develop a good root system. Unless your soil is especially loose and rich, it will have to be amended with compost or manure. Figure 125 bags of compost to go in 500 holes 2' wide by 2' deep.
Mulch. You can get free mulch from tree-trimming companies--they'll dump a chipped tree in your driveway. The pile I got was six feet high and the length and width of my one-car driveway--but it wouldn't have come close to mulching 5,000 square feet. It also mildewed after a few days. What is the plan and budget for mulch and how will you get it around the roses?
After planting comes maintenance.
Water. Will the city let you water the roses during a drought?
Fertilizing. Hybrid teas and floribundas are heavy feeders and need to be fertilized a few times during the growing season. If you're near water, you should be careful the fertilizer doesn't end up there. What will you use and how often? Cost?
Weeding. It looks like plants grow enthusiastically in your yard even without soil amendments and fertilizer. Are you going to hand-weed or use mechanical or chemical controls?
Dead-heading. Spent blooms need to be snipped often to keep the plants looking good and encourage more blooms.
Disease control. This is going to be a challenge in a humid environment with hundreds of roses growing next to each other. If one gets rose rosette virus, it'll spread like wildfire, and there's no cure for it. What is your plan and budget for controlling pests and diseases?
Pruning. Every year, cut out dead wood, crossing canes, and shorten the plant. All of those thorny canes have to be bagged up and hauled off. At 10 minutes per plant, this will take two solid weeks of stoop labor.
Replacement. Some of these plants are going to die every year no matter what you do.
Succession.
No matter how well this garden is planned, executed and maintained, it is going to be a liability when selling your house. Hardly anyone wants to take care of a large rose collection, and such gardens are out of style in favor of casual, more natural looking landscapes--much like your back yard pretty much as it is. (Have you considered simply replacing the poison oak with flowering native shrubs, adding some well-adapted flowers and cutting a few paths through the vegetation?)
Just a few things to think about. Talk to your local rose society and see if they swap cuttings. And pay a visit to some native gardens and parks in your area. They're very beautiful.
Don't forget that many commercial rose varieties are grafted. That means the cutting you take is grafted onto a more disease resistant plant that is already rooted. Those cuttings that you root directly, instead of grafting onto the tougher plant, might grow just fine, but if they are susceptible to diseases in your soil they won't last very long.
Or instead use wild multiflora rose which grows like a weed and has strong roots. But you will get an impenetrable thicket and the flowers are small.
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